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Kartikeya
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Muruga" redirects here. For the 2007 film, see Muruga (film).
For the 2014 film, see Karthikeya (film). For Given names see Karthikeyan, Karth
ik, Kartik or, see Karthika (disambiguation).
Kartikeya
God of War and Victory
Commander of the Gods
Subramanya, Murugan
Kartikeya with his wives by Raja Ravi Varma
Tamil transliteration ???????
?????????????
?????????????
Affiliation
Deva
Abode Arupadaiveedu (Six Abodes of Murugan), Skandaloka
Mantra
o? sarava?a bhavaya nama?
Muruganukku Arohara
Vetrivel Veeravel
Weapon Vel, Bow and arrow
Consort Devasena and Valli
Parents Shiva and Parvati
Mount Peacock
Karthikeya (Karttikeya; Murugan, Skanda and Subramaniyam is the Hindu god of war
and form of Lord Agni. He is the Commander-in-Chief of the army of the devas. H
e is also the primary deity of the Kaumaram sect of Hinduism.
Murugan is worshiped primarily in areas of Tamil speaking population. In Tamil n
adu in India, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore
and Runion. His six most important shrines in India are the Six Abodes of Murugan
also known Arupadaiveedu ?????? ???? literally meaning six warhouses, temples l
ocated in Tamil Nadu. Kataragamam temple (Sinhalese Katharagama; Tamil Katirkama
m) in Kataragama, Sri Lanka, is a temple complex dedicated to Kataragama deviyo
(Murugan). It is one of the few religious sites in Sri Lanka that is venerated b
y the people Tamil Hindu Sri Lankan Tamils, Sri Lankan Moors and the Vedda peopl
e.[1] In Bengal, Odisha and Maharashtra, he is popularly known as Kartikeya. He
is known as Subrahmanya, Muruga or Palani Andava in Tamilnadu.[2]
Standing at 42.7 m (140 ft) high, the world's tallest statue of Murugan, a Hindu
deity, is located outside Batu Caves, near the city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The statue, which cost approximately 24 million rupees, is made of 1550 cubic me
tres of concrete, 250 tonnes of steel bars and 300 litres of gold paint brought
in from neighbouring Thailand.
Contents [hide]
1
Other names
2
Historical development
2.1
In Tamil literature
2.2
Vedic and Puranic literature
2.3
Birth
2.4
Puranas
2.5
Legends
3
Symbolism
4
Regions of worship
4.1
South India
4.2
Bengal and Odisha
4.3
Other Parts
4.4
Sri Lanka
4.5
Malaysia
5
Temples

6
See also
7
Notes
8
References
9
External links
Other names[edit]
The several names of Murugan of origin would include the following, Cheyon, Sent
hil, Vela?, Kumaran ("prince, child, young one"), Svaminatha ("ruler of the gods
", from -natha king), Saravanan ("born amongs the reeds"), Arumugam or Shanmuga
("six-faced"),[3] Dandapani ("wielder of the mace", from -pani hand), Guhan or G
uruguha ("cave-dweller"), Subrahmanya, Kartikeya ("son of the Krittikas") and Sk
anda ("attacker").[4][5] He was also known as Mahasena and the Kadamba dynasty w
orshiped him by this name.[6] And the most famous name Kartikeya means son of kr
ittikas, where the sanskrit word krittika means creativity [7]
Historical development[edit]
In Tamil literature[edit]
The Tolkappiyam, possibly the most ancient of the TAMIL literature, mentions kau
jaya "the red one", who is identified with Murugan, whose name is literally Muru
ka? "the youth"; the three other gods referred in the Tolkappiyam are Mayava? "t
he dark one" (identified with Vishnu), Venta? "the sovereign" (identified with I
ndra) and Ko??avai "the victorious" (identified with Kali). Extant Sangam litera
ture works, dated between the third century BCE and the fifth century CE glorifi
ed Murugan, "the red god seated on the blue peacock, who is ever young and respl
endent," as "the favoured god of the Tamils."[8] The Sangam poetry divided space
and Tamil land into five allegorical areas (tinai) and, according to the Tirumu
ruka?truuppa?ai ( c. 400 450), attributed to the great Sangam poet Nakkirar, Murug
an was the presiding deity of the ku?ici (hilly tracts). The Tirumuruka??uppa?ai
is a deeply devotional poem included in the Pattuppa??u "ten idyls" of the age o
f the third Sangam. In the Tirumuruka-?truuppa?ai, he is described as a god of e
ternal youth: "His face shines a myriad rays light and removes the darkness from
this world".[9]
Other Sangam period works in Tamil that refer to Murugan in detail include the P
aripa?al, the Akananuru and the Purananuru.[citation needed]
Vedic and Puranic literature[edit]
The Atharvaveda calls Kumara Agnibhuta because he is form of Agni, who held him
in his hands when Kumara was born. The Shatapatha Brahmana refers to him as the
son of Rudra and the six faces of Rudra. The Taittiriya Aranyaka contains the Ga
yatri Mantra for Shanmukha. The Chandogya Upanishad refers to Skanda as the "way
that leads to wisdom". Baudhayana's Dharmasutra calls Skanda Mahasena "Having a
Great Army" and Subrahma?ya "beloved of Brahmins". The ara?yaparvan (first sect
ion of the third book) of the Mahabharata relates the legend of Kartikeya Skanda
in considerable detail. The Skanda Purana is devoted to the narrative of Kartik
eya.[10] The Upanishads also constantly make a reference to a Supreme Being call
ed Guha, the indweller.[citation needed]
Birth[edit]
Indra gives Devasena as wife to Kartikeya; scene from the Mahabharata.
