Palani Murugan Temple

There is a legend about how Lord Murugan came to this sacred spot. Narada Muni, a sage, brought a golden mango to the divine court of Lord Shiva when Lord Shiva was seated with his consort Parvati and His children, Lord Vinayakar and Lord Subramanya. Narada gave the fruit to Lord Shiva and implored Him to eat since it was a rare, miraculous Jñanaphalam, the fruit of wisdom. As a loving husband, Lord Shiva gave it to Parvati and requested her to eat. As a loving mother, she wanted to give the fruit to her children. As there was only one fruit and it should not be cut, they announced a contest and said that the winner would be given the fruit. Whoever completes one round of the globe first will be given the fruit.

Lord Subramanya mounted His peacock to go around the world. Lord Vinayakar circumambulated around His parents, symbolizing the world, and got the fruit. On return, Lord Subramanya found that He was cheated. In anger, He renounced His family and came to this spot to settle forever. Lord Shiva and Parvati came to pacify Him. They said, “Pazham Nee” (‘You are the Fruit’). Hence the name Palani is a popular syncopation of the two words mentioned.

The presiding deity, Lord Dandayudhapani Swami, is the son of Lord Shiva and son-in-law of Vishnu. He has other names such as Kulandaivelan, Balasubrahmanyan, Shanmukhan, Devasenapati, Swaminathan, Vallimanalan, Devayanaimanalan, Palaniandavar, Kuriñjiandavar, Arumugan, Jñana Pandita, Saravanan, Sevar Kodiyon, etc. Tamils, Keralites, Bengalis, Sri Lankans, Malaysians, Fijians, Africans, Australians and Americans to name a few come here to worship Lord Murugan. Thus Murugan worship cuts across provincial boundaries and national frontiers.

Cheaman Perumal, a ruler of Kerala, built the main temple perhaps in the 7th Century AD. The Nayaks built the Navaranga Mandapam which is a fascinating stone structure incorporated by four pillars and endowed with nine bays. The other portions of the temple have been built by the Pandiya kings, besides a number of local heads, religious groups and individual devotees.