[2] Valluvar is traditionally believed to have been born under the iluppai or butter tree (Madhuca indica) within this temple complex, where he was found and taken for adoption by his foster parents.

[3] This claim is attributed to the poem Kapilar Akaval, which states that Valluvar was born on the top of an oil-nut or iluppai tree in Mayilapuram.

[6] Refusing his request, Valluvar asked him to tie his corpse with cords and leave it among the woods outside the town in order for the wild animals to feed on it.

[6][7] Elelasingan obliged to his mentor's wishes and, upon doing so, observed that the crows and other animals that fed on his corpse "became beautiful as gold.

[10] Joanne Punzo Waghorne, professor of religion at Syracuse University, cites this claim in her work and adds that a survey from 1990 dates the temple to the 16th century.

[19] The temple was under the aegis of Sivagyana Mudaliyar before it was taken over by the Hindu Religious and Charity Endowment Department of the state government.

[10][12][17] On a traditional clockwise circumambulatory trip around the temple corridor, the shrines of Shiva and Parvathi appear along with Ganesha and Subramanya, followed by the sanctums of Karumariamman and nagakkal (carved stone slabs depicting holy snakes) representing Nagaraja beneath a holy neem tree (Azadirachta indica) at the southwestern corner of the temple complex.

[2][10] The lintel of the main shrine of Ekambaranathar bears the stucco idols of Valluvar worshiping Shiva and Parvathi.

The palli arai, or the divine bedchamber, lies behind the Shiva shrine, where the processional deities are symbolically laid to rest for the day.

[2] The sanctum of Valluvar is a two-roomed shrine enclosed by an open-pillared portico known as the maha mantapam or the meditation hall.

[12] The temple shikhara (spire) above the sanctum shows scenes of Hindu life and deities, along with Valluvar reading his couplets to his wife.

The walls of the temple are adorned with koshta images of deities such as Dakshinamurthy, Lingodbhava, Brahma, and goddess Durga.

Other small sub-shrines within the temple complex include that of Hanuman, Chandikeshwara, Bhairava, and an individual shrine for Shaneeswara (planet Saturn).

[20] A triad of neem, fig, and peepal trees that have grown together in an intertwined manner in the temple is considered an incarnation of the Trimurtis (the trinity of Hinduism).

[2] A Valluvar statue in yoga position holding a palm leaf manuscript of the Tirukkural sits on the pedestal around the original tree.

The folded knot of his lock, the bushy moustache and beard sweeping over his breast, the gravity of the forehead, the broad eyes revealing his noble heart, and the grace of his majestic frame are such as remind one of Plato and Socrates.

Add to these, the beads in his right and the moral code in the left hand, the saint in a sitting posture on a raised seat, seeming to impart instruction to his disciples, you will verily believe that he is a Tamil Rishi next to Agasthya.

[25] On Arubathi Moovar, the 8th day of the grand annual festival of the Kapaleeshwarar temple known as the Panguni Brahmotsavam taking place on the Uthra star falling in the Tamil month of Panguni (March–April), which draws the maximum crowd during the series of events,[26] the bronze idol of Valluvar and Vasuki are also taken in procession along with the idols of the 63 Nayanmars.

[17] According to legend, Valluvar gave some mud to Vasuki and asked her to cook it into food in order to marry her, which she did obligingly.

[14] All the festivals are funded by devotees, and the events in the shrine are in part sponsored by the Mudaliar community, whose ancestors were Tamil scholars.