Navagraha temples - Budha

Information about Budha (Mercury) graha

Temple Information:

Temple Name: THIRUVENKADU BUDHA Temple
Deities at place (Sthala devata): Lord Shiva as SHWETHARANYESHWARA (Shwetha + Aranya + Ishwara)  and consort Parvati as SHREEBRAHMAVIDHYAMBIKA (Shree + BrahmaVidhya + Ambika)
Graha name: Budhan
Village Location: THIRUVENKADU, Tamil Nadu 609114, India

How to reach the Temple:

It is about 17 kms SouthEast of SIRKAZHI, about 10 kms to the West of POOMBUKAR bus stop (HWY 22) and about 11 kms from VAITHEESWARANKOIL.

History of Budha Graha Temple:

According to Scriptures, a demon known as Maruthuvasuran got a number of boons from the Gods and then went on to engage them in war. So Lord Shiva advised the Gods to stay at Thiruvenkadu in disguise. The demon came to know about this and troubled Gods. Lord Shiva sent Nandi to fight the demon. The demon had acquired a Trishul (Trident) from Lord Shiva as boon. The demon inflicted 9 wounds on the Nandi. When Lord Shiva came to know about the plight of Nandi and the misuse of the trishul, His face took a ferocious countenance. In this ferocious manifestation, He fought with demon. The demon could not withstand Lord Shiva's ferocity and eventually surrendered to Lord Shiva. The temple sculpture portrays this - Lord Shiva in His ferocious manifestation with the demon at His feet and the Nandi alongside with 9 wounds.

On all four sides there are roads for Rathayatra. The RajaGopuram is on both east and west side.

There are 3 teerthas (pond) here. According to fable, when Lord Shiva performed His Celestial Rudra dance, 3 drops of water fell down and formed these 3 kunda/ teerth/ pond, namely Agni Teerth, Surya Teerth and Chandra Teerth.

Sacred Tree: 3 types – 1. Bel/ Bilwa/ Vilwa (Tamil) 2. Vadaval (Tamil) and 3. Konnai (Tamil).

Importance of Budha Graha:
Budha is Jnani (Learned), well versed in all arts. He is son of Chandra and Tara. Chandra had taken Guru (Brihaspathi) as his Guru. Chandra had married 27 daughters of Daksha. He performed a Yagya to please Lord Vishnu. At that time, Guru’s wife Tara was enchanted by the beauty of Chandra and stayed with him. She delivered a son, namely Budha. Under the orders of Brahma, Lord Shiva handed over Tara back to Guru and the boy Budha to Chandra. When Budha grew up, he got dejected with Chandra and went to Himalayas to perform penance. He became well versed in all arts and received a boon from Lord Shiva and became Graham (Celestial Body).

Budha is a ShubhaGraham responsible for knowledge, intelligence, astrological wisdom, debating skills etc.

Nivritti (Absolution) from Budha Dosha:

He is the Lord of Mithun and Kanya rashi/ zodiac (by Chandra/ Moon based astrology). The controlling/ presiding deity (AadhiDevata) is MahaVishnu.

Budha Mahadasha is for 17 years.

When Budha is in the sixth, eighth or twelfth position, generally he gives adverse results. According to Astrology, Budha is responsible for mental disorders, anemia, nervous disorders, leucoderma (white patches), leprosy etc.

NavaGraha Aspect/ Characteristics Summary – Budha (Mercury):

#	Navagraha Aspect	Mercury
1	Consort	Ila
2	Cloth color	Green
3	Gender	Neutral
4	Element	Earth
5	God	Vishnu
6	Mounts	Lion
7	Presiding Deity	Vishnu
8	Metal	Bronze
9	Gemstone	Emerald
10	Body Part	Skin
11	Taste	Mixed
12	Grain	Green Gram
13	Season	Autumn
14	Graha deities face this direction	East
15	Flower	White Oleander/ Kanthal/ Kaner
16	Kshetra vruksha (tree)	Bel/ Bilwa/ Aegle Marmelos/ Wood Apple
17	Week day	Wednesday
18	Sound	Sa

Rangoli for Budha Graha: 
To be drawn when worshiping Mercury god

Mantra for Budha Graha:
Below is mantra for Mercury god.