Temples of Tamil Nadu
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Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
is known as : Land of Temples. Nearly 33000 ancient temples - many at least 600 to 800 years old, scattered all over the land. Studded with complex architecture, variety of sculptures, & rich inscriptions - capture the very essence of the culture & heritage of Tamil
Tamil people
Tamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...
land, historically more than 2000 years old.
Temples of Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
can be categorized as below:
- Temples of Sangam Age
- Temples of ThevaramTevaramThe Tevaram denotes the first seven volumes of the Tirumurai, the twelve-volume collection of Tamil Saivite devotional poetry. All seven volumes are dedicated to the works of the three most prominent Tamil poets - Campantar , Appar and Cuntarar...
Hymns - Temples of Divya Prabhantham Hymns
- Cave Temples of the PallavaPallavaThe Pallava dynasty was a Tamil dynasty which ruled the northern Tamil Nadu region and the southern Andhra Pradesh region with their capital at Kanchipuram...
s - Cave Temples of Pandiyas
- Rockcut Monolith Temples of the Pallavas
- Rockcut Monolith Temples of the Pandiyas
- Structural Temples of the Pallavas
- Structural Temples of the Pandiyas
- Structural Temples of the Cholas
- Structural Temples of Vijayanagar / Nayaks
Following is a list of such ancient temples, with an indication on when and by whom they were built.
Cave Temples of Pandiyas
- Kandan Kudaivarai - Muruga Temple, MaduraiMaduraiMadurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...
- Period:Pandiya - Seevaramudaiyar Kudaivarai - Shiva Temple, PudukkottaiPudukkottaiPudukkottai is a town and a municipality in Pudukkottai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Pudukkottai District was carved out of Tiruchirappalli and Thanjavur districts in January 1974.It is the administrative headquarters of Pudukkottai District....
- Period:Pandiya - Pathinen Bhoomi Vinnagaram - Pazhiyili Iswaram - Naarthamalai, PudukkottaiPudukkottaiPudukkottai is a town and a municipality in Pudukkottai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Pudukkottai District was carved out of Tiruchirappalli and Thanjavur districts in January 1974.It is the administrative headquarters of Pudukkottai District....
- Period:Muttaraiya
Shiva temple-Cave temple-Thirukokarnam-Pudukottai
Rockcut Monolith Temples of Pallavas
- Adyantha Kaamam - Dharmaraja Ratha, Mamallapuram - Period:PallavaPallavaThe Pallava dynasty was a Tamil dynasty which ruled the northern Tamil Nadu region and the southern Andhra Pradesh region with their capital at Kanchipuram...
Structural Temples of Pallavas
- Kailasanatha Temple - Thiruppattur, Tiruchi Dt - Period:PallavaPallavaThe Pallava dynasty was a Tamil dynasty which ruled the northern Tamil Nadu region and the southern Andhra Pradesh region with their capital at Kanchipuram...
Structural Temples of Cholas
- Srirangam Temple, Trichy
- Srirangam Temple, Vaikunda Ekadasi
- Raajarajeswaram - Brihadeeswarar TempleBrihadeeswarar templeThe Peruvudaiyar Koyil , also known as Rajarajeswaram, at Thanjavur in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, is the world's first complete granite temple and a brilliant example of the major heights achieved by Cholas kingdom Vishwakarmas in Tamil architecture. It is a tribute and a reflection of the...
or Big Temple, Thanjavur - Period:Chola - Thayinum Nalla Iswaram - Aaragalur - Period:Chola
- Raajasimmeswaram / Kshatriya Simmeswaram - Shore Temples, Mamallapuram - Period:PallavaPallavaThe Pallava dynasty was a Tamil dynasty which ruled the northern Tamil Nadu region and the southern Andhra Pradesh region with their capital at Kanchipuram...
- Vijayalaya Choleeswaram - Naarthamalai, PudukkottaiPudukkottaiPudukkottai is a town and a municipality in Pudukkottai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Pudukkottai District was carved out of Tiruchirappalli and Thanjavur districts in January 1974.It is the administrative headquarters of Pudukkottai District....
- Period:Muttaraiyar - Valanchuzhi Complex - Thiruvalanchuzhi, KumbakonamKumbakonamKumbakonam , also spelt as Coombaconum in the records of British India , is a town and a special grade municipality in the Thanjavur district in the southeast Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Located 40 kilometres from Thanjavur and 272 kilometres from Chennai, it is the headquarters of the Kumbakonam...
- Period:Chola - Thiruvalithayam - Padi, ChennaiChennaiChennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
- Period:Chola - Apradeeswara Temple- Nagar, LalgudiLalgudiLalgudi is a town in Tiruchirapalli district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.-Geography:Lalgudi is a town located around 20KM from Tiruchirapalli on NH227 Tiruchirapalli-Chidambaram. Lalgudi lies close to Coleroon River...
- Period:Chola - MelakadamburMelakadamburMelakadambur is a village located from Chidambaram,and can reach at 6 km from Kattumannarkoil, Cuddalore district, Tamil Nadu, India. It is known for Arulmigu Amirthakateshwarar Thirukkoil, constructed during the reign of Cholas by Kulothunga Chola...
- period: chola
See also
- Annamalaiyar TempleAnnamalaiyar TempleAnnamalaiyar Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the Hindu deity Shiva, located at the foothills of the Annamalai Hill in the town of Thiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu, India. Shiva is worshipped as Annamalaiyar or Arunachaleswarar represented by lingam, withhis consort, Unnamalaiyaal...
