Māri, also known as Mariamman and Mariaai, both meaning "Mother Mari", spelt also Maariamma, or simply Amman or Aatha ("mother") is the South Indian Hindu goddess of rain. She is the main South Indian mother goddess, predominant in the rural areas of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Māri is closely associated with the Hindu goddesses Parvati and Durga as well as with her North Indian counterpart Shitala Devi.
Madurai Veeran is a Tamil folk deity popular in southern Tamil Nadu, India. His name was derived as a result of his association with the city of Madurai as a protector of the city.
Ayyanar, Sastha or Saththan is a Hindu deity particularly praised in South India and Sri Lanka. His worship is prevalent among Malayalis,Tamils, kannadigas. His most famous shrine is at the hillock of Sabarimala where he is present in his Brahmacharya form as Ayyappa Some studies suggest that Ayyanar may have also been worshipped in South east Asian countries in the past. He is primarily worshiped as one of the guardian folk deities of Tamil Nadu. The village temples of Ayyanar are usually flanked by gigantic and colorful statues of him and his companions riding horses or elephants.
Aadi Perukku commonly known as the Aadi monsoon festival and also written as Aadiperukku is a Tamil festival celebrated on the 18th day of the Tamil month of Adi. The festival pays tribute to water's life-sustaining properties. For the blessing of mankind with peace, prosperity and happiness, nature worship in the form of Amman deities are organized to shower Nature’s bountiful grace on human beings.
Sarcarsamakulam, also known as Kovilpalayam, is a western suburb in Coimbatore in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. This town is located 17 kilometers from Coimbatore Junction and 12 kilometers from Coimbatore International Airport, Tamil Nadu, India, on the Sathyamangalam Road. Neighbouring places are Saravanampatti, Kalapatti, Vilankurichi
Village deities are a common feature of the Hindu pantheon of deities. They are known as Gramadevatas. Each Hindu region and caste of India and South Asia has its share of village deities. Sri Lankan Tamils venerate their own group of village deities throughout Sri Lanka, specifically in the Tamil-dominated north and east of the island nation.
Veerapandi is a panchayat town in Theni district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
Samayapuram Mariamman Temple is a Hindu temple in Samayapuram in Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu, India. The main deity, Samayapurathal or Mariamman, a form of supreme mother goddess Durga or Maha Kali or Aadi Shakthi, is made of sand and clay like many of the traditional Mariamman deities is considered as most powerful Goddess, and hence unlike many other Hindu deities there are no abhishekams conducted to the main deity, but instead the "abishekam" is done to the small stone statue in front of it.
Karuppu Sami is one of the regional Tamil Hindu male deities popular among the rural social groups of Tamil Nadu and parts of Kerala. He is one of the 21 associated folk-deities of Ayyanar and is hence one among the demi gods or Kaval Deivams of the Tamil heritage. He was believed to come from the Kerala region (Erumeli) as an assistant to Ayyanar (Ayyappan) during the Sangam Age. He was a local hero and then after his passing, the locals eventually worshipped his spirit and he was elevated as a "kaval deivam", just like Ayyanar was.
The Sangam period in Tamilakam was characterized by the coexistence of many religions: Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Buddhism and Jainism alongside the folk religion of the Tamil people. The monarchs of the time practiced religious tolerance and openly encouraged religious discussions and invited teachers of every sect to the public halls to preach their doctrines.
Goddess Ankalamma, or Angalamma, is also known as Ankamma or Angamma, Ankali, Angali, Ankala Parameswari and Angala Parameswari. She is worshipped with these names in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.Most people in Tamilnadu keep their name as "Angu" by the influence of the god.
Puthur is a part of the city of Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu, India.
Iconography of Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu is governed by the Shaiva Agamas (IAST:Āgama) that revere the ultimate reality as the Hindu deity, Shiva. Āgama in the Hindu religious context means a traditional doctrine or system which commands faith. Temple worship according to Āgamic rules can be said to have started during the Pallava dynasty in South India, but they were fully under establishment during the Chola dynasty The temples during the Chola period expanded to Sri Lanka and islands in South East Asia. The temple complex was expanding with niches for various deities on the stipulated sides of the sanctum. Lingam was universalised and prakarams (precincts) with subsequent deities came up. The temple parivara(deities related to primary deity) expanded considerably during the Chola period. The niches of following Āgamic rules for building Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu, a South Indian state continues even in the modern era. Some of the prime images like that of lingam, Vinayagar and Parvati are present in all the Shiva temples. Almost all the temples follow the same custom during festivals and worship methods with minor exceptions. Most of the Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka are built in Dravidian architecture.