The first elaborate account of Kartikeya's origin occurs in the Mahabharata. In
a complicated story, he is said to have been born from Agni and Svaha, after the
latter impersonated the six of the seven wives of the Saptarishi (Seven Sages).
The actual wives then become the Pleiades.
The birth of Karthikeya can be traced in the "Tirumuruka -truuppa?ai" (in sanskr
it) which narrates that an asura named Suraabaathman a sincere devotee of Shiva.
He performed severe penance to an extent that Lord Shiva pleased by his austeri
ty and appeared before him. The Lord asked him what kind of boon he required. In
reply he asked that no power in the whole universe should destroy him except, t
han the lord's power itself. Lord Shiva granted the boon to him. After succeedin
g in his penance Suraabaathman begin to torture the humans as well as the devas.
He then conquered the Indraloka (abode of Indra deva) and made him captive.
One day upon losing her husband as a prisoner, Indraani (queen of Indra deva) pr
ayed to Lord Shiva in earth to help her. Meanwhile, Ajaamukhi (sister of Suraaba

athman) was in search of Indraani to produce her as a "prize" for her brother Su
raabaathman as a result of victory of their war against the devas. Ajaamughi alo
ng with her servant finally found Indraani praying to Lord Shiva. She ordered In
draani to accompany along with her as a slave. Indraarani refused and sought hel
p from the Lord. When Ajaamugki forced Indraani to come with her, one of Lord Sh
iva's Gurdian appeared before them and warned Ajaamughi to leave Indraani. After
her refusal, the Guardian cut one of her arms.
Ajaamugkhi then with tears approached her brother Suraabaathmaan and narrated th
e incident that happened. Suraabaathman got furious and vowed to kill devas as a
revenge. The rishis and other deities requested Lord Shiva's help.Then the Lord
accepted their request and opened his third eye . The third eye of Lord Shiva's
power was so intense that all other deities could not stand before. Then the di
vine spark appeared and settled in six lotuses in Saravana lake nearby Ganges ri
ver.
Later the six children in six lotuses was taken care and nurtured by the Kaarthi
gaas (angels of stars) by the order of Lord Agni. The name Kaarthigeya of Lord M
uruga was kept after these Kaarthigaas to honour them by Agni. People in Sri lan
ka and India often celebrates Lord Skanda in Kaarthiga Nakshatra and especially
in Tuesdays respectively.
After he grow into a young boy, the Kaarthigaas handed him over to Goddess Parva
ti. She reunited the six children as one and produced him before the Lord Shiva.
During his childhood Lord Muruga made several corrections in the form of worship
and rules among sages and even Bramha (God of creation). On his way to worship
Lord Shiva, Bramha didn't pay attention to Muruga or greeted him. Lord Skanda be
come furious and stopped bramha and questioned him on the Pranavaa-manthra "OM"
(Universal creational hymn). Bramaha didn't knew the correct answer hence,he mad
e Bramha as captive.The rishis and Goddess parvathi complained to Lord Shiva abo
ut Murugaa's act. Lord Shiva accompanied by others approached Muruga. Then the L
ord Muruga made a play and challenged that even Lord Shiva does not know the rig
ht answer for the Pranavaa -Manthra "OM" (which is based on skeptical philosophy
and had unrevealed secrets only known to Gods). Although Lord Shiva knew the an
swer, to make a play to test his child's knowledge, Lord shiva bowed to Skanda.
