Indian Columbus

Kanchipuram , one of the seven holy cities of India, is considered a city of 1000 temples. Besides the temples, one of the important places in the city is Kanchi Shankara Mutt. (In South India, it is written as "mutt", whereas it is spelled as "math" in the north. It means monastery or a holy place where the sages live).  Kanchi Shankara Mutt is located in the heart of the city. It is believed that it was established by Adi Shankaracharya, the great reformer of Hinduism, in 482 BC. It is also believed that he attained samadhi (died) in 477 BC in Kanchipuram. However, there are many controversies about the above statements. Many people believe that Adi Shankaracharya was born in the 8th century CE, and he attained samadhi in Badrinath. (Interestingly, we can find Adi Shankara samadhis in Badrinath and Thrisur.) Some people claim that Adi Shankaracharya didn't establish the Kanchi mutt; it was a branch of the Sringeri mutt in Kumbakonam city that became independen...

Pandava Doota Perumal Temple, located near the famous  Ekambareswarar  temple of  Kanchipuram  city, is one of the 108 Divya Desams (108 most important temples of Lord Vishnu). The historical name of the site is Tiruppaadagam. Lord Krishna is called Pandava Doota in this temple. Although the temple is tiny, the presiding deity is gigantic in size. He is around 25 feet tall and is found seated. He has four arms and is found along with his two consorts, Rukmini and Satyabhama. As per the legend, king Janameyajeya listened to Mahabharat from the Sage Vaisambhavana. He got enlightened by the event of Sri Krishna revealing himself through the Viswaroopa darshan (the large image of Lord) in Hastinapura. The king wanted to have the same Viswaroopa Darshana of Vishnu, performed an Aswamedha yagna here, and ultimately achieved the same. The Pandava Doota Perumal temple is approximately 1000 years old, and it is believed to have been built by the Pallavas. When you visit Kanc...

Kailasanathar temple is located remotely from the center of  Kanchipuram  city. It is the best temple in the town for iconography and architecture. The only other temple in Kanchipuram that can be compared with its artistic beauty is the Vaikuntanathar temple.  The presiding deity of the temple is Lord Shiva referred to as Kailasanathar. It is a large Shiva linga icon with 16 stripes, a rare form.  Built by Rajasimha Pallava in the 8th century CE, the temple has a splendid Vimana and giant-sized Nandi. The complex is full of small shrines enshrining various forms of Shiva. The outer walls have numerous sculptures of multiple deities.  This is one of the few temples in Kanchipuram, which was purely a contribution of Pallava kings and didn't have any additions by the other kings such as Cholas and Vijayanagara kings.  As per the legend, three Asuras named Tharakatchan, Kamalatchan and Vidhyamali (Tiripuraris) were ardent devotees of Lord Shiva. The...

Located  around 75 km from Chennai, Kanchipuram is considered one of the seven holy cities for Hindus. Known as the city of thousand temples, the town has about one hundred prominent and ancient temples. Among all temples of Shiva in Kanchi,   Ekambaranathar Temple is the biggest and most popular. In fact, the temple is one of the most prominent temples of the entire state of Tamil Nadu. This article focuses on that shrine located at the heart of the town. Highlights One of the most popular temples of Tamil Nadu state The most famous Shiva temple of Kanchipuram town This is the  first Devaram Paadal Petra Sthalam  in the Tondai region A rare temple that has both Paadal Petra Sthalam and Divya Desam God - Ekambaranathar or Ekambareshwarar Goddess - Kamakshi or Elavar Kuzhali Other names of God  - Tiruvegambar, Thaluvak Kuzhainda Nathar Sthala Vruksha  (holy tree) - Mango Teertha of Divya Desam -  Kamba River, Shiva Ganga, Sarva Teertha...

Kanchipuram  is one of the seven holy sites for Hindus. The ancient town is located around 75 km from Chennai city in the Tamil Nadu state of India. The city is said to have more than one thousand temples. However, although one thousand temples cannot be found currently, about one hundred important and ancient temples are located across the town. Let us discuss about a lesser-known ancient temple called  Chokkeesar Temple  in this article.  This small beautiful Chola period temple is located in North Mada Street, diagonally opposite the famous Kamakshi Amman temple. This is one of the oldest temples of Kanchipuram, which survives in its original form. As per the inscription, the deity was called  Therkirunda Nakkar  in those days. It is believed that the temple was built by the Cholas in the  11th century CE . (There is difference of opinion among the historians on the exact period of the temple. There are few who date this temple to 9th/10th c...