Tirunelveli Nellaiyappar and Kanthimathi Temple Structure - Part 1

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In my previous post, I wrote about the legend and history of the Nellaiyappar and Kanthimathi temple of Tirunelveli. (Tirunelveli is a city located in the Tamil Nadu state of India). In this post, I will continue to write about the temple structure, architecture, and sculptures of the temple. Again, I cannot cover everything in a single blog post. Hence, I plan to write a series of articles on this subject alone.


Kanthimathi Amman Temple Tower
As stated already, Nellaiyappar and Kanthimathi temple is the main temple of Tirunelveli. Located at the heart of the city, it is one of the 27r important Shiva temples (Paadal Petra Sthalams). Lord Shiva is named Nellaiyappar in this shrine. Venuvananathar, Veimutha Nathar, Nelveli Nathar, and Chalivaadeesar are his other names. The principal Goddess of the temple is Kanthimathi. She is also called Vadivudai Amman and Tiru Kamakkottamudaiya Nachiar.

Originally, Nellaiyappar temple and Kanthimathi temples were built as two separate temples with space in between. In 1647 CE, a devotee named Tiru Vadamalaiappa Pillaiyan linked both temples by building 'Sangili Mandapam' (chain mandapa/hall). The Nellaiyappar temple is 850 feet long and 756 feet wide. The Kanthimathi temple is almost similar in size. Both temples have Raja Gopurams (towers) at their respective entrances. There are also a few other smaller towers in the temple complex.


Nellaiyappar Temple Tower
There are five chariots for this temple. They are dedicated to Nellaiyappar, Kanthimathi, Ganesha, Murugan and Chandikeswara. Nellaiyappar car is the third largest chariot in the entire state. The car festival is one of the famous festivals celebrated here.

The shrine has 32 teerthams (temple tanks), out of which 4 water bodies are located inside the temple; the rest are found outside.

Let us explore more details about the interior temple structure in the next blog post....till then...

Happy travelling.


A Female carrying a Child

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