The early Dravidian religion refers to a broad range of belief systems which existed in South Asia before the arrival of Indo-Aryans. Scholars do not share a uniform consensus on early Dravidian religion but many scholars associated it with Neolithic societies of South Asia which was later assimilated into migrating Indo-Aryan society leading to formation of early Indian religious and cultural synthesis. Some scholars suggest early Dravidian religion were either historically or are at present Āgamic. and have been dated either as post-vedic or as pre-vedic compositions which were assimilated to the Vedic fold. The Agamas are a collection of Tamil and Sanskrit scriptures chiefly constituting the methods of temple construction and creation of murti, means of worshiping deities, philosophical doctrines, meditative practices, attainment of sixfold desires and four kinds of yoga. The worship of tutelary deities and sacred flora and fauna in Hinduism is also recognized as a survival of the pre-Vedic Dravidian religion. Dravidian linguistic influence on early Vedic religion is evident; many of these features are already present in the oldest known Indo-Aryan language, the language of the Rigveda, which also includes over a dozen words borrowed from Dravidian. The linguistic evidence for Dravidian impact grows increasingly strong as we move from the Samhitas down through the later Vedic works and into the classical post-Vedic literature. This represents an early religious and cultural fusion or synthesis between ancient Dravidians and Indo-Aryans that went on to influence Indian civilization.
Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple is an ancient and historic Hindu temple located amidst the Palk Strait on the island of Nainativu, Sri Lanka. It is dedicated to Parvati who is known as Nagapooshani or Bhuvaneswari and her consort, Shiva who is named here as Nayinaar. The temple's fame is accredited to Adi Shankaracharya, a 9th-century Hindu philosopher, for identifying it as one of the prominent 64 Shakti Peethams in Shakti Peetha Stotram and its mention in the Brahmanda Purana. The temple complex houses four gopurams ranging from 20–25 feet in height, to the tallest being the eastern Raja Raja Gopuram soaring at 108 feet high. The temple is a significant symbol for the Tamil people, and has been mentioned since antiquity in Tamil literature, such as Manimekalai and Kundalakesi. The present structure was built during 1720 to 1790 after the ancient structure was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1620. The temple attracts around 1000 visitors a day, and approximately 5000 visitors during festivals. The annual 16-day Mahostavam (Thiruvizha) festival celebrated during the Tamil month of Aani (June/July) - attracts over 100,000 pilgrims. There is an estimated 10,000 sculptures in this newly renovated temple.
Putlur is a neighbourhood in Chennai, India. It is a village and suburb in Tiruvallur city of Tamil Nadu, located on the western outskirts of the city.
Karguvel Ayyanar Temple is a Hindu temple in a village named kuthiraimozhi in [[ELLUVILAI], Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu. This temple is only 14 kilometer from Thiruchendur( State Highway 40 ). Karguvel Ayyanar Temple is about 500–1000 years old. The temple is surrounded by Red sand desert with a lot of cashew and palm trees. On a miracle, this is the only desert found in south India.
Goddess Poleramma is a Pre Vedic deity goddess, who is predominantly worshipped in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Poleramma is a local form of Sakti in Andhra pradesh. She is worshipped as Grama devata.
Kannaki Amman is the deified form of Kannagi, the heroine of the great Tamil epic Silapathikaram, worshipped mainly in Sri Lanka and Kerala. As the goddess of chastity, rain and fertilization, she is well praised by the Malayalis and the two main ethnicities of Sri Lanka, the Sri Lankan Tamil Saivites and also by the Sinhalese Buddhists as Pattini Deviyo.
Lord Pavadairayan is a popular regional Tamil male deity in rural Tamil Nadu, India. He is one of the Kaaval Dheivams of Tamil Nadu, India, and is of particular notability because he is the son of Angala Parameswari. In most temples he is depicted on the right knee of Angala Parameswari and is also said to be her guard.
