Edaganathar temple

Edaganathar Temple
Religion
Affiliation	Hinduism
District	Madurai
Deity	Edaganathar (Shiva) Elavrkuzhali (Parvathi)
Location
Location	Tiruvedagam
State	Tamil Nadu
Country	India
Location in Tamil Nadu
Geographic coordinates	9°35′N 77°35′E / 9.59°N 77.59°E / 9.59; 77.59
Architecture
Type	Dravidian architecture

Edaganathar Temple (ஏடகநாதர் கோயில்)^[1] is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Shiva, located in Thiruvedagam, a village in Madurai district in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The temple is located on the banks of Vaigai River. Shiva is worshipped as Edaganathar, and is represented by the lingam. His consort Parvati is depicted as Visalakshi. The presiding deity is revered in the 7th century Tamil Saiva canonical work, the Tevaram, written by Tamil saint poets known as the nayanars and classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam.^[2]

The temple complex covers five acres and it houses two gateway towers known as gopurams, each facing the Edaganathar and Elavrkuzhali shrine. The temple has a number of shrines, with those of Edaganathar and his consort being the most prominent.

The temple has six daily rituals at various times from 6:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., and four yearly festivals on its calendar. The Muthu Pandal festival is celebrated during the day of the Magam (February – March) is the most prominent festival.

The original complex is believed to have been built by Pandyan Empire, while the present masonry structure was built during the Nayak during the 16th century. In modern times, the temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department of the Government of Tamil Nadu.