Kolanjiappar Temple, Manavalanallur

Kolanjiappar Temple stands at Manavalanallur, a village at the edge of Virudhachalam in Cuddalore district, on the Virudhachalam–Manavalanallur road, and is dedicated to Murugan. Legend says Shiva, wanting to hear the aged saint Sundarar sing again, sent Murugan as a hunter to rob him in the Kolanji forest and make him return to Virudhachalam; Murugan then made his home in the forest as Kolanjiappar. Another tale tells of a cow milking under a kolanji bush, where people later found a stone form of the god.

A five-tier gopuram in the granite wall leads to a pillared hall and the east-facing sanctum. Unusually, the deity is a small altar about 3 ft high rather than a sculpted image. There are shrines to Idumban, Kadamban and Siddhi Vinayakar, and two Muniappa images face the sanctum. The temple opens 6.30 am to 8.30 pm, and its main festivals are Panguni Uthiram, the ten-day Vasantha Utsavam in Vaikasi and the Adi festival.