Where Muruga is now the teacher (guru) Shiva is student. Lord Shiva listened to
his philosophical teachings related to "OM". This kind of posture can be seen in
temples in Tamilnadu especially in Swamimalai Murugan temple (kumbakonam distri
ct).
Later during his teenage, Goddess Parvathi granted him his unique weapon sakthi
Vel. With this weapon he slained the asura tarakasura, sighnamugasura (lion face
d asura) who are the brothers of Suraabaathman. Lord Murga then killed Suraabaat
hman and turned two halves of his body to cock flag and a peacock. The slaying o
f asura is grantly celebrated in Tiruchendur as "surasamhaaram" in the Tamil mon
th of "i-pasi" annually in Tamilnadu.
Indra, who was captive was released. As an accolade, Indra gave his daughter Dev
asena in marriage to Muruga. The origin of this marriage lies probably in the pu
nning of 'Deva-sena-pati'. It can mean either lord of Devasena or Lord of the ar
my (sena) of Devas.[11] Later he married valli in "thiru -tanaigai-malai"(tiruta
ni)in Tamil Nadu. Both wives are not to be considered as human forms they perfor
med severe penance in their previous birth and reached the position of ichaasakt
hi(power that controls universe) and giriyaa sakthi (power that controls the lif
e forms). In Tamil month of vaikasi the festival (VAIKASI-VISAKAM) VISHAKA Nakas
htra of Muruga is celebrated as his birth day in a grand manner.
References to Murugan can be traced back to the first millennium BCE. There are
references to Murugan in Kautilya's Arthashastra, in the works of Patanjali, in
Kalidasa's epic poem the Kumarasambhava. The Kushan Empire, which governed from
what is today Peshawar, and the Yaudheyas, a confederation in the Punjab region,
struck coins bearing the image of Skanda. The deity was venerated also by the I
kshvakus, an Andhra dynasty, and the Gupta Empire.[10] The worship of Kumara was
one of the six principal sects of Hinduism at the time of Adi Shankara. The Sha
nmata system propagated by him included this sect. In many Shiva and Devi temple
s of Tamil Nadu, Murugan is installed on the left of the main deity.

The Ramayana version is closer to the stories told in the Puranas below.
The story and reason behind the birth of Murugan was explained by Sage Vishvamit
ra to Rama while they were crossing river Ganga on the way to reach king Janaka.
The details are given in Balakanda sargas 35,36 and 37. The story is similar to
that explained in puranas.[citation needed]
Puranas[edit]
Kartikeya (right), Ganesha, Shiva, and Parvati.
Though slightly varying versions occur in the Puranas in Skanda purana, they bro
adly follow the same pattern. By this period, the identification of Shiva/Rudra
that can be traced back to the Vedas and Brahmanas, had clearly made Kartikeya t
he son of Shiva.[citation needed]
narrates that Shiva first wed Dakshayani (also named Sati), the first incarnatio
n of Adi Shakthi the granddaughter of Brahma, and the daughter of Daksha. Daksha
was a Vishnu devotee . Daksha publicly insulted Shiva in a Yagna ceremony, and
Dakshayani immolated herself. The Yagna was destroyed by Shiva's avatar Virabhad
ra. Virabhadra broke the sacrificial vessels, polluted the offerings, insulted t
he priests and finally cut off Daksha's head, trampled on Indra, broke the staff
of Yama, scattered the gods on every side; then he returned to Kailash. Tarakas
ur an asura( although he is referred to as Suraabaathman's brother in Tamil Nadu
) performed severe penance and lord shiva appeared before him what boon he requi
red.Tarakasur wished for a boon that the lord's power can only destroy him.
The Devas manage to get shiva married to Dhakshaini by making Manmatha (also kno
wn as Kama), the God of love awaken him from his penance, but Manmatha incurred
the Lord's wrath indicated by the opening his third eye
"Netri Kann", and being
destroyed and resurrected. Shiva hands over his effulgence of the third eye used
to destroy Manmatha to Agni, as he alone is capable of handling it until it bec
omes the desired offspring. But even Agni, tortured by its heat, hands it over t
o Ganga who in turn deposits it in a lake in a forest of reeds (sharavanam). The
child is finally born in this forest (vana) with six faces: eesanam, Tathpurush
am, vamadevam, agoram, sathyojatham and adhomugam. He is first spotted and cared
for by six women representing the Pleiades Kritika in Sanskrit. He thus gets na
med Kartikeya. As a young lad, he destroys Tarakasura. He is also called Kumara
(Sanskrit for "youth").
