the Ultimate Web on Indian Gods & Temples

 by Padmani,

Abodes of Navagraha

Chevvai (Mars)

Mars (Chevvai) is the hottest planet in  the Universe.  He is the commander for the Number 9 in astrology i.e., the persons having date in the date of birth as 9,18,27. According to the legend, after the Lordess Dhakshayini's body was tored in pieces by the Disc of Lord Vishnu, Lord Shiva became calm and went into meditation at Mount Kailash until Lordess Parvathi comes to Mount Kailash. While Lord Shiva was in meditation as water dew from Third eye on His Forehead fell on the Earth. Lordess Earth (Boomadevi) held that water dew and that dew was born as male child called Angaragan. The other names are Chevvai, Bhowman, Kujan and Bhoomikaragan. Angaragan was brought up first by Lordess Boomadevi and then by Saint Bharathwaja. So Angaragan belongs to Bharathwaja Kothram. As he was red in color, he was called as Chevvai. His friends are Sun and Chandran.  As he was born to Lord Shiva before the birth of Lord Muruga, Angaragan was of Lord Muruga's  amsam. As he is a subha graha, he is called as "Mangalan". He takes 45 days to move from on Rasi (Zodiac) to another. He has two beautiful wives Malini and Suseelani. Angaraka, Planet Mars is the 4th planet from the Sun. It is red in color and a fiery planet. Its energy is masculine. Tuesday is his day and he governs the zodiac signs Aries and Scorpio and rules the stars Mrigashira, Chitra and Dhanishtha. The transitory time of planet Mars from one sign to the other is generally 45 days. However, this is unpredictable as sometimes Mars stays stable in a zodiac sign even for 6 months. The presiding deity of the planet is Lord Muruga. Mars is a forceful planet and symbolizes desire, rash boldness, adventures, physical strength, primitive tendencies, self-dependency, power to withstand strain, independent nature, desire for position, warrior energy as it is the commander of the divine army, drive and courage. It also denotes matters pertaining to one’s siblings. Mars energy can be both constructive and destructive and one needs to be very watchful. Angaraka is portrayed with four hands, carrying a trident, mace, lotus and a spear. Wearing red clothes, he often rides on a ram/goat.The day of the week for the Mars is Tuesday, the precious gem is coral, and the most significant flowers are the Red oleander, Red rose. Thuvar Dhal is the grain for the Mars. As the color of Mars is red, he is always draped in red color cloth. In Horoscope, when Mars is in 2nd,4th,7th,8th, or 12th position from Moon (Chandran) then that horoscope is considered to have "Chevvai Dhosha". The auspicious day for him is "Tuesday". In Tamil Nadu the worship of Angaragan is auspicious in these following temples. a) Palani, b) Thirusirukudi  and c) Vaideeswaran Koil. In the North India, Ujjain is the auspicious worship place for Angaragan.