Marundeeswarar Temple
Tiruvanmiyur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
- Deities
- Marundeeswarar (Shiva), Tripura Sundari (Parvati)
- Traditions
- shaiva
- Worship status
- active
- Coordinates
- 12.9856, 80.2614
- Darshan hours
- Six daily rituals from approximately 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.; consult the temple's own trust/devasthanam for the current schedule before visiting.
- Best time to visit
- Panguni Brahmotsavam (March/April) and Shivrathri (February/March) are the temple's major annual observances.
- How to reach
- Tiruvanmiyur is a coastal neighborhood in southern Chennai, well connected by city bus and the MRTS/suburban rail network.
- Festivals
- Panguni Brahmotsavam (March/April)
- Associated saints
- Appar (Nayanar), Thirugnana Sambandar
Location
Open in Google MapsThe Marundeeswarar Temple in Tiruvanmiyur, on Chennai’s southern coast, is a Paadal Petra Sthalam glorified by both Appar and Thirugnanasambandar in the Tevaram. Shiva is worshipped here as Marundeeswarar, “lord of medicine” — a name devotional tradition links to Shiva having imparted the knowledge of medicinal herbs to the sages at this site — alongside his consort Tripura Sundari. The sanctum houses a swayambu, or self-manifested, lingam. The present masonry structure is dated to the 9th-century Chola period, with inscriptions attesting further patronage under Rajendra Chola in the 11th century and later expansion during the Vijayanagara era.
Behind twin seven-tiered gopurams, the temple’s 36-pillar mandapam houses a Somaskanda image of Shiva, Parvati, and their son Skanda together. Now well within Chennai’s urban southern suburbs, the temple was freshly consecrated (kumbabhishekam) in February 2020 and remains an active site of daily worship under the Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department, with its Panguni Brahmotsavam as the principal annual festival.
Sources
- scripture: Tevaram — 7th-century Tamil Shaiva canon; the presiding deity is glorified by Appar and Thirugnanasambandar, giving this temple Paadal Petra Sthalam status among the 275 shrines of the canon.
- historical record: Cross-checked against Wikipedia's Marundeeswarar Temple article: confirms the presiding deity, worshipped as Marundeeswarar ('lord of medicine'), alongside consort Tripura Sundari; the present masonry structure built during the 9th-century Chola period with later Vijayanagara-era expansion, and inscriptions from the 11th-century reign of Rajendra Chola; twin seven-tiered gopurams; a 36-pillar mandapam housing a Somaskanda image; and a swayambu (self-manifested) lingam in the sanctum. The temple underwent a fresh consecration in February 2020 and is maintained by the Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department.