Parasurama Lingeswarar Temple, Ayanavarm, Chennai

The Parasurama Lingeswara Temple, located in the Ayanavaram area of Chennai is believed to be around 1000 years old.

Even though the temple's current structure doesn't seem very old, the presiding deity - the Shiv linga (who is named Parsurama Lingeswarar) is believed to be at least 1000 years old. As per the legend, Parasurama, the incarnation (avatar) of Lord Maha Vishnu, killed his own mother. To get rid of his sin, Parasurama worshipped Lord Shiva, which is called Parasurama Lingeswarar. As per another legend, Lord Brahma, also called Ayan, took a dip in this temple tank and worshipped Lord Shiva; hence, the place was called Ayanpuram, and later it became Ayanavaram.

The east-facing temple has a tower. The sanctum enshrines a slender, but tall Shiv Linga called Parasurama Lingeswar. The vimana is Gajaprshtha.

The sub-shrines of Nataraja-Sivakami, Maha Ganapati, Murugan, utsava deities, Bala Subramanya and Nalvar are found.

The Goddess Parvatambika is found in a separate shrine in the prakara.

Ganesha, Dakshinamurti, Vishnu, Brahma and Durga are found as the niche deities. Chandikeshwara, Patteeswara Shiv Linga, Navagrahas, Surya, Chandra, Bhairav and Shaneeswara are some deities in this prakara.

Happy travelling.

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