Shaila puthri,Brahmacharini,Gantabhaga,Kushmanda,Skandha matha,Kathyayini,Siddhi dhathri,Maha gouri,Kalarathri-nine names of Mother Parvathi .Navarathri Pooja.

There are instances where in great Tamil poets were blessed by the Almighty God to compose poetry on the subjects of their choice.The divine presence initiated them by supplying the beginning word.For example when Sri Sundarar wanted to compose Thiruthindathogai the life history of the great devotees of Lord Shiva famously known as 63 Nayanmars -He went to the Thiruvarur temple of Sri Thyageasr and offered prayers before commencement of His literary work.The Lord Himself gave Sri Sundarar the first word Thillai Vazh.The composition thus begins with Thillai vazh andhanarku adiyerkum .
Like wise Sri Sekkizhar who wrote Periya Puranam -this is again an elaborate composition on the 63 Nayanmars based on Sri Sundarar's Thiruthondathogai-was given the word "Ulagelam" by
Sri Shiva Himself.For Nakkirar the one who is great devotee of Sri Subramanya the first word to His composition Thiru Murugatru padai was "Ulagam"was supplied by the Lord Himself.His commposition begins with "Ulagam uvappa valanerbu thiritharu palar pugazh nyayiru kadal kandangu".
This instance is quoted by Sri Arunagiri Nathar in His Thirupugazh.
Sri Arunagiri nathar received His first word for His Thirupugazh
from Lord Sri Subramanya Himself.It was "Muthaithiru'
Sri Jnana Sambandhar began His Thevaram with the first word "Thodudai seviyan "even as a child of some four years.Though it was not given to Him by Sri Shiva when He and Sri Parvathi appeared before Him to console Him when He was as a child began weeping not finding His fatherSri Shivapatha Hrudhayar who had gone for a bath in the temple tank and for a while got under thw waters for prayers.
It is said that the Divine Mother gave the child Sri Jnana Sambanthar milk to cajole Him.And as He was fed by the Divine mother he began a song "Thodudaya Seviyan".His thevaram songs are melodious to recite and packed with praises of Lord Shiva and Sri Parvathi.His Kolaru pathigam of 11 stanzas is well known and is recited earnestly to tide over the difficulties of the nine planets.

1. Manicka vasagar is considered to be the reincarnation of Sri Nandhikeswar .Appar is considered to be the the reincarnation of one great sage Vagisar who had to face the wrath of the Devas for his benign act of saving the asura king Ravana from being crushed under the Kailasa Parvatham.Once Ravana while traveling towards his capital had to cross the Kailas.He thought he can just put aside Kailas which he thought was an obstruction in his path.He could have gone by circumambulating it.But in his haughtiness he forgot that it was the abode of Sri Shiva .He was an ardent devotee of Sri Shiva.When he tried to lift the Kailasa by inserting his twenty hands the jerk created by his action disturbed the ever meditating Sri Shiva who ascertained the reason and to subdue the asura king just pressed His toe slightly.This pressure could not be withstood by the  asura and he was not able to get away from being held captive by the base of the Kailas.All Devas felt happy that Ravana their tormentor was thus immobilised and he could no longer  wage wars against them anymore.Here only the sage Vageesa inadvertently helped him to get released.He advised Ravana to sing sama gana in praise of the Lord who will be pleased to hear sama gana and as a boon he can ask for release .Ravana who was perplexed got this tip and sang sama gana with the help of one of his heads cut off to serve as a veena's  base and his nerves as the strings of the veena .Sri Shiva was immensely pleased and Ravana got released .The devas were disappointed at this and  became angry at Sri Vageesa as from their point of view Vageesa had saved Ravana who was their enemy.They cursed the rishi Vageesa  to be born as a human being and this birth was Sri Thirunavukkarasa.

He was first called as Dharmasena and was a jain /samana.His sister mangayarkarasi was a devotee of Sri Shiva.She took pains to get him to the fold of shaivism .The minister in Pandya Kingdom helped her achieve this after many years.The jain monk Dharmasena had severe stomach pain and nothing could cure him.After getting the Panchakshara manthra duly taught by the minister he gets cured and becomes an ardent follower of Shaivism.

Nava Narasimhas:
Ahobhila,Lakshmi,Crowncha,Varaaha,Yoganandha,Paavana,Malola,Kroda,Jwala,Chathravada.These nine Narasimhas are in Ahobhilam .Very beautiful place to visit.But involves climbing steps to have darshan of some of the temples .
In our culture we did not have weeks -7 days-but had two pakshas the Shukla Paksham and the Krishna paksham related to the passage of the Moon from invisibility to Full Bright Moon and vice verse.This was reckoned  as a month .This month just contains 28 and a half a day roughly .But a calendar month what we now universally follow is of 30 days.This is based on the apparent movement of the Sun from one sign of the Zodiac to another adjacent one.The earlier one of pakshas isbased on the Lunar movement around the Earth.Moon moves and earth moves but moon's revolution around the earth is a constant 28and a little over half a day.Day here is the one full  rotation of the earth around its axis as it revolves round the Sun which is stationary in space.Some say it also moves along with its satellite planets and makes a revolution once in 27000 years.That is once in 27000 years the Solar system gets into the same identical position as it were.

