- Ekambareswarar Temple
Infobox Mandir
creator =Pallava kings
proper_name = Arulmigu Kanchi Ekambareswarar Thirukoil
date_built =
primary_deity = Ekambareswarar (Shiva )
architecture =Dravidian architecture
location =Kanchipuram ,Tamil Nadu Ekambareswarar Temple ( _ta. ஏகாம்பரநாதர் கோயில்) is one of the famous
Hindu temples dedicated toLord Shiva , located inKanchipuram in the state ofTamilnadu ,India .It is one of the five major Shiva temples or "Pancha Bootha Sthalam"s (each representing a natural element) representing the element - Earth. The other four temples in this category are Thiruvanaikaval Jambukeswara (water), Chidambaram Natarajar (sky), Thiruvannamalai Arunachaleswara (fire) and Kalahasti Nathar (wind).
It is also one of the 108
Divya desam forVaishnavite s. All of the four reveredSaivite Saints have sung the glory of this temple.History
This ancient temple has been in existence even prior to 600 AD and has been sung by the revered Saivite Saints. Second century AD Tamil poetry speaks of "Kama kottam", and the "Kumara kottam" (currently the Kamakashi Amman temple and the Subramanya temple). The existing structure then, was pulled down and rebuilt by the
Pallava Kings. TheChola s who came in later also made several contributions to the temple.Temple
No separate shrine for
Parvati exists here (as in other Shiva temples in Kanchipuram).There is a small shrine for
Lord Vishnu named "Thiru Nilaaththingal Thundathan". Here, the Lord Vishnu is prayed asVamana Murthy.Architecture
The temple covers an area of over 40 acres. Reaching a height of 57 meters, the temple's Raja "
gopuram " (the entrance tower to the temple) is one of the tallest in South India and was built by theVijayanagar King,Krishnadevaraya .One notable feature of the temple is the "Aayiram Kaal Mandapam", or the "hallway with a thousand pillars", which was built by the Vijayanagar Kings. The temple's inner walls are decorated with an array of 1,008 Siva
lingam s.The "sthala-virutcham" is a 3,500 year old
mango tree whose branches are said to yield four different types of mangoes.Legend
Legend has it that once Parvati was doing "tapas" under this Mango Tree.
In order to test her devotion Lord Shiva sent fire on her. Goddess Parvati prayed to her brother, Lord Vishnu. In order to save her, he took the Moon from Lord Shiva's head and showed the rays which then cooled down the tree as well as Parvati.
After that, Lord Shiva again sent the river
Ganga to disrupt Parvati's tapas. Parvati devi prayed to Ganga and convinced her that both of them are sisters and should not harm her. And so Ganga did not disturb her penance after that. Then Parvati made a Shiva Linga out of sand and got united with Lord Shiva.According to another legend, it is believed that Parvati worshipped Shiva in the form of a "Prithivi Lingam" (or a Lingam improvised out of sand), under a mango tree. Legend has it that the neighboring "Vegavati" river overflowed and threatened to engulf the Shiva Lingam and that Parvati or
Kamakshi embraced the Lingam. Shiva touched by the gesture materialized in person and married her. In this context he is referred to as "Tazhuva kuzhainthaar" ("He who melted in Her embrace") in Tamil.External links
* [http://www.jyotirlinga.com Virtual Lord Shiva Darshan and pilgrimage with videos and images]
* [http://www.indiantemples.com/Tamilnadu/ekamkanc.html Link to Indiantemples.com site]
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