On the Bay of Bengal
in Tamil Nadu, sixty miles up the coast from Kanyakumari, there is a temple and
holy spot (tirtha).
Tiruchendur is one of six temples in Tamil Nadu dedicated to
the hill deity Murugan, who has been absorbed into the greater pantheon as a
version of the god Skanda, Shiva's son.
Five of these temples have been firmly discovered, each of
which is associated with a certain place, ecology, and episode in Murugan's
mythological career.
In Tiruchendur's instance, it is claimed to be the location
where he slew a demon foe, presenting him in his warrior form.
Every other Murugan shrine in Tamil Nadu is claimed to be
the sixth of these temples.
Murugan's worship is therefore a symbol of Tamil pride and
identity, and since the number six connotes completeness—as in the six
directions or the six chakras in the subtle body—it also implies that nothing
outside is required.
See Fred Clothey, "Pilgrimage Centers in the Tamil
Cultus of Murukan," Journal of the American Academy of Religion, Vol. 40,
No. 1, 1972, for further information.