Manickam is the name given to Thiruvadhavurar.His parents' were great Shiva Bakthas.He got the name Manickam from Lord Shiva Himself in the Thiruperundhurai khsetram .He served Arimardhana Pandiyan as a defence minister ,who was the King ruling from Madurai.He was entrusted with the job getting horses for the cavalry of the Pandiya King but used the money for building ShivaTemple in Thiru perundhurai.This deed of Him is said to be at the orders of Lord Shiva who wanted to play with Him and the King who was also a devout Shiva worshipper.The King got upset and puts Maickam in prison for the dereliction of duty.
There was famine during this time and the river Vaigai was dry.The King prays to Lord Sundaresa for bestowing the kingdom with rains and suddenly there was flood in Vaigai .It was such a terrific flood the river began overflowing the banks.In order to prevent flooding the city the King orders building bunds and each house hold to send a person -able bodied man -for the same.One Vandhi who has no such person finds a youth who agrees to work for her when  she offers him puttu as wages as she is eking out her living by selling this eatable.But the youth simply sleeps without doing the job.The King when informed of this becomes angry and wakes up this lad with flinging a cane on the youth's back.This causes pain on all the peoples'back including the King.King then realises that it was Lord Shiva Himself has thus played with him.In the meanwhile there appears a knight with a number of sturdy horses pronouncing the name of Manickam and acclaiming that these were sent to the King on hid advice.King was aghast that when the minister is under custody horses have arrived in his name!He inspected the horses and was very much satisfied.He ordered release of the minister .This was just before midnight.When midnight passed the King awoke to the complaint that there were foxes in the place of horses.
And they were released from the stables.The King could not understand all these succession of events and he approached the Sivachariar of the Sri Meenakshi temple who explained to the King the sequence of events like this.Sri Maickam was a athma yogi.If He is given punishment Ganges will flow getting angry  when an athma yogi is punished even inadvertantly.As the King prayed for waters in Vaigai,this episode of Horses becoming foxes was enacted by the Lord Shiva in answer to His devotee's [King's]prayer for rains.
The King got punishment so also the people by way of cane charge for the imprisoning of a devotee of Lord Sundaresa.
From Shivapuranam lecture by Sri Rajasekar Shivachariar in Sankara tv [6,7/08/18]

It is our [Hindus]belief that the Universe is supported by eight elephants in the eight directions ,The names of these eight elephants are :Airavatham,Pumdarigam,Vamanam,Kumudham,Sarvaboumam,Supradheepam,Anjanam
Pushpadhantham
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Apsaras are divine damsels of Indhra Sabha.
Their names are:Urvasi,Rambha,Thilothama,Menaka,Pulomaja,Purvasiddhi,According to Natya Sastra there are 108 apsaras.The above five are famed for their beauty and dancing talents and are exclusively adorning Indhra Sabha.
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Patha niharathe nayan

Ginthe dhin pala chim

lout kabhi aayega

manko jo bhith gaya-

ek baras bhith gaya.

Ekadasi as the name indicates is the 11th day from either the Newmoon day [Amavasya]or from the full moon day[pournami]Among the about 24 -25days in a calendar year the ekadasi which bears the namr Beema Ekadasi is the Ekadasi which falls on the waxing moon[Shukla paksha] period in the Tamil month of Aani.Yogini ekadasi is one which falls in the waning fortnight [krishna paksham]of Aadi month.Vaikunta Ekadasi falls on the waxing fortnight of Margazhi month.Bhishma Ekadasi is one which falls on the waxing  fortnight of Thai month.This day is also celebrated as the Birthday of Sri Vishnu Sahasranamam.Kaikasi Ekadasi is named after a raga which bears the same name.
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Gajendra Moksham story in the Bhagavatham is known to all of us.The Elephant bore the name  Indhra Dyumnan  its previous birth.It was a Pandyan King.Hu hu was a gandharvan who disturbed the rishi Devalar while he was taking bath in a big tank by playfully cutching the rishi's feet.The angered rishi because of forceful awakening from his solitude cursed him to be born as a crocodile.
This Hu Hu as a crocodile caught hold of the leg of Gajendra while he tried to get a lotus by his trunk for offering it to Sri Narayana.The crocodile will not let go the Gajendra .Finally Gajebndra cried aloud to Narayana calling Adhi Moolame.Sri Narayana came immediately mounted on His mount Garuda .He killed the crocodile using His chakra thus liberating the crocodile to attain his Gandharva form ,Hu Hu thus got rid of his curse and Gajendra offered the lotus flower to Sti manNarayana.
it is said the same lotus flower is held in His palms by the Lord of Guruvayur.