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| Emerald Lingam, Thygaraja temple, Thiruvarur. newindianexpress.com |
Above image: Antique emerald lingam of Thyagaraja temple, Thiruvarur, TN. There are two shires dedicated to God Shiva and the main deity is Vanmika Nathar with his consort goddess Kamalambikai (Parvati). This emerald lingam was used for puja purpose until it was stolen. Now recovered and back in the temple it is being well guarded and used for worship under strict security.
The worship of Sivalingam (pure quartz) made of Spatikam (clear crystalline form) or Maragatham (beryl) is rare in temples as these minerals are mostly available in small sizes. It is rare to come across big crystals of Beryl or quartz which are mostly found in granite related rocks of igneous origin dating back to Archaean period at the time of the birth of earth.
Thyagaraja Swami temple,Thiruvarur stringfixer.com
In the state of Tamil Nadu at the famous Thyagaraja Swami temple of Thiruvarur, the worship of Maragatha lingam - emerald lingam has been for centuries and it is a daily ritual done by the head priest. This temple was managed by the Dharmapuram Aadheenam in Thirukkuvalai near Nagapattinam. Worship of Shiva lingam at home is common in Tamil Nadu and normally north direction is considered to be the favorite direction of Lord Shiva worship. Some devotees do keep the lingam east facing, yet another favorite direction. It is said keeping Shivalingam at home will help the devotee free from financial mess and promote wealth and good health. Evil forces won't enter the homes.
How did the temple get the very expensive maragatha lingam? To explain it, we have to refer to the legend of this temple. According to the legend emperor Musukuntha (12th Century) of Chola dynasty got seven emerald Siva Lingams from demi of rain and Devas Indra who had been worshipping them for a long time. Chola ruler, being magnanimous, he did want to keep the valuable lingams in his palace for worship. His intention was if he donated the lingams to the temples, the common people would get benefits from them that were once worshipped by God Indira himself. The common belief was and is worshiping God Siva in the form of emerald Lingam will help the devotees a lot. It will get rid of their pain, miseries and sins committed in the past and will usher in period of prosperity, good health, etc.
According to his wish the king had all the seven Maragatha lingams installed in seven important Siva Temples located at Nagapattinam, Thirukaravasal, Thirukuvalai, Thirunallar and Thiruvaymur and Vedaranyam.
With respect to Thiruvarur Thygaraja temple, there are two main shrines dedicated to God Shiva - one is called Vanmikinathar and the other one being Thyagarajar. Vanmikinathar shrine is older than the other and the deity in the form of a linga - swayambumurthi (self-manifested) is believed to have grown from an ancient anthill (molehill; in Tamil Puttru). Hence no abhishekam is done to him as anointing will damage the puttru. It is said the milk abhishekam over the Saptha Vitanga Thyaga shrine has medicinal properties. Similarly the sandal paste applied around the emerald Siva Lingams has too have medicinal benefits.
As part of regular puja protocol Maragatha Linga (known as Veedhi Vidanga Linga) which is believed to have been worshipped earlier by Indira, daily worship takes place at 8.30 a.m., 11.00 a.m. and at 7.00 p.m. each day. After abhishekam the expensive Linga will be kept in a silver box with flowers and covered by a silver vessel. This will be then locked in the presence of officials and placed under lock and key on the right side of Lord Thyagaraja. For security reason, the authorities might follow different tradition now.
This Maragatha linga was stolen on 2 August 2009 more than 13 years ago. TN idol Wing team headed by ADG G.Thilakavathy investigated the theft in an effective manner and after long tailing in November 2019 caught the culprit in the Villupuram area Same month, it was handed over to the temple authorities by the idol wing police at Thirukaravasal.
The primary idol of worship is Lord Veedhi Vidangar (Thyagarajar), depicted as a Somaskanda form. Here lord's Parvathi is depicted as Kondi (Parvati) with her child Subramanium (Khanda/Muruga). This temple is glorified by many Nayanmars in their devotional work - Thiruvachagam and Thevaram.
http://www.navrangindia.in/2021/09/thyagaraja-swamy-temple-thiruvarur-some.html
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu//article59878201.ece
 of Sri Thygaraja Swami temple, Thiruvarur,TN - used for worship under strict security){kind=link}