திருவண்ணாமலை அருணாசலேஸ்வரர் (அண்ணாமலையார்) கோயில்Arunachaleswarar (Annamalaiyar) Temple, Tiruvannamalai

Sthala Mahātmyam

Arunachaleswarar at Tiruvannamalai is the Pancha Bhoota Sthalam of fire (Agni), where Shiva is worshipped as the Agni Lingam and as the Arunachala hill itself. The central legend is the Lingodbhava: when Brahma and Vishnu disputed which was supreme, Shiva appeared between them as an infinite column of fire (jyoti). Vishnu as a boar dug downward and Brahma as a swan flew upward, yet neither could find its end, humbling both before the formless flame. The hill is revered as this fire made still. His consort is Unnamulai Ammai. Each full moon lakhs of devotees perform girivalam, circumambulating the hill barefoot over about 14 km. The temple's greatest festival is Karthigai Deepam, when a huge beacon (Maha Deepam) is kindled on the summit, seen for miles as a symbol of the pillar of fire. Sung by the Nayanmars in the Tevaram, it is a Paadal Petra Sthalam, and among the largest temple complexes in India with soaring gopurams.