, Thiruvannamalai - Chidambaram TempleChidambaram TempleThillai Natarajah Temple, Chidambaram is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva located in the town of Chidambaram, East-Central Tamil Nadu, South India. The temple is known as the foremost of all temples to Saivites and has influenced worship, architecture, sculpture and performance art for over two...
, Chidambaram - Ekambareswarar TempleEkambareswarar TempleEkambareswarar Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, located in Kanchipuram in the state of Tamil Nadu, India.It is one of the five major Shiva temples or Pancha Bootha Sthalams representing the element - Earth...
, Kanchipuram - Erode FortErode FortErode Fort was a fort of Mysore Kingdom, sustained for a long time, up to the early of 19th century, with a stoney rampart.During Hyder Ali's regime, Erode was fortified, and the fort flourished, with 300 houses and a population of 1,500....
, Erode - Kailasanathar TempleKailasanathar TempleThe Kailasanath temple is the oldest temple of Kanchipuram, located in Tamil Nadu, India. It is Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Siva and known for its historical presence...
, Kanchenjunga - Kamakshi Amman TempleKamakshi Amman TempleThe Kamakshi Temple is a famous Hindu temple dedicated to Kamakshi, one of the forms of the goddess Parvati. It is located in the historic city of Kanchipuram, near Chennai, India and is popularly associated with Sankaracharya, one of the greatest Hindu gurus...
, Kanchipuram - Kapaleeshwarar TempleKapaleeshwarar templeKapaleeshwarar Temple is a temple of Shiva located in Mylapore, a suburb of Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The form of Shiva's wife Parvati worshipped at this temple is called Karpagambal...
, Mylapore, Chennai - Karpaka Vinayakar TempleKarpaka Vinayakar TemplePillaiyar patti Pillaiyar temple is an ancient rock-cut cave shrine dedicated to Ganesha, located at Thiruppatthur Pillaiyar patti Pillaiyar temple is an ancient rock-cut cave shrine dedicated to Ganesha, located at Thiruppatthur Pillaiyar patti Pillaiyar temple is an ancient rock-cut cave shrine...
, Pillayarpatti, Karaikkudi - Meenakshi Amman TempleMeenakshi Amman TempleMeenakshi Sundareswarar Temple or Meenakshi Amman Temple or Tiru-alavai is a historic Hindu temple located in the south side of river Vaigai in the temple city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India...
, Madurai - Palani Murugan templePalani Murugan TempleThe Hill Temple of Palani is one of the most famous temples of Murugan in India. It is located in the town of Palani, 100 km southeast of Coimbatore and a similar distance northwest of Madurai, and in the foot-hills of the eponymous Palni Hills...
, Palani - Ramanathaswamy Temple, Rameswaram
- Rockfort Ucchi Pillayar TempleRockfort Ucchi Pillayar TempleRockfort or Ucchi Pillayar koil, is a combination of two famous 7th century Hindu temples, one dedicated to Lord Ganesh and the other dedicated to Lord Shiva, located a top of a huge rock in Trichy, India...
, a complex of 3 temples in Tiruchirappalli - Sangameswarar TempleSangameswarar TempleSangameswarar alayam known as Kooduthurai by locals, the temple of Lord Shiva in Bhavani, Erode, Tamil Nadu, India. The temple was built at the confluence of Kaveri river, Bhavani river and ‘agaya gangai’, an invisible underground water source....
, Bhavani, Erode - Six Abodes of Lord MurugaSix Abodes of Lord MurugaThe six most sacred abodes of Hindu god Lord Murugan called as "Aarupadaiveedu" in Tamil literature, are situated in the state of Tamil Nadu in south India. The god is also known as Karthikeya, Skanda, Vadivela and Guha . The six most sacred abodes of Lord Muruga were mentioned in the Tamil...
- Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam
- Swamithope PathiSwamithope PathiSwamithoppe Pathi , Swamithoppu-pathi, Manavai-pathi, Thamarai-pathi or Thalaimaippathi [Thalaimai + pathi] is the primary pathi of the Ayyavazhi, the head of all Worship centers of Ayyavazhi, and the place where Ayya Vaikundar is said to have performed the Tavam...
, Swamithoppe - Temples of KumbakonamTemples of KumbakonamKumbakonam , is a city and a special grade municipality in the Thanjavur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located 40 kilometres from Thanjavur and 273 kilometres from Chennai. It is the headquarters of the Kumbakonam taluk of Thanjavur district.Kumbakonam is a temple town with...
- Temples of TirunelveliTemples of TirunelveliTirunelveli has a rich Hindu tradition. Though the roots of the city can be traced to associate with Hindu mythology, Tirunelveli is populated by people of all religions, with Hindus, Christians, Muslims and Jains forming a major proportion of the local people...
- Thiruchendur Murugan Temple, Thiruchendur
- ThiruppandikodumudiThiruppandikodumudiKodumudi is one of the Shiva temple in Kongu nadu. Pandiya kings have patronised the temple regularly and because of the connection of Pandiya kings, this shivasthalam is called as Tiruppandikodumudi .Kaveri river coming from the northwest turn to the east at Kodumudi...
, on the banks of Cauvery, near Erode - Thirupparamkunram Murugan TempleThirupparamkunram Murugan TempleThirupparamkunram Murugan Temple, one of the Arupadaiveedu, the six main abodes of Lord Muruga, the temple at Tiruparankunram offers a mystic beauty. It is carved in rock and is monstrous in size for such an architecture...
- Varadharaja Perumal TempleVaradharaja Perumal TempleVaradharaja Perumal Temple or Hastagiri or Attiyuran is a famous Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu located in the holy city of Kanchipuram, Tamilnadu, India...
, Kanchipuram