Naganathar Temple

Naganathar Temple
Naganathar Temple

According to the sthala puranam, this was the place a thief running from a tiger/lion climbed atop a tree and spent the night plucking and dropping leaves to stay awake. Unknown to him, the tree was a bilva tree, and under it was a Shiva lingam, and to top things up, it also happened to be Shivaratri. Thus, in all ignorance, he had worshipped Shiva on one of his most important days, with the leaf dearest to him. When day broke, he was surprised to see Shiva ganas who had come to escort him to Kailas on the strength of the puja he had performed. When he realized the importance of what he had done unknowingly, he repented, and asked time from the Shiva ganas, and spent the rest of his life performing good deeds, and repeating the name of Shiva. Take a look at the gopuram of the temple illustrating this story.