Annamalaiyar Temple. Arunachala
Place salvation.
SivaPuranam defines four sacred places for salvation.
Thiruvannamalai is one of them.
The value of this place is that the mere remembrance of the Lord in
this place Arunachaleswarar gives salvation to all souls (Ninaithale
Mukti Tharum Thiruthalam).
In
Saivism this temple occupies a special place, being also one of the
five Pancha Bhuta Sthalamov (one of the five great temples associated
with the five basic elements) - is associated with the fire. The other four: Thiruvanaikaval Dzhambukeshvara (water), Chidambaram
(ether), Kanchi Ekambareshvara (earth) and Kalahasti Nathar (air).
For
the first time the temple is mentioned in the works of the poet
Nakkirar, so we can assume that he is not less than two thousand years.