Legend has it that Saint Agathiyar got darshan of Lord Shiva at Vedaranyeshwarar Temple in Vedaranyam on 'Thai Amavasai' day after he took a holy dip in the Bay of Bengal.
So every year, thousands of devotees throng this temple to take a dip in the "Siddhar Ghat" area in the bay of bengal. Inside the temple, devotees took another dip in 'Manikarnika Ghat'.
Likewise at Kaveripoompattinam near Poompuhar, at the confluence of the River Cauvery and Bay of Bengal, devotees took a dip as it is believed to rid one of all sins and later performed rituals in memory of their forefathers.