Legends[edit]
Goddess Skandamata with son Skanda or Kartikeya on her lap, is worshipped as fif
th form of Navadurga.
Given that legends related to Murugan are recounted separately in several Hindu
epics, some differences between the various versions are observed. Some Sanskrit
epics and puranas indicate that he was the elder son of Shiva. This is suggeste
d by the legend connected to his birth; the wedding of Shiva and Parvati being n
ecessary for the birth of a child who would vanquish the asura named Taraka. In
South India, it is believed that he is the younger brother of the Ganesha. A Pur
anic story has Ganesha obtain a divine fruit of knowledge from Narada winning a
contest with Murugan. While Murugan speeds around the world thrice to win the co
ntest for the fruit, Ganesha circumambulates Shiva and Parvati thrice as an equi
valent and is given the fruit. After winning it, he offers to give the fruit to
his upset brother. But,Lord Muruga refuses in anger he settles in a mount known
as Palani. Many of the major events in Murugan's life take place during his yout
h, and legends surrounding his birth are popular in Tamilnadu. This has encourag
ed the worship of Murugan as a child-God, very similar to the worship of the chi
ld Krishna in north India. He is married to two wives, Valli and Devasena. This
led to a very interesting name : Devasenapati viz. Pati (husband) of Devsena and
/or Senapati (commander in chief) of Dev (gods).
Symbolism[edit]
Sculpture of the god Skanda, from Kannauj, North India, circa 8th century.
Kartikeya symbols are based on the weapons Vel, the Divine Spear or Lance that h
e carries and his mount the peacock. He is sometimes depicted with many weapons

including: a sword, a javelin, a mace, a discus and a bow although more usually
he is depicted wielding a sakti or spear. This symbolizes his purification of hu
man ills. His javelin is used to symbolize his far reaching protection, his disc
us symbolizes his knowledge of the truth, his mace represents his strength and h
is bow shows his ability to defeat all ills. His peacock mount symbolizes his de
struction of the ego. His six heads represent the six siddhis bestowed upon yogi
s over the course of their spiritual development. This corresponds to his role a
s the bestower of siddhis.
Regions of worship[edit]
South India[edit]
Murugan represented as Aarumugam (sixfaced)
Murugan is often referred to as God of Asia and is worshiped primarily in areas
with Tamil influences. Subramanya is also a major deity among the Hindus of Kera
la, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Rituals like nagaradhane are unique
to Uttara Kannada region of Karnataka. Kataragama in sri lanka temple is consid
ered as the most holy abode of Muruga by Asians.
In sri lanka and India , Murugan has continued to be popular with all classes of
society right since the Sangam age. This has led to more elaborate accounts of
his mythology in the Tamil language, culminating in the Tamil version of Skanda
Purana, called Kandha Puranam, written by Kacchiappa Sivachariyar (1350 1420 AD.)
of Kumara Kottam in the city of Kanchipuram. (He was a scholar in Tamil literatu
re, and a votary of the Shaiva Siddhanta philosophy) Lord Muruga is married to t
wo deities, Valli, a daughter of a tribal chief and Deivayanai (also called Deva
sena), the daughter of Indhra. During His bachelorhood, Lord Murugan is also reg
arded as Kumaraswami (or Bachelor God), Kumara meaning a bachelor and Swami mean
ing God. Muruga rides a peacock and wields a bow in battle. The lance called Vel
in Tamil is a weapon closely associated with him. The Vel was given to him by h
is mother, Parvati, and embodies her energy and power. His army's standard depic
ts a rooster. In the war, Surapadman was split into two, and each half was grant
ed a boon by Murugan. The halves, thus turned into the peacock (his mount) and t
he rooster his flag, which also "refers to the sun".[12]
As Muruga is worshipped predominantly in south Asia, many of his names are of Sa
nskrit origin. These include Senthil, the red or formidable one; Arumugam, the s
ix-faced one; Guhan and Maal-Marugan, the son-in-law of Vishnu. Murugan is vener
ated throughout the Tamil years and sanskrit. There is a six-day period of fast
and prayer in the Tamil month of Aippasi known as the Skanda Shasti. He is worsh
ipped at Thaipusam, celebrated by Tamil communities worldwide near the full moon
of the Tamil month Thai. This commemorates the day he was given a Vel or lance
by his mother in order to vanquish the asuras. Thirukarthigai or the full moon o
f the Tamil month of Karthigai signifies his birth. Each Tuesday of the Tamil mo
nth of Adi is also dedicated to the worship of Murugan. Tuesday in the Hindu tra
dition connotes Mangala, the god of planet Mars and war.
