Temples of Tamil Nadu, India - Chidambaram & Cholapuram

When you plan a visit to South India, especially Tamil Nadu, you cannot miss the temples that showcase the culture and history of the region. The architecture of these historic temples speaks volumes about the ancient history of India. And one such temple town of Tamil Nadu is Chidambaram that is located at a distance of 60 KM approximately from Pondicherry and 210 KM approx., from Chennai. Surrounded by many other temples aka temple cities, you can plan a pilgrimage tour covering the temples at Chidambaram, Karaikal and Kumbakonam.

And getting back to my one day trip to Chidambaram, the temples we visited were Thillai Nataraja Temple, Thillai Kali Amman Temple and Gangaikonda Cholapuram.

The Chidambaram temple or Thillai Nataraja temple is one of the five holiest Shiva temples in South India with the temple complex spread approximately over 50 acres at the heart of the city. With stories dating back to the 2nd century that decodes the name of the temple, the gods dancing avatar, etc. As I don’t want to bore you with the temple history (which you can google), here are the things I loved about the temple. The dancing avatar of Lord Shiva that makes him look majestic and beautiful, the architecture of the temple gopuram and the pillars are sure to hypnotize you. The Thillai Kali Amman temple located on the outskirts of Chidambaram is yet another ancient temple. There are stories that say the Goddess moved here after losing a dance competition to Lord Shiva. However, the temple isn’t as big as the Nataraja temple so you need to push your way through the crowd.

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However, the majestic beauty that caught my attention was Sri Brihadeeswara temple at Gangaikonda Cholapuram, located at a distance of 42 KM from Chidambaram. The temple built by Rajendra Chola I (son of Rajaraja Chola) in the Cholas capital holds a prominent place in the Indian history. It is a replica of the Thanjavur Big temple, however, there are differences in the detailing to make them both a little different from each other. This UNESCO World Heritage Site survives as most of the Cholapuram is destroyed. The majestic Shiva Linga, the Nandi statue, the gigantic gopuram and well-maintained garden makes the visit to this place a memorable one and if you haven’t been here then go already!

As the hot sun was scorching, we finished our one day trip with these three temples. However, if you have a few more days to spare then add a few more temples to your itinerary from the nearby towns and also visit the Pichavaram Mangrove Forest near Chidambaram.

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