The Life
Kochengat Chola, "the red-eyed Chola," was in a former birth a spider that worshipped a Shiva Lingam beneath a jambu tree at Thiruvanaikaval, weaving a canopy of web to shield the Lord from falling leaves. When a devoted elephant that also worshipped there tore the web, the spider in fury crept into its trunk and both perished. Pleased with the spider's devotion, Shiva had it reborn as son of the Chola king; held long in the womb for an auspicious hour, the child was born red-eyed. He grew into a mighty and just king who, remembering his past devotion, built seventy madakkoils, raised temples whose sanctums an elephant could not reach, along the Kaveri, foremost the Jambukeswarar temple. He attained Shiva's grace. His guru puja is in Masi under Chathayam.