He is worshipped as highest god in Sri lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, ,Canada etc.
Batu Caves is a very famous temple of Lord Murugan in Kuala Lumpur
Bengal and Odisha[edit]
Kartikeya worshipped in Durga Puja in Kolkata
Kartikeya also known as Kartik, Kartika or Kartik Thakur, is also worshipped in
West Bengal, and Bangladesh on the last day of the Hindu month of Kartik. He is
the Lord of male-fertility and good harvest. He is portrayed as a handsome with
bow and arrow in hand.Kartikeya is primarily worshipped among those who intend t
o have a son. In Bengal, traditionally, many people drop images of Kartik inside
the boundaries of different households, who all are either newly married, or el
se, intend to get a son to carry on with their ancestry. Kartik is also associat
ed to the Babu Culture prevailed in historic Kolkata, and hence, many traditiona
l old Bengali paintings still show Kartik dressed in traditional Bengali style.
Also, in some parts of West Bengal, Kartik is traditionally worshipped by the de
scendants of the past royal families too, as in the district of Malda. In Bansbe
ria (Hooghly district) Kartik Puja festival is celebrated like Durga puja for co

nsecutive four days. The festival starts on 17 November every year and on 16 Nov
ember in case of Leap year.[13] Some of the must see Puja committees are Bansber
ia Kundugoli Nataraj, Khamarapara Milan Samity RadhaKrishna, Kishor Bahini, Mita
li Sangha, Yuva Sangha, Bansberia Pratap Sangha and many more. In Durga Puja in
Bengal, Kartikeya is considered to be a son of Durga (Parvati) and Shiva along w
ith his brother Ganesha.[14]
Kartikeya in Kartik Puja, Odisha.
Kumara Purnima, which is celebrated on the full moon day after Vijayadashami, is
one of the popular festival dedicated to Kartikeya in Odisha. It is believed th
at unmarried girls worship Kartikeya on this day to get grooms handsome as Karti
keya.[15] Kartikeya is worshiped during Durga Puja in Odisha as well as in vario
us Shiva temples throughout the year. Kartik puja is celebrated in Cuttack along
with various other parts of the state during the last phases of Hindu month of
Kartik. Kartik purnima is celebrated with much joy and in a grand fashion in Cut
tack, Jamadhar, Rekabibajar of Jajpur District and other parts in the state.
Other Parts[edit]
Kartikeya Swami or locally called the Devta "Kelang Wazir" is worshipped near pa
rts of Bharmour as their main deity at Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh. Situ
ated at Kugti Village, which is 10 14 km from Bharmour is the major deity of the t
ribe Gaddi. The temple of Kartikeya Swami is visited every year by thousands of
devotees when the trek is opened in the month of March April.(Covered with snow in
the winters)
Kartikeya mounted on a peacock. Indian painting from 1875
Historically, Kartikeya was immensely popular in the Indian subcontinent. One of
the major Puranas, the Skanda Purana is dedicated to him. In the Bhagavad-Gita
(Ch.10, Verse 24), Krishna, while explaining his omnipresence, names the most pe
rfect being, mortal or divine, in each of several categories. While doing so, he
says: "Among generals, I am Skanda, the lord of war."
Kartikeya's presence in the religious and cultural sphere can be seen at least f
rom the Gupta age. Two of the Gupta kings, Kumaragupta and Skandagupta, were nam
ed after him. He is seen in the Gupta sculptures and in the temples of Ellora an
d Elephants. As the commander of the divine armies, he became the patron of the
ruling classes. His youth, beauty and bravery was much celebrated in Sanskrit wo
rks like the Kathasaritsagara. Kalidasa made the birth of Kumara the subject of
a lyrical epic, the Kumaarasambhavam. In ancient India, Kartikeya was also regar
ded as the patron deity of thieves, as may be inferred from the Mrichchakatikam,
a Sanskrit play by Shudraka, and in the Vetala-panchvimshati, a medieval collec
tion of tales. This association is linked to the fact that Kartikeya had dug thr
ough the Krauncha mountain to kill Taraka and his brothers (in the Mrichchakatik
am, Sarivilaka prays to him before tunnelling into the hero's house).
