Vridhagireeswar Temple - Chennai

By -
Unamancheri is a small village located near Tambaram on the outskirts of Chennai city of Tamil Nadu state in India. In this village, there is a beautiful Vijayanagara period temple of Kodanda Ram is located. Hardly at a distance of about 200-300 meters from this temple, there is another ancient temple of Lord Shiva located. This article is to focus on that temple.

Vridhagireeswar is the name of Shiva in this temple. This east-facing temple does not have a tower or flagstaff.

Vridhagireeswar is a big Shiv Linga found in the east-facing sanctum. Vridhamika is the Goddess found in the separate south-facing shrine. Both the shrines and the small Maha Mandap are situated inside an enclosure. The pillars in the Maha Mandap have many interesting sculptures. At this entrance, the idols of Ganesh and Subramanya-Valli-Devasena are found.

Nandi mandapa and bali peetha are found facing toward the sanctum. But the entrance to the enclosure is in the south direction. Hence, a wall is between the east-facing Shiv Linga and Nandi.

Nardana Ganapati, Dakshinamurit, Vishnu, Brahma and Durga are found as the Koshta Murtis. All are new idols and do not seem to belong to the original period.

Bhairava and Navagrahas's icon and their respective vaahans are also found in this temple.

I heard that the copper plate inscriptions found in the Kodanda Rama temple have references to this temple. This temple was believed to have been built during the period of Krishnadeva Raya of Vijayanagara.

Happy travelling.





Location: Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Tallest Murugan of Chennai

By -
Image
Consecrated in March 2021, the 40 feet high Bala Murugan icon at Saveetha Medical College campus is the tallest image of Murugan in Chennai. Malaysia has 140 feet tall Murugan. In April 2022, the 146 feet tall image of Murugan was consecrated near Salem in Tamil Nadu. However, they are all stucco images. But, the one that we find on the college campus is a monolithic granite icon. Thus, it is the tallest stone icon of Murugan in the entire world. A stone weighing 320 tonnes was brought from Siruvambur near Wallajah, and it was carved to 140 tonnes to get this beautiful and gigantic sculpture. The entire temple complex is designed in the shape of the Devanagiri letter "Om", which can be appreciated in the aerial view.  The west-facing gigantic sculpture is located atop the star-shaped pedestal. It dominates the entire landscape. A large meditation hall is situated below the pedestal. On the open corridor in front of the presiding deity, smaller shrines are found. They enshrine...
Read more

Little known Nimishamba Temple of Chennai

By -
Image
Site Name:  Nimishamba Temple Site Type:  Hindu Temple Location:   Kasi Chetty Street, Sowcarpet, Chennai city, Tamil Nadu state, India Highlights:   A rare temple of Nimishamba in Chennai city Nearest Railway Station:   Chennai - well connected from the cities/towns all over India Nearest Airport:   Chennai has both national and international airports How to reach:   Easily reachable by road as this is centrally located in the city Hotel:  Many star hotels, luxury hotels/resorts, and budget hotels are available in Chennai Restaurants:  All options - vegetarian, non-vegetarian, Chinese, South Indian, Gujarati, North Indian, Punjabi,....- you can find everything in Chennai city Chennai is considered as the gateway to South India. The capital city of Tamil Nadu state of India has hundreds of tourist sites which include museum, British period monuments, temples, beach, etc. Let us explore a little known temple called Nimisham...
Read more

Hastinapuram Navapashanam Murugan Temple

By -
Image
Navapashanam is an amalgam of nine poisonous herbs. It is said to act as a remedy for all types of diseases. It is believed that the Siddhas knew the secret formula to prepare this medicinal potion.  The sculpture of Murugan from the famous Palani is claimed to be made of Navapashanam. Similarly, there is a lesser-known temple near Chennai, which has a Navapashanam Murugan. In Hastinapuram near Chrompet in the southern outskirts of Chennai, in a congested lane called Masjid Street, this tiny temple of Bala Murugan is situated. Murugan, made of Navapashanam, is the presiding deity.  Jalakandeeswara Linga, Meenakshi, and the Siddha who found this temple are the other Murtis found in the temple. Happy travelling.
Read more