Mars is also called Mangala. Mars is also called Angaraka, meaning one who is red in colour. He is considered as the son of Bhumi, the earth goddess. He is the god of war. Generally, vaitheeswaran means ‘God of healing”. It is said that types of 4000+ diseases can be cured if prayed the Lord Vaitheeswaran. One of main highlights of the temple is the Lord faces the west. A devotee has the value of visiting and worshipping 1000 shiva temples if he/she worships the Lord faces the west direction. Another higher highlight of the temple is the Lord Graces as the Swayambumurthi.
A medicinal ball is given to devotees contains
• anthill sand
• abishek water
• the neem leaves
• abishek sandal
It is believed that consumption of the medicinal ball brings total relief for any deadly disease. The punugu oil is given to those suffers from types of skin problems. A medicine prepared with ash, anthill sand and oil is a beneficial medicine for leprosy. Lord Murugan got HIS Vel in this Holy place only. It is said that Lord Rama has worshipped the Vaitheeswara here. The place of Mars (sevvai) in the horoscope determines the marriage scenario and other areas. Special pujas are performed here for those facing adverse effects in the life. Normally, people frequently visit the temple to get out of the debt traps, joint paints and to success in land deals.
The Lord Muruga is always worships His Divine Father Shiva and Mother Parvathi here. Mother Thiyaga Nayagi ensures the welfare of the children. So, children need to visits the temple. Angaraka blesses the devotees by sitting on His Goat(vahanam). Those who want to excel in the medicinal field, requires to worship the Mars. It is very important to note the point that Vaitheeswaran Kovil is the 16th Shiva temple located at the banks of Cauvery praised in THEVARAM. Huge crowds can be seen in the temple on the Tamil and English New Year, Deepavali and pradosha days. Nine planets are worshipping the Lord on a straight line and they are behind the sanctum.
Vaitheeswaran Kovil is treated as Navagraha Temple for planet Angaraka, since the Lord Vaidhyanathaswamy has completely cured the disease called leprosy suffer by one of the nine planets Ankaraku(Mars). Parvati presented her son with Vel to murder the demon called Surapadman as soon as the Muruga appeared before his mother with single face instead of six faces.
The Vaitheeswaran Kovil is protected by
• Lord Bhairava in the east,
• Lord Veerabadra in the west
• Lord Vinayaka in the south
• Mother Kali in the north
In this temple, pujas to the Lord shiva and Mother Parvathi are offered after successful completion of pujas to the Lord Muruga. It is said that when Sage Sadananda has seen a snake trying to devour a frog when performing penance here. As the incident disturbed his penance, he cursed them. Since then, no snake or frog comes near the temple tank.
Vaitheeswaran Kovil is located
• 7 kilometers from Sirkazhi
• 235 kilometers from Chennai
• 27 km from Chidambaram
• 110 km from Thanjavur