21 Chidambaram Temple Facts: Learn About The Temple In Tamil Nadu

India is one of the most incredible and oldest civilizations to ever exist!

The treasures of India's architecture, art, music, classical dance, flora and wildlife, and, of course, the philosophy of its people make up the country's legacy. India has a long and illustrious history.

An internal part of India's culture, religion, and traditions is its temples. A Hindu temple is a place of worship for the various deities, a divine and sacred supernatural being.

A temple isn't merely a place of worship, it's a place where people have internal realizations by reflecting on one's deeds and perspective. This place aids in purifying one's mind.

Many believe it to be just a ritual, but it is so much more than that; it's a way of life.

One such temple is the Chidambaram Temple, which was built by Rajendra Chola I. Thillai Nataraja Temple is another name for Chidambaram Temple. This temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva's dance form, Lord Nataraja, and his wife, Parvati.

Not only is the majestic temple one of the oldest in southern India, but it is also one of Lord Shiva's five holiest temples, known as Pancha Bootha Sthalas! The temple is a magnificent structure and architectural marvel that everyone should see at least once in their lives!

Chidambaram is one of the numerous ancient names that stem from the Tamil Cirrambalam, which means 'small hall.' According to legend, the location of this temple was chosen because it was the exact location where Lord Shiva once danced in a grove of thillai trees.

The dance was a competition between Shiva and Parvati, with the mighty Shiva triumphing. Over time, the narrative became a favorite topic in Hindu art.

The Nataraja temple was built sometime between 1175 and 1200 CE. The actual temple shrine is small; the gopuras had become the most significant constructions in Indian architecture by this point, especially in terms of aesthetics.

Read on to learn more about this remarkable temple in Southern India!

Chidambaram Temple Location

People from all over the world visit the temple town, Chidambaran, to worship Lord Shiva in one of his most famous and holiest temples. Do you know that Chidambaram is the geomagnetic center of the earth?

Here are some facts about the location of the Chidambaram Temple.

You can find this incredibly captivating temple in the state of Tamil Nadu in South India. It is located around 3.1 mi (5 km) north of the Kollidam River (Kaveri), 9.3 mi (15 km) west of the Bay of Bengal coast, and 140 mi (225 km) south of Chennai.

Pondicherry, the nearest major airport, is roughly 37 mi (60 km) north. Chidambaram is connected to National Highway 32.

The Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation and some private businesses run services linking it to the state's major cities. The location is linked to the Indian Railways, which operates daily fast trains to South Indian towns.

History Of Chidambaram Temple

The history of the temple Chidambaram spans numerous centuries. According to Hindu texts, this temple is one of the Pancha Bootha Sthalas. Pancha Bootha Sthalas are five renowned Shiva temples devoted to Lord Shiva, each represents one of nature's five primary elements: earth, water, fire, air, and aether. Read on to learn about the history of Chidambaram Temple!

Since ancient times, as back as the 5th century, the temple is believed to have existed. There is textual evidence as well. The first reference of the Shiva appears in Appar and Sambadar's 6th and early 7th century scriptures. The Chidambaram dance is mentioned in the Suta Samhita, which dates between the 7th and 10th centuries.

The temple structure can be traced back to the Chola dynasty, and Chidambaram was its capital, with Shiva Nataraja as their family deity. This town was meaningful to the Cholas.

The earliest historically verified Shiva temple in Chidambaram may be found in inscriptions dating back to the reign of Aditya Chola I in the early 10th century and significantly more during the reign of the Chola ruler Parantaka I in the 10th century.

Under the Chola dynasty's rule in the mid-13th century, Chidambaram temple prospered alongside the subsequent Shiva-based Thanjavur and Gangaikondacholapuram capitals, as well as Vishnu-based Srirangam temple towns. After the mid-13th century, the Chola dynasty came to an end by the Pandya dynasty.

