Subramanya Swamy (Lord Murugan) Temple - Tiruchendur

Subramanya Swamy temple in Tiruchendur is one of the most esteemed religious places of south India. Located right on the beach of Thoothukudi district, it attracts lakhs of devotees throughout the year to visit Lord Murugan. It is one of the six sacred abodes of lord Murugan and is the only one along the coast. Other five temples are situated on mountains. Legend goes that one demon by the name ‘Surapadman’ was ruling Veera Mahendrapuri, an island fortress near this place. He was an ardent Shiva devotee though and did many austerities towards the Lord, thereby getting a lot of boons. Later, the demon became arrogant and captured all the three worlds (as per Hindu mythology) heaven, earth and hell. He made the Devas, the heavenly immortals to do menial tasks. Lord Shiva got to know about his activities through them. Lord Shiva opened his third eye with six sparks of fire erupted out from it. These divine sparks were transformed into six babies with the help of river Ganges.

These babies were joined together in one body resulting in Lord Murugan with six faces and twelve arms. When this child grew up to become a young boy, lord Shiva asked him to destroy Surapadman and free everyone obtained by him. Lord Muruga reached Tiruchendur and did battle with Surapadman for six days with Lord as the eventual winner. This is a popular event still popularly happening every year in the local name of Surasamharam (destruction of Surapadman). Having stood for over 2 millenniums, the temple is a splendid example of Tamil architecture. The temple is constructed with red sandstone and presents a panoramic view of the sea and the only Hindu temple with no eastern gateway. The main entrance tower is situated at the Western gateway. The fact that the temple survived the Tsunami in the year 2004, while the nearby structures were damaged, has added mystery and even splendour to the architectural style of the temple.