Kailasanathar Temple, Kodaganallur

Kodaganallur, a village on the bank of the Thamirabarani river roughly 15 km from Tirunelveli, is the third of the nine Nava Kailasam temples and is associated with Mars (Chevvai) among the Navagrahas in that group’s tradition — distinct from the separate Navagraha temple circuit near Kumbakonam further north in Tamil Nadu.

The temple complex here is dedicated to Shiva as Sri Kailasanatha (Kailasanathar), and Wikipedia’s article on the village, consulted for this entry, dates it to the 12th century and describes it as part of the Nava Kailasam group. The same article records a local tradition that a sacred stone lingam enshrined here was brought from Kasi (Varanasi) by a saint remembered as Gangadhara Swamigal, and notes the complex also houses an Abhimukteswara shrine, five separate Vinayagar (Ganesha) installations, and five further stone lingams, alongside a nearby Adi Sankarar monastery reflecting the area’s broader spiritual history. As with the wider Nava Kailasam group, tradition connects the nine sites to the sage Agastya’s disciple Uromacha Munivar, who is said to have installed a lingam as Kailasa Nathar wherever each of nine flowers set afloat on the Thamirabarani came to rest.

The Wikipedia article supplying the 12th-century date and the Kasi-lingam tradition is itself flagged as needing further citation, so this entry reports those details as attributed to that source rather than as independently confirmed history. The temple’s consort is worshipped as Arulmigu Sivagami Amman, its sacred water is the Thamiraparani Theertham and sacred tree the Vilvam, with worship conducted according to the Kamigam Agamam; local devotional belief holds worship here to be equivalent in merit to worshipping Shiva at the Vaitheeswaran Temple near Chidambaram.

Festivals

The temple observes monthly Pradosham, Margazhi Thiruvadhirai (December-January) and Maha Shivrathri (February-March).

Location & Access

The temple stands near Nadukalloor, about 15-16 km from Tirunelveli Junction bus stand via the Tirunelveli-Mukkudal road. The nearest railway station is Cheranmahadevi and the nearest airport Thoothukudi. The temple observes darshan from about 6:00 AM to 12:00 PM and 4:30 PM to 7:00 PM, and is administered by an Executive Officer registered at Kodakanallur, Cheranmahadevi Taluk, Tirunelveli district. Verify current darshan timings and travel details with the temple or official sources before visiting.