However, Kartikeya's popularity in North India receded from the Middle Ages onwa
rds, and his worship is today virtually unknown except in parts of Haryana. Ther
e is a very famous temple dedicated to Him in the town of Pehowa in Haryana and
this temple is very well known in the adjoining areas, especially because women
are not allowed anywhere close to it. Women stay away from this temple in Pehowa
town of Haryana because this shrine celebrates the Brahmachari form of Kartikey
a. Reminders of former devotions to him include a temple at Achaleshwar, near Ba
tala in Punjab, and another temple of Skanda atop the Parvati hill in Pune, Maha
rashtra. There is also a popular temple of Kartikeya called Kartik Swami Mandir
in the Panchavati region of Nashik, Maharashtra. In Maharashtra too, women don't
visit Kartik swami temple.
Sri Lanka[edit]
The interior of the Kataragama temple, where a yantra is worshipped rather than
an image of Murugan. The yantra is kept behind a curtain that figures Murugan wi
th his two wives
Kartikeya is adored as Kataragama deviyo (Lord of Katragama) or Murugan by both
Tamil Hindus and Sinhalese in Sri Lanka. Numerous temples exist throughout the i

sland. He is a favourite deity of the common folk everywhere and it is said he n

ever hesitates to come to the aid of a devotee when called upon. In the deeply S
inhalese south of Sri Lanka, he is worshipped at the Kataragama temple, where he
is known as Kathiravel or Kataragama deviyo. Local legend holds that Murugan al
ighted in Kataragama and was smitten by Valli, one of the local girls. After a c
ourtship, they were married. This event is taken to signify that Murugan is acce
ssible to all who worship and love him, regardless of their birth or heritage. T
he Nallur Kandaswamy temple, the Maviddapuram Kandaswamy Temple and the Sella Ch
annithy Temple near Valvettiturai are the three foremost Murugan temples in Jaff
na. The Chitravelayutha temple in Verukal on the border between Trincomalee and
Batticaloa is also noteworthy as is the Mandur Kandaswamy temple in Batticaloa.
The late medieval-era temple of the tooth in Kandy, dedicated to the tooth relic
of the Buddha, has a Kataragama deiyo shrine adjacent to it dedicated to the ve
neration of Skanda in the Sinhalese tradition. Almost all Buddhist temples house
a shrine room for Kataragama deviyo reflecting the significance of Murugan in S
inhala Buddhism.
By the 16th century, the Kataragama temple had become synonymous with Skanda-Kum
ara who was a guardian deity of Sinhala Buddhism.[16] The town was popular as a
place of pilgrimage for Hindus from India and Sri Lanka by the 15th century. The
popularity of the deity at the Kataragama temple was also recorded by the Pali
chronicles of Thailand such as Jinkalmali in the 16th century. There are number
of legends both Buddhist and Hindu that attribute supernatural events to the ver
y locality.[16] Scholars such as Paul Younger and Heinz Bechert speculate that r
ituals practiced by the native priests of Kataragama temple betray Vedda ideals
of propitiation. Hence they believe the area was of Vedda veneration that was ta
ken over by the Buddhist and Hindus in the medieval period.[17]
Malaysia[edit]
Murugan is one of the most important deities worshipped by the Tamil Hindus in M
alaysia and other South-East Asian countries such as Singapore and Indonesia. Th
aipusam is one of the important festivals celebrated. Sri Subramanyar Temple at
Batu Caves temple complex in Malaysia is dedicated to Murugan. Batu Caves in sho
rt also referred as 10th Caves or Hill for Lord Muruga as there are 6 important
holy shrines in India and 4 more in Malaysia. The 3 others in Malaysia are
Kallumalai Temple in Ipoh
Arulmigu Balathandayuthapani Temple, Penang in Penang
Sannasimalai Temple in Malacca
Temples[edit]
The main temples of Murugan are located in Tamil Nadu and other parts of south I
ndia. The Aru Padaiveedu (six abodes) (Tamil: A?upa?ai vi?u) are six temples sit
uated in the state of Tamil Nadu.[18] The god is known by different names such a
s Karthikeya, Skanda, Vadivela and Muruga at various temples.[19] The six most s
acred abodes of Murugan was mentioned in Tamil sangam literature, "Thirumurugatr
upadai", written by Nakkeerar[20] and in "Thirupugal", written by Arunagirinatha
r.[21]
Temple Location (North to South)
Description
Swamimalai Murugan Temple
Swamimalai, kumbakonam Located at 5 km from Kum
bakonam, the temple is built on an artificial hill. The temple commemorates the
incident where Muruga explained the essence of the pranava mantra "Om" to his fa
ther Shiva.
