Theeyadiappar Temple, MelaiTirukkattupalli
| Location of the temple | MelaiTirukkattupalli (now known as Tirukkattupalli) |
| Lord Shiva known as | Theeyadiappar |
| Female deity known as | Soundara Nayagi |
| Pathigam | Thirunavukarasar – 1 Sambandar – 1 |
| How to reach | This temple is located at about 18 Kms to the west from Thiruvaiyaru. Town bus facilities from Tiruvaiyaru are available to go to Tirukkattupalli. |
| Location map |
Map showing location of Melai Tirukattupalli temple from Thrivaiyaru Map courtesy by: Google Maps |
The temple at Melai Tirukattupalli has a 5 tier Gopuram and 5 prakarams. The sanctum of the main deity is situated below the ground level with a narrow entrance. No one is allowed to go near the sanctum to have a darshan of Lord Shiva. Devotees are allowed to pray and worship the Lord Shiva only from a distance as the Lord manifests Himself in the form of Agni (Fire).
There is a separate shrine for the female deity Soundara Nayagi. The shrine for Lord Brahma is located to the left of main sanctum. There is no separate temple for Lord vishnu in this sivasthalam. There is a separate shrine for Lord vishnu inside the Siva Temple and is known as Srinivasa Perumal shrine. In the 2nd prakaram the sculpture of Dakshinamurthy can be seen. The speciality of this sculpture is that one can see a second image of Dakshinamurthy through a small hole at the base of the idol. This temple got the royal patronage from Chola, Pandiya and Vijayanagara kings.
Festivals: The Panguni Uthiram festival during the full moon day in the Tamil month of Vaikaasi is celebrated with full of pomp and glory. During this time, the main male and female deity come in procession going through all the streets in the small town of Tirukattupalli.