Tiruchengode Arthanareeswarar Temple - Namakkal

According to the available inscriptions, this Shiva temple must have been built around 2000 years ago. As per the legend, there arose a heated argument between Adiseshan (the serpent on whom lord Vishnu rests) and Vayu (the lord of the winds) to test their superiority. They both chose mount Meru (mythological mountain) to showcase their strength. At that time, Adiseshan could not resist Vayu's severe wind to hold that mountain. Three portions of the mountain were destroyed and came down to earth with Adiseshan’s blood strain. It is believed that one such piece is this hill. Synonym to the red colour of the blood, the name of the place came to be ‘sencode’ (red in Tamil language). The uniqueness of Lord Shiva is the combination of male and female structure in equal halves.

The story behind the mixed pose here is that, whenever sage ‘Birunki’ used to visit mount Kailash, he would take the form of a small insect and perform his worship by flying around lord Shiva. He would ignore Parvati even though they were both sitting together. Angered by this, Parvati cursed the sage. Lord Shiva intervened and pacified Parvati by explaining to her that she is inseparable from Shiva representing the synthesis of masculine and feminine energies of the universe. This is one of the 276 Paadal Petra Shiva Sthalams (revered by Saivite saints) and 4th Shiva Sthalam in Kongu Nadu. This temple is located at the top of a hill, at a height of about 1900 feet and there are about 1200 steps to reach atop. One can either choose to walk up the stairs or take the motorable road. Vehicles can go right up to the entrance of the temple.