Unnamulai, Uṇṇāmulai: 2 definitions

Introduction:

Unnamulai means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, Tamil. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.

In Hinduism

General definition (in Hinduism)

[«previous next»] — Unnamulai in Hinduism glossary
Source: Shodhganga: The significance of the mūla-beras

Uṇṇāmulai is a name of Śakti as explained in the sthala-purāṇa of the Arunachaleswara (Aruṇācaleśvara) Temple in (Tiruvaṇṇāmalai) Thiruvannamalai which is one of the Pañcasabhā or “five halls where Śiva is said to have danced”.—In this temple there are sanctums with Śiva and Śakti. Goddess Śakti is called Uṇṇāmulai in the Aruṇācaleśvar Temple. There is a legend regarding her presence. According to the sthala-purāṇa, one evening, Śiva and Pārvatī were enjoying each other’s presence on Mount Kailas. In great happiness, Pārvatī closed the three eyes of Śiva. The eyes were closed only for a few seconds but it created darkness on earth that prevailed for millions of years. The ṛṣis rushed to Śiva and pleaded for light. Pārvatī was ashamed of her action and begged Śiva to pardon her. Śiva directed her to do penance on earth. She descended to Kāñcīpuram and there she worshipped a liṅga made of sand under a mango tree. Her penance was strenuous. To test her devotion, Śiva made the river overflow and Pārvatī, worried about her sand liṅga, embraced it tightly so that it was not washed away in the flood.

Seeing her faith, Śiva told her to go to Aruṇācala and meet the Sage Gautama. She reached Aruṇagiri, met Sage Goutama, listened to the glory of Aruṇācala, and was filled with bliss. She stayed in the sage’s ashram and did penance to get united with her lord. Meanwhile, she got the name Mahiṣāsuramardinī after destroying the asura Mahiṣā. Then, she got united with the lord and he named her Uṇṇāmulai (the unsuckled breasts) for she had left her son and had come down to the earth to be cleansed of her mistake. It is believed that Murukan also worshipped Aṇṇāmalai while he was on the mission of destroying the asura Sūrapadma.

Languages of India and abroad

Tamil dictionary

[«previous next»] — Unnamulai in Tamil glossary
Source: DDSA: University of Madras: Tamil Lexicon

Uṇṇāmulai (உண்ணாமுலை) [uṇṇā-mulai] noun < உண்- [un-] +. Pārvatī, worshipped in the shrine at Tiruvaṇṇāmalai; திருவண்ணாமலையி லெழந்தருளியிருக்கும் அம்பிகை. உண்ணாமுலை யுமையாளொடு முடனாகிய வொருவன் [thiruvannamalaiyi lezhantharuliyirukkum ambigai. unnamulai yumaiyalodu mudanagiya voruvan] (தேவாரம் [thevaram] 1025, 1).

context information

Tamil is an ancient language of India from the Dravidian family spoken by roughly 250 million people mainly in southern India and Sri Lanka.

Discover the meaning of unnamulai in the context of Tamil from relevant books on Exotic India

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