Ancient Alchemy Expertise

Palani is the most sacred religious abode of Lord Daņdāyudhapāni. Attracting people in large numbers regardless of their religious faiths and breaking language barriers, The basic, and the foremost factor is the presiding deity, known as the mūlavar. It is a normal practice to sculpt the idols for all Hindu temples in granite stone. The main reason to choose granite is it's tensile strength. But other than this enormous strength, only granite stone contains all the five elements of creation, namely the pancha bhūtas. They are earth, water, fire, air and ether. 

Navapasana idol:

As an exception, in Palani the idol for the mūlavar or presiding deity is believed to be made out of an amalgam known as nava pāśaņam. In Sanskrit the word nava has two meanings. Nava means both 'new' and also 'nine'. Similarly the word bhāśaņa also has two meanings. Bhāśaņa means 'poison' and may also mean 'mineral'. 

The observations made by the researchers who delved into the ancient literature lends support to the theory that the siddha munivar Bhogar was the one who formulated this amalgamation of nava pāśaņam. The idol for the presiding deity was sculpted out of this nava pāśaņam. It is believed that this amalgam is a clever mixture of nine poisonous metals. By this amalgamation, the poisonous nature of all these metals was harnessed, hardened like granite and converted into a beneficial amalgam with medicinal and curative values. The idol for the presiding deity was subsequently carved out of this hardened amalgam.

To evolve such an unique amalgam reveals the alchemy expertise possessed by the siddha munivar Bhogar, the enormous spiritual heights achieved by him and the endless concern he had about the welfare of the followers devoted to Lord Murukan in future generations.

NAVAPASANAM:

"NAVAPASANAM"  a combination of Veeram, Pooram, Rasam, Jathilingam, Kandagam, Gauri Pasanam, Vellai Pasanam, Mridharsingh, Silasat
The amalgam is widely believed to have medicinal qualities and curative abilities." 

Medicinal values of NAVAPASANAM:

 
Everyday ablutions are performed. During Kartigai days it will be in hundreds. These ablution provide not only grace of Muruga but also cures for ills. When milk ablutions are performed, the milk after coming in contact with the Navapashana body of Muruga absorbs all its medicinal qualities. The beauty is that for a long time the milk is not spoiled. Similar is the case with sandal ablution.