By the late 13th century, Muslim troops had begun attacking central India. When Sultan Alauddin Khilji sent his commander Malik Kafur and his army to conquer southern Hindu kingdoms in 1311, he traveled farther into the Indian peninsula in search of loot and to create an annual tribute arrangement between the country and the Sultanate.

According to the archives left by the Delhi Sultanate's court historians, Malik Kafur stormed Chidambaram, Srirangam, Madurai, and other Tamil towns, destroying temples and the Nataraja temple was one of the sources of gold and gem treasure he took back to Delhi. A decade later, temple towns were targeted again.

According to the 14th-century Islamic invasion, the support of Chidambaram and other temple towns was abruptly ended by George Michell, a scholar and art historian of Indian architecture.

The collapse of the Vijayanagara Empire by a Sultanate coalition in the late 16th century, followed by the arrival of Portuguese, French, and British colonial interests within a few decades, created geopolitical uncertainty in Chidambaram and other temple cities.

Architectural Details About The Chidambaram Temple

The architecture of this place isn't just a building. Its aesthetic design and structure tell you a story; it is also a part of the culture. Read further to learn some of the fascinating architectural facts about the Chidambaram Temple!

The architecture of the temple Chidambaram is Dravidian, with the Sanctum Sanctorum mirroring those in Kerala or Malabar. The royal charters indicate that the Sanctum was rebuilt by Kerala architects.

The temple has a golden roof. The temple roof is in apsidal design. The huge architectural complex has Chit Sabha and Kanak Sabha, two small structures, at the center point of the temple complex. It even has concentric courtyards!

The connecting mandapams between the inner sanctum and the adjacent pillared halls are either squares or stacked squares, or both. There are nine gopurams in the complex, as well as several water storage structures. The Shivaganga sacred pool is the largest rectangular water-holding structure.

Chidambaram denotes Lord Shiva's Nataraja Shiva form and theological principles linked with Hinduism's Shaivism ideals, yet the temple has shrines for Devi, Vishnu, Subrahmanyar, Ganesha, Nandi, Amman, and a Surya shrine with Chariot wheels.

It contains a number of meeting halls, which are known as sabha. There are four sabhas in total, namely Nritta sabha, Raja sabha, Shatasila sabha, Deva sabha.

Shrines Of Chidambaram Temple

A shrine is a sacred place that is dedicated to a particular figure of respect. The Chidambaram temple doesn't just have a shiva shrine; it has a number of shrines.

Although, an embossed image near Shiva's shrine is said to deliver a secret message; this Hindu belief is known as Chidambara Rahasyam or the secret of Chidambaram. Continue reading to know about the shrines in the temple.

The Shiva shrine is in the first prakara. It has a Chit Sabha along with an image of Shiva Nataraja. This empty area comprises a 3.82 yd (3.5 m) long and 1.64 yd (1.5 m) wide curtained space. In Hindu literature, this is referred to as the rahasya, meaning secret.

The Chidambaram Rahasya is a formless portrayal of Shiva as the metaphysical Brahman, which is variously interpreted as akasha linga and divine being. Kanaka sabha faces the chit sabha, and five silver gilded steps, known as panchakshara, connect both shrines.

The Devi shrine is in the third prakara. The Shivakama Sundari shrine, dedicated to Parvati, is located to the west of the Shivaganga pool.

A Vishnu shrine may be seen in the temple's southwest corner inside the temple. Chola kings adored Shiva, with Tyagaraja and Nataraja as their family deity. Despite this, their urban Shiva centers around an echo of a very strong substratum of Vaishnava traditions.

The Govindaraja shrine is one of Vishnu's 108 sacred temples known as divyadesam. The shrine has a long history with the Govindaraja temple in Tirupati, dating back to the 11th and 12th centuries and saint Ramanuja. The temple also has shrines for Ganesha, Surya, and Subrahmanyar. The Surya shrine is a pre-13th-century shrine!