The Verugal Aru , literally "flood or that which overflows"; is a river on the island Ceylon that separates the Trincomalee

Trincomalee District

Trincomalee district is one of the 25 administrative districts of Sri Lanka. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary appointed by the central government of Sri Lanka...

 and Batticaloa Districts

Batticaloa District

Batticaloa district is one of the 25 administrative districts of Sri Lanka. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary appointed by the central government of Sri Lanka. The headquarters is located in Batticaloa town...

. The famous Verugal Kandaswamy Temple lies on its banks. It flows through Verugal town, just north of Kathiraveli

Kathiraveli

Kathiraveli or கதிரைவெளி is a town in Batticaloa District, Sri Lanka. It is located about 75 km Northwest of Batticaloa....

. The river reaches the Indian ocean on the eastern coast of the island just south of Trincomalee

Trincomalee

Trincomalee is a port city in Eastern Province, Sri Lanka and lies on the east coast of the island, about 113 miles south of Jaffna. It has a population of approximately 100,000 . The city is built on a peninsula, which divides the inner and outer harbours. Overlooking the Kottiyar Bay,...

. The river also feeds the Ullackalie Lagoon

Ullackalie Lagoon

Ullackalie Lagoon is a lagoon in Trincomalee District, eastern Sri Lanka.The lagoon is fed by a number of small rivers including Verugal Aru and Uppu Aru. It is linked to the sea by a narrow channel to the south. The lagoon's water is brackish....

. Its name stems from the word Perukal meaning flood or that which overflows in Tamil.

Known as Barraces to Alexandrian seafarers, it features on Ptolemy

Ptolemy

Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...

's map of the island in the 2nd century CE. Its source on the map is the Central Highlands of the island, described as Malea from the Tamil Malai meaning hills/mountains. Mahavali Ganga River (from Ma-Vali - the great pathway) which flows from the highlands is the source of the Verugal River.

A famous annual pilgrimage takes place from the Koneswaram temple

Koneswaram temple

Koneswaram temple of Trincomalee is an Hindu temple in Trincomalee, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka venerated by Saivites throughout the continent...

 to the Verugal Murugan temple on the banks of the river carrying the Hindu deity Murugan

Murugan

Murugan also called Kartikeya, Skanda and Subrahmanya, is a popular Hindu deity especially among Tamil Hindus, worshipped primarily in areas with Tamil influences, especially South India, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Mauritius and Reunion Island. His six most important shrines in India are the...

's Vel

Vel

The Vel is the divine javelin/spear of the Hindu Deity Murugan.The spear used by ancient Tamils in warfare is also commonly known by this name.-Vel in Hindu Mythology:...

.