Kartikeya, also known as Skanda, Kumaran,Subramanya, Murugan, Karuna and Subramaniyan is the Hindu god of war. He is the commander-in-chief of the army of the devas (gods) and the son of Shiva and Parvati.

Murugan is often referred to as ‘Tamil Kadavul’ (meaning "God of Tamils") and is worshiped primarily in areas with Tamil influences, especially South India, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Reunion Island.

Hindu god Karthik or Kartikeya, son of Lord Siva also called , Skanda and Subrahmanya, called in Tamil language as Murugan,is a popular Hindu deity among all Hindus, worshiped primarily in areas with Tamil influences, especially South India, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Malaysia, Singapore and Reunion Island. His six most important shrines in India are the Arupadaiveedu temples, located in Tamil Nadu.


In Sri Lanka, Hindus as well as Buddhists revere the sacred historical Nallur Kandaswamy temple in Jaffna and the sacred Buddhist and Hindu shrine of Katirkāmam Temple (also in Sinhala "Katharagama Devalaya") dedicated to him, situated deep south in the country. Ethnic Chinese in Penang and Kuala Lumpur, of Malaysia also pray to Lord Murugan during Thaipusam.