It was earlier known as Kumanan Nagar as King Kumanan was ruling this place.  Later, a Kuzhu of merchants –Kuzhu-group -  were here doing trade, the place came to be known as Kuzhumur and in the days that followed with many changes in pronunciation, the name settled with Kozhumam.

Devotees pray for removal of obstacles in marriage efforts, relief from Sani (Saturn) effects and for proficiency in arts, offering the Lord abishek and new clothes.

Thandeswarar: The king wanted to have Nataraja – Cosmic Dancer - as the procession deity.  The sculptor failed twice in making the idol.  The angry king ordered capital punishment to the sculptor if he failed in making the idol perfect in the third attempt.  The broken sculptor begged the Lord to end his life Himself instead of by the executors of the king.  The Lord, in all sympathy, offered the sculptor his darshan and set himself beautifully as an idol.  This was named Thandeswarar – dancer – and also the temple.

Then Chidambaram – Chidambaram of South: Lord Nataraja – Thandeswarar appears here too with one leg upward as in Chidambaram temple.  The idol is 5.5 feet tall.  Hence, the shrine is known as Then Chidambaram – Chidambaram of the South.  Worsipping Thandeswarar ensures skill in arts.  Dakshinamurthy in this temple has only two disciples against the four according the tradition.  But four disciples are found doing penance in the sanctum sanctorum wall.

The Story of the place goes, that a king Veerachozheeswara was suffering from the adverse effect of planet Sun.  The region lost its luster and fertility.  Scared king approached his Guru for a solution.  As advised by him, he built this Shiva temple curing the jungle area dense with Vilwa trees.