Arunachaleswar Temple
The Arunachaleswara temple majestically situated at the feet of Arunachala Mountain extends over 25 acres and is one of the largest Shiva temples in India.
There are two legends associated with this temple. In the first one, Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu had an argument about who was superior. Shiva puts them to a test. He asks both to find his crown and roots (his beginning and end). Vishnu takes the form of a Varaha and bores into the earth. He fails to find the roots of Shiva and accepts defeat. Brahma takes the form of a swan and soars into the sky to find Shiva’s crown. He comes across a flower (Screw Pine) and ask if she has seen the crown to which the flower replies that it has been falling for 40000 years from the crown and is yet to see the earth. Brahma lies that he has seen the crown. Shiva knowing the truth, curses Brahma to never be revered, that why there are only very few temples dedicated to Lord Brahma in the entire India. He blesses Vishnu for telling the truth and grants him a boon that he would be the most worshipped God.
The other legend is that Parvati playfully closes the eyes of Shiva while he was sitting in a flower garden on top of Mount Kailash. Even though it was for a moment, Earth was sanked into darkness for several years. Parvati performed penance and Shiva then appeared as a light on top of the Arunachala hill giving light to the world. It is said that Shiva merged Parvati into himself, taking the form of Ardhanareeshwara, revered all over Tiruvannamalai.
This temple was the first place Ramana Maharshi stayed. He was stoned while meditating then he moved to an underground vault known as Patala Lingam. Ramana was unaware of being bitten by ants and vermin. He moved then to the Subramanya Shrine before moving into Arunachala Mountain.
