Enkann & Tirukannamangai

7 March'2008:
Enkann is located near Thanjavur and houses the Subramaniyaswamy Temple . The deity is seen on his 'vahana' the peacock, flanked by his wives Valli and Deivane.
The legend has it that once Lord Brahma undertook severe penance and offered pooja to Lord Shiva with all his eight eyes. Since this was done at this spot the temple is also known as ‘Ashtanethrapuram’. The presiding deity here is Bhramapureeswarar (Shiva) although the Arumugaswamy shrine is of greater significance as in Sikkal and Ettukkudi and has been glorified by the Tiruppugazh hymns of Arunagirinathar.
There is another interesting legend associated with this shrine. The sculptor who made the Subramanyar image of Sikkal was awe struck by its quality that he vowed that no other such image should be made, and cut off his right thumb.
He was then prompted by Subramanyar in a dream, to fashion another image for the shrine at Ettukkudi. He followed the instructions in his dream, and when the image was complete, blinded himself so that he could not create images any more.
Another dream prompted him to create a third image of Skanda mounted on a peacock with the aid of kartikai pengal.When his chisel inflicted injury upon her; the blood that gushed forth & splashed over his eyes, and he recovered his eyesight miraculously, and sang praises of Skanda. The first phrase that he uttered upon recovering his eyesight was 'En Kann' - hence the name of the temple.
The sancta to Bhramapureeswarar and Bhramanayaki are east facing. The Shanmukhanathar Deva Sabha is located behind these, facing south. There are also shrines to Dakshinamurthy, Natarajar Sivakami, Kasi Viswanathar, Bhairavar, Arunachaleswarar and other deities here.
The annual Bhramotsavam is celebrated in the month of Thai. Skanda Sashti is celebrated in the tamil month of Aippasi. Other festivals here include Kartikai Deepam, Arudra Darisanam, Maasi Magam VAikasi Vishakam and Aadi Pooram.
The temple is keeping a deer in captivity as a pet. This is indeed sad. The upkeep & maintenance of the temple left much to be desired & plants were seen sprouting out of the Vimanams - a very sad commentary on how our great Hindu Culture is preserved.

Thiru Kannamangai Bhaktavatsalam Divya Desam is located on the Kumbakonam-Thiruvarur road between two rivers – OdamPokki in the South and Virutha Cauvery in the North. Godess Mahalakshmi performed penance in the "Shree Mandapan" of this temple and after having a bath in the pushkarani she gave her hand to Bhaktavatsala Perumal. Hence she is called as "Abishegavalli" and this place is also called as "Lakshmi Vanam. It is believed that Thirupaarkadal Lord called in his security Vishwakshena and asked him to suggest a good day for their wedding. Legend has it that all the Devas congregated here to witness the wedding. They were so overwhelmed on seeing the Lord and Goddess Lakshmi together that they took the form of bees and decided to stay here ever after. To this day, one can find the bees in the Thaayar Sannidhi - a unique feature of this Divya Desam.
As Lakshmi’s wedding took place here at Thiru Kannamangai, this place is called Krishna Mangala Kshetram. Special sculpture of Vaikuntanathan and ‘Vishnu on top of Garuda’ is a feature here. Lord Shiva is said to be protecting the place from all sides. Belief is that one who stays here for a night will attain Moksham. Chandran is said to have been relieved of his curse (by Devas) after his prayers to the Lord here.The Nayak kings are said to have renovated the temple in the 17th century.
Moolavar: The Moolavar of this kshetram is Bhaktavatsala Perumal. He is also known as Bhaktaraavi perumal. The Moolavar is giving his seva in standing posture facing the east. Thayaar: The Thayaar is Abishegavalli.
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