Manikkavacakar, or Maanikkavaasagar merged with Lord Nataraja at Chidambaram on Magham Nakshatra day month of Aani(June-July). He was a 9th-century Tamil saint and poet who wrote Tiruvasakam, a book of Shaiva hymns. He was one of the main authors of Saivite Tirumurai, his work forms volume eight of the Tirumurai, the key religious text of Tamil language Shaiva Siddhanta. A minister to the Pandya king Varagunavarman II (c. 862 CE–885 CE) (also called Arimarthana Pandiyan), he lived in Madurai. His work is a poetic expression of the joy of God-experience, the anguish of being separated from God. Although he is a prominent saint in Southern India, he is not counted among the sixty-three nayanars.