Palani Murugan Temple Pazhani, Dindigul district
Located in Dindigul Dist
rict, on the Palani hill bottom ( Malai Adivaram ) called 'Thiruaavinankudi', wh
ere the deity is known as 'Kuzhanthai Velayuthaswami' and was worshipped by Godd
ess Lakshmi ('Thiru' in Tamil), the sacred cow Kamadhenu ('Aa' in Tamil), the su
n god Surya ('Inan' in both Tamil & Sanskrit), the earth goddess ('ku' in Tamil)
, and the fire god Agni ('Di' in Tamil), and has idols of all of them.
There is also a Murugan temple on the Palani hill top where 'Dhandayuthapani' is
the main deity, in a meditating state, carrying a staff ('danda') as weapon ('a
yutha') in his hands ('pani'). This is the place where Murugan resided after his
feud with his family over a divine fruit. Here, the main deity is made out of a
n amalgam of nine minerals popularly called Navabashanam and was established by

Saint Bhogar.
Thiruchendur Murugan Temple
Thiruchendur, Toothukudi district
Located
on the sea-shore near Tuticorin amongst the remains of Gandhamadana Parvatam or
Santhanamalai (Sandal Mountain). The temple commemorates the place where Murugan
worshiped Shiva and won a decisive victory over demon Soorapadman.
Thirupparamkunram Murugan Temple
Thiruparankunram, Madurai district
Located on the outskirts of Madurai on a hillock where Kartikeyan married Indra'
s daughter Deivanai. Nakkeerar worshipped Murugan in this shrine and is said to
have worshiped Lord Shiva here as Parangirinathar.
Thiruthani Murugan Temple
Thiruthani, Thiruvallur district
Located
near Chennai, Murugan reclaimed his inner peace after waging a war with Asuras a
nd married Valli here.
Pazhamudircholai Murugan Temple Pazhamudircholai, Madurai district
Located
on the outskirts of Madurai on a hillock with a holy stream nearby called "Nupur
a Gangai". Murugan is seen with both his consorts Deivanai and Valli.
Other important shrines like Mayilam, Sikkal, Marudamalai, Kundrathur, Vadapalan
i, Kandakottam, Thiruporur, Vallakottai, Viralimalai, Vayalur, Thirumalaikoil, C
hennimalai, Sivanmalai, Pachaimalai, Thindal malai (Near Erode) and Pavalamalai
near Gobichettipalayam.
There are many temples dedicated to Subramanya in Kerala. Amongst them are Atiya
mbur Sri Subramanya Temple in Kanhangad Kasaragod, Payyannur Subramanya Swamy te
mple in Payyanur, Panmana Subramanya Swamy temple in Panmana and the Subramanya
temple in Haripad. There is a temple in Skandagiri, Secunderabad, one in Bikkavo
lu, East Godavari district and one in Mopidevi,Krishna district in the state of
Andhra Pradesh. In Karnataka there is the Kukke Subramanya Temple where Murugan
is worshipped as the Lord of the serpents. Malai Mandir, a prominent and popular
temple complex in Delhi, is one of the few dedicated to Murugan in all of North
India apart from the Pehowa temple in Haryana.
Thaipusam at Batu Caves
The key temples in Sri Lanka include the sylvan shrine in Kataragama / (Kadirgam
am) or Kathirkamam in the deep south, the temple in Tirukovil in the east, the s
hrine in Embekke in the Kandyan region and the famed Nallur Kandaswamy temple in
Jaffna. There are several temples dedicated to Murugan in Malaysia, the most fa
mous being the Batu Caves near Kuala Lumpur. There is a 42.7-m-high statue of Mu
rugan at the entrance to the Batu Caves, which is the largest Lord Murugan statu
e in the world. Sri Thandayuthapani Temple in Tank Road, Singapore is a major Hi
ndu temple where each year the Thaipusam festival takes place with devotees of L
ord Muruga carrying Kavadis seeking penance and blessings of the Lord.
In the USA, Shiva Murugan Temple[22] in Concord, Northern California and Murugan
Temple of North America[23] in Maryland, Washington DC region are popular. Thai
pusam walk for Shiva Murugan Temple in Concord, USA is very popular and attracti
ng many devotees from all over America. In Toronto, Canada, Canada Kanthasamy Te
mple is known amongst many Hindus in Canada. In Val-Morin, a suburb of the city
of Montreal in Canada, there is a monumental temple of Murugan.
