Thirumanancheri Uthvaganathar (Kalyanasundareswarar) Temple

The name Thirumanancheri tells the story: it is the village of the wedding. The sthala puranam says Shiva married Parvati here, so the Lord is called Uthvaganathar, "uthvaagam" meaning marriage. He also has a lovely Tamil name, Arulvallalnathar.

The story goes like this. Parvati asked Shiva to marry her once more, in the proper way, on earth. Shiva did not agree at once, and the goddess's mind drifted a little. For this, the puranam says, Shiva cursed her to be born as a cow. Vishnu came as a cowherd to tend her. The cow worshipped at many shrines by pouring her milk over the lingam, and in time the curse ended.

The story is woven into the villages around. It is said the goddess was born as a calf at Thiruvavaduthurai and grew up at Kuthalam as the daughter of the sage Bharata. Devotees believe she rose from the sage's sacrificial fire and Shiva married her in this village. Some accounts name the sage as Bharadwaja.

The temple has a separate shrine for Kalyanasundareswarar, where Shiva and Kokilambal stand hand in hand in wedding dress. The goddess's head is bowed a little with a bride's shyness, a sight that moves many who see it.

Manmatha's story is told here too. Burnt by the fire of Shiva's third eye, he was pardoned through Rathi's prayers, and the puranam says he worshipped here and regained his place.

Because a divine wedding is celebrated here every day, the temple is called a nitya kalyana kshetram. The temple tank is the Sapta Sagara Theertham; it is believed the seven seas came here to see the divine wedding. The sacred tree is the karu oomathai. The temple is also noted for having no Navagraha shrine, while Rahu has his own shrine in human form.

Appar and Sambandar sang of this shrine in the Thevaram, and it is one of the Paadal Petra temples on the northern bank of the Cauvery. Accounts say it began as a brick temple in the 7th century and was rebuilt in stone under Parantaka I. Inscriptions from the reigns of Parantaka I and Rajaraja I are reported here; one records a gift by Sembiyan Mahadevi, mother of Uttama Chola, who is said to have played a large part in renewing the temple. A five-tiered gateway tower leads in to a second, three-tiered tower. The outer walls of the sanctum carry Dakshinamurthy, Lingodbhavar and Brahma. A three-day Thirukalyanam festival is held in Chithirai on Poosam star, and Aadi Pooram, Thiruvathirai and Thirukarthigai are also observed with special worship.

Many people who feel their marriage is being delayed come here to pray. The custom is a kalyana archana at the temple's marriage-prayer hall, with coconuts, garlands, turmeric, kumkum and lime. After the puja the priest gives back a garland and a lime, which devotees take home and keep carefully. After the wedding, the couple customarily return together and give the garland back to the Lord. Those praying for a child bathe in the Sapta Sagara Theertham, offer a milk abhishekam to Rahu and offer milk payasam. These are devotional practices based on belief, and neither a marriage nor a child is promised. Please check timings and archana fees with the temple before visiting.