Manakkanychaara Nayanar

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Manakkanychaara Nayanar was one of the 63 Nayanmars of the Saivite faith of South India. He lived in the village of Kancharur in the Chola kingdom during the eighth century CE. He belonged to the Vellala cast and was a heriditory commander in the Chola Military.

[edit] Legend

Manakkanychaara had no children for a long time. He and his wife worshipped Siva for a child and they soon had a daughter. Nayanar celebrated the birth of this child donating generously to charity. When the daughter attained the marriageable age, Manakkanychaara arranged her wedding with Eyarkon Kalikamar who was also an earnest and sincere devotee of Siva.

Meanwhile, an ascetic appeared before Manakkanychaara who received him with great delightand asked his daughter to bow to the ascetic and receive his blessings. The ascetic saw her flowing hair, and said: ‘Oh Manakkanychaara, I am delighted to see her hair. This can be conveniently made into a Panchavati (the thread that adorns my chest).’ At once, Nayanar took a knife and, without thinking for a moment, cut the hair off his daughter’s head and handed it to the ascetic. In his extreme devotion to the Siva Yogi, he did not even consider the fact that he was disfiguring his only daughter, and that the bridegroom might refuse to accept her. Lord Siva in the form of the ascetic immediately disappeared and blessed Manakkanychaara and his family and restored the hair on the girl's head.

[edit] References

• 63 Nayanmars
• Saivam.net