In the United Kingdom, Highgate Hill Murugan temple is one of the oldest and mos
t famous. In London, Sri Murugan Temple in Manor park is a well-known temple. In
Midlands, Leicester Shri Siva Murugan Temple[24] is gaining popularity recently
. Skanda Vale[25] in West Wales was founded by Guruji, a Tamil devotee of Subram
aniam, and its primary deity is Murugan. In Australia, Sydney Murugan temple in
Parramatta (Mays Hill), Perth Bala Muruguan temple in Mandogalup and Kundrathu K
umaran temple in Rockbank, Melbourne are major Hindu temples for all Australian
Hindus and Murugan devotees. In New Zealand, there is a Thirumurugan Temple in A
uckland and a Kurinji Kumaran Temple in Wellington, both dedicated to Murugan.
The Sri Sivasubramaniar Temple, located in the Sihl Valley in Adliswil, is the m
ost famous and largest Hindu temple in Switzerland.[26]
See also[edit]
Kaumaram
Six Abodes of Lord Muruga
Skanda Purana

Kanda Shasti Kavasam

Notes[edit]
^ Muruga in Sangam literature
^ Mailam a Muruga Temple in the Cross Roads
References[edit]
Jump up ^ Younger 2001, p. 39
Jump up ^ Cage of Freedom By Andrew C. Willford
Jump up ^ Gopal, Madan (1990). K.S. Gautam, ed. India through the ages. Publicat
ion Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. p.
80.
Jump up ^ Clothey p.49 Skanda is derived from the verb skan?r- meaning "to attac
k, leap, rise, fall, be spilled, ooze"
Jump up ^ Clothey, Fred W. Many Faces of Murakan: The History and Meaning of a S
outh Indian God. p. 1.
Jump up ^ Hinduism.
Jump up ^ http://www.sreenivasulu.in/2010/08/krithika-my-loving-daughters-name/
Jump up ^ Kanchan Sinha, Kartikeya in Indian art and literature, Delhi: Sundeep
Prakashan (1979).
Jump up ^ The Smile of Murugan on Tamil Literature of South India, by Kamil Zvel
ebil
^ Jump up to: a b Ratna Navaratnam; Karttikeya, the divine child:the Hindu testa
ment of wisdom, 1973, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan
Jump up ^ "Bhaerava and Bhaeravii" nanda Vacanmrtam Part 7, 1978, Calcutta, Ananda
Marga Publications
Jump up ^ "Indus Graffiti as Rock Art and their Astronomical Implications".
Jump up ^ "indianfestival.in".
Jump up ^ Kinsley, David (1988). Hindu Goddesses: Vision of the Divine Feminine
in the Hindu Religious Traditions. University of California Press. p. 95. ISBN 0
-520-06339-2.
Jump up ^ "Kumar utsav" (PDF). http://www.odisha.gov.in/. Govt of Odisha. Retrie
ved 18 October 2014. External link in |website= (help)
^ Jump up to: a b Pathmanathan, S (September 1999). "The guardian deities of Sri
Lanka: Skanda-Murgan and Kataragama". The journal of the institute of Asian stu
dies. The institute of Asian studies.
Jump up ^ Bechert, Heinz (1970). "Skandakumara and Kataragama: An Aspect of the
Relation of Hinduism and Buddhism in Sri Lanka". Proceedings of the Third Intern
ational Tamil Conference Seminar. Paris: International Association of Tamil Rese
arch.
Jump up ^ http://www.lordmurugan.com/
Jump up ^ http://www.nriol.com/indianparents/lord-muruga.asp
Jump up ^ http://murugan.org/texts/murukatruppadai.htm
Jump up ^ http://www.kaumaram.com/thiru/thiru.html
Jump up ^ https://www.shivamurugantemple.org/Default.aspx
Jump up ^ "Murugan Temple of North America". Murugan Temple of North America.
Jump up ^ "leicestersrimurugantemple.org.uk".
Jump up ^ skandavale.org
Jump up ^ "Hinduismus :::: Religionen in der Schweiz / Religions en Suissse ::::
Universitt Luzern". 2 June 2009.
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Murugan.
Murugan devotional songs collection on youtube
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WorldCat Identities VIAF: 35257211 GND: 119017466

Categories: Tamil deitiesWar godsTutelary deitiesSri Lankan deitiesHindu godsKau

maram
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