Tirunallar (Saturn)

As per Hindu legend, the ruler of the region asked a shepherd to provide milk to the temple daily. The shepherd was a staunch devotee of Shiva and happily provided milk for ablution of the presiding deity. The government's headman, who lived close to the temple, coerced the shepherd to give the milk to him, instead of the temple, without the knowledge of the king. Once, the temple priest informed the king that the temple was not receiving the milk from the shepherd. The king asked the shepherd the reason for disobeying his order. Out of fear of the headman, the shepherd remained silent, which angered the king. He ordered the shepherd to be killed. The shepherd prayed to Shiva to relieve him of the punishment. Shiva stopped the punishment with his trident. Following the legend, the altar (bali pitham) of the temple is slightly away from the axis of the flagstaff and the central shrine. As per another legend, Nala was ruling this region, full of tropical grass locally called Darba after which the place came to be known as Darbaranyam ("forest of Darba"). Every person is afflicted by the movement of planet Saturn, which is believed to create negative effects on the lives of people. Nala was also afflicted by the planetary movement of Saturn on a day when he skipped standard practices of cleanliness. He is believed to have resided in the temple to get himself off the curses of Shani, the planet Saturn.

Shani, or Shanaishchara, is the divine personification of the planet Saturn in Hinduism, and is one of the nine heavenly objects (Navagraha) in Hindu astrology. Shani is also a male Hindu deity in the Puranas, whose iconography consists of a figure with a dark complexion carrying a sword or danda (sceptre) and sitting on a buffalo or some times on a crow. He is the god of karma, time and retribution, and delivers results depending upon one's thoughts, speech, and deeds. Shani is married to the daughter of gandharva Chitraratha, who cursed him that anyone he gazed upon would face destruction or hardship.

Read more about [Shani](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shani).

The temple is located in Thirunallar, a village located 5 km (3.1 mi) away from Karaikkal in the Union territory of Puducherry and 95 km (59 mi) from Thanjavur. The temple has a rectangular plan with a five-tiered rajagopuram, the gateway tower and all the shrines are enclosed in granite walls. The presiding deity is Dharbaranyeswarar (Shiva) and is believed to have been made of darba grass. The central shrine is located in an elevated platform axial to the main entrance. The sanctum houses the image of Dharbaranyeswarar in the form of lingam (aniconic form of Shiva). The southern shrine parallel to the shrine of sanctum houses the image of Somaskanda. The niches around the sanctum houses the images of Dakshinamurthy, Durga and Lingodbhava. The shrine of Shani (the god of the planet Saturn) is located in the northern side of the entrance tower. Shani is treated as the door keeper of the shrine. According to Hinduism, Saturn resides in each rasi (zodiac) for two and half years. The tradition is to worship Shani before entering the inner sanctum of Shiva. The temple is maintained and administered by the Department of Hindu Religious Institutions by the Government of Puducherry.

Sambandar, the 7th century nayanar and Tamil saivite poet has revered the deity with four hymns, in one of which he refers to a contest with Jains, and his victory. Appar and Sundarar, the other Nayanars have glorified the temple with their hymns. Arunagirinathar, a 15th-century poet and staunch devotee of Lord Muruga has composed hymns on the deity and this temple is attributed to Murugan worship as well. Tirugnana Sambandar, a 7th-century Tamil Saivite poet, venerated Naganathar in ten verses in Tevaram, compiled as the First Tirumurai. Appar, a contemporary of Sambandar, also venerated Dharbaranyeswarar in 10 verses in Tevaram, compiled as the Fifth Tirumurai. As the temple is revered in Tevaram, it is classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam, one of the 275 temples that find mention in the Saiva canon. The temple is one of the nine Navagraha temples of Tamil Nadu and is a part of the popular Navagraha pilgrimage in the state - it houses the image of Shani (Saturn).

Located in: Karaikal, Puducherry.