Aiyanar
(aiyanār)
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| (Language: Tamil) |
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| Short Description: |
Almost all villages of Tamil Nadu have a guardian deity (grama devata) called Aiyanar, also known as Sasta. |
| Long Description: |
Almost all villages of Tamil Nadu have a guardian deity (grama devata) called Aiyanar, also known as Sasta. This god is a symbol of Saiva-Vaisnava unity; he is believed to be the son born to Visnu (when he took the guise of Mohini) by Siva. Aiyanar is the same as Ayyappa of Kerala, among the temples to whom the one at Sabarimala in the Western Ghats is the most famous. |
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