Vaidyanatha Swamy Temple (Vaitheeswaran Koil) - Sevvai (Mars) Temple

Vaitheeswaran Kovil is a Hindu temple dedicated to lord Shiva worshipped as ‘Vaidyanatha Swamy’ (God of healing) and his consort Parvati as ‘Thaiyal Nayaki’. It is believed that prayers to Vaitheeswaran here can cure diseases. It is one of the nine temples for nine planets, associated with the planet Mars. The temple is one of the 276 holy shrines of Saivite saints. It is believed that the planet Mars was suffering from leprosy and was cured by Vaidyanathaswamy of this temple. Lord Murugan was presented with a weapon (Vel) to slay the deadly demon Surapadman, by his mother Parvati. Muruga overcame a fierce demon Surapadman at Tiruchendur and in the war, his army was severely injured. He was directed to pray to the lord here and got cured eventually. The temple has a lot of inscriptions belonging to the period of Kulothunga Chola I (1070-1120 CE).

This temple is the nerve centre for ‘Naadi Josiyam’, a popular form of astrology. The great ancient sages of India had the power to look into the past & the future of the entire universe and had written these predictions on palm leaves. Though it is not true to its name, people have their try here in anxiety to know their fortunes. These predictions can be deciphered by expert Naadi astrologers only. A dip in the holy tank of this temple is believed to cure all diseases. It is also a local activity to dissolve jaggery in the waters and then healing oneself with prayer will cure skin diseases. Tonsure for the first time to the children is done for their good health. The practise of pouring salt and pepper in front of the temple mast and in a pot near the temple tank is also followed. Unlike other temples in South India, where each shrine has a priest, each priest in this temple associates himself with devotees and performs worship on their behalf in all shrines.