As per Hindu legend, sage Vamadeva visited many temples to worship Shiva. He came to the place and was standing under an Arasu tree (peepli tree) and felt that it would be nice if Shiva appeared in the place. Pleased by the devotion of the sage, Shiva appeared in the place of the Arasu tree and came to be known as Arasaleeswarar and the place came to be known as Arasili. As per another legend, a king named Sathyavardhan who ruled the place was a staunch devotee of Shiva. He installed a garden to garner flowers for his worship. Each day the gardener complained that someone stole the flowers of the garden. The king found that a deer was eating the flowers of the garden. Angered at the deer, the king shot an arrow at it which missed its mark but hit the Arasu tree behind. The king found that blood was oozing out from the Arasu tree, which the king found out to be the incarnation of Shiva. The scar mark in the Lingam of the temple is believed to be the arrow hit by the king.