Tiruchendur Muruga temple, Tamil Nadu

Tiruchendur is the place where Lord Muruga is said to have killed Tarakasura. As per the Puranas, Tarakasura was creating havoc as he had a boon that only Lord Shiva’s son can kill him. As Shiva was in deep meditation always and unmarried then, Tarakasura had asked for this boon from Shiva assuming that it would be impossible for Shiva to have a child in this situation. However, due to Parvati devis’s deep penance and with Kama deva’s help, Shiva’s meditation was broken, and he agreed to marry Parvati and their son Kartikeya (known as Muruga in the South) was born. He killed Tarakasura in the place where the Tiruchendur temple now exists. In 1646 to 1648, the Dutch East India Company occupied Tiruchendur. When leaving, they removed the main deity of the temple and took it with them. When they were sailing, they encountered a very strong storm due to which their boat could not move ahead. Realizing that this could be due to the power of the idol, they dropped the deity in the middle of the sea. The boat immediately started moving and they sailed back. Later, Lord Muruga appeared in the dream of his ardent devotee Vadamaliyappa Pillai and revealed the place in the sea where the idol was abandoned. The idol was retrieved by them in 1653. This entire story is also painted on the walls of the temple. The temple still stands strong unaffected by the sea waters and not even tsunami.