Cultivating Divinity in Temple Construction

PART I
Dr Uday Dokras PH D Stockholm, SWEDEN

THE CONCEPT OF DIVINITY

DIVINITY is a noun, plural di·vin·i·ties. the quality of being divine; divine nature. ... the
Divinity, (sometimes lowercase) the Deity. a being having divine attributes, ranking below
God but above humans: minor divinities. the study or science of divine things; theology.
Cultivating Divinity

In Hinduism, divinity is often portrayed as a mother, in contrast to the Western habit of

depicting the divine as father. Many schools of yoga have developed around the image of God as
Shakti or feminine power; these form yoga’s great Shakta lineages. For centuries, one of the
most frequently recited scriptures in India has been the Chandi, the allegorical saga of the Divine
Mother Durga’s manifestations on earth to rescue humanity from evil, as told by the sage
Medhas Muni.

A common complaint I hear from people who have practiced yoga and meditation for years is
that, in spite of their best efforts, they still feel unhappy and unfulfilled. What would you say to
these discouraged students?

One must invite a bhava – a divine attitude – into your life. In Sanskrit there is a distinction
between buddhi and medha. “Buddhi” means the intellect and medha means the intellect
illuminated by love. When you have a loving intellect full of rasa, full of joy, full of inspiration,
then you are medhas muni, the intellect of love. Do you remember the myth in which Tara, the

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Divine Mother, leaves the house of Brihaspati because he is so dry and dull? Brihaspati
represents the buddhi. She tells him, “I need some bhava. I am going to the home of Chandra
because he is filled with devotion.”

The Divine Mother has two breasts from which she nourishes her children. From the left comes
devotion and from the right comes wisdom. Every woman should know that. Buddhi alone is not
enough nourishment to raise a healthy child. If we have a cold and dull spiritual practice, we
have to light it up with flames of devotion.

Have you heard about the time Ramakrishna visited the headquarters of the Brahmo Samaj?
They were discussing philosophy and cosmology. Ramakrishna stood in the middle of the hall
and said, “Why are you talking about the moon and the sun and the planets? Why aren’t you
calling out to the Divine Mother, the one who made the stars?” He started crying, “Mother!
Mother! Mother!” and went into Samadhi, the state of union with the supreme. The leader of the
Brahmo Samaj looked very sad and said, “All my life I have studied the scriptures and sat for
meditation, but still I have not achieved Self-realization. This saint doesn’t care to read. All he
does is call out to the Mother with pure love and immediately She wraps him in her arms.”
Also, uniting in satsang, your inspiration will increase. The root of all spiritual evolution is
satsang, which means cultivating spirituality from a good example, and then becoming a good
example yourself. As much as you polish your brass pots and your copper vessels, so much will
they shine.

Satsang is defined as keeping the company of truth or spending time with one’s guru. Self-
realized gurus are not readily available in America.

If in every family, one individual begins to cultivate community with truth, then the rest of the
family will join in. It’s not a question of having a teacher but becoming a teacher.
Ramakrishna’s instruction was that in this age in every house there should be a temple, in every
house there should be satsang. The objective is not to make anyone a renunciate, but to help
everyone realize their divinity in the framework of their own lives. Satsang does not necessarily
mean going outside. It’s cultivating inspiration within yourself and sharing it with your
immediate circle of associates.

One way you cultivate a divine attitude is through puja, ritual worship. Pu means punya, merit,
and ja means jata, to give birth. So pujas are those acts which give birth to the highest merit, and
in spiritual life the highest merit is to sit in the presence of God. What you call meditation is
concentrating awareness on one thing. But when your concentration breaks, what happens? Is
your meditation over?

Puja is guided meditation. It helps us to concentrate for longer periods of time because we take
all the practices and techniques we’ve been studying and tie these together. We take asana (yoga
postures), pranayama (breath control), mudra (yoga gestures), recitation of mantras, meditation,
and make a synthesis. In Sanskrit, synthesis is known by the word tantra. This synthesis, offered
with devotion in the form of guided meditation, is called puja. The function of puja is to guide
our meditation to the highest divinity and to offer to that divinity the best we possibly can. We

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receive as Prasad (gifts from God) whatever remains from that offering, and it is our privilege to
share those gifts, the fruit of our worship, with anyone who wants to participate.
The soul has no gender. In our tradition both Gods and Goddesses are considered worthy of
worship. It says in the Chandi, “Whoever takes refuge in the Divine Mother invariably becomes
a refuge to others.” Male or female – it doesn’t matter.

In our tradition, the first and foremost forms the divine assumes is the Mother. Always in a
mother there will be renunciation of selfishness and an equal division of love among all the
children. Although there are bad children, there can never be a bad mother. This is a very
beautiful attitude.

The greatest asset in spiritual life?

These are the same for both women and men. Faith. Devotion. Desire for attaining the goal.
Inspiration. There are nine forms of Durga, the Divine Mother, in the Chandi. First is the goddess
of inspiration; second is the goddess of sacred study; third is the goddess of spiritual practice;
fourth, the goddess of inner refinement; fifth, the goddess who nurtures divinity; sixth is she who
makes us completely pure; seventh, the great surrender of the darkness of duality; eighth, she
who makes us one with radiant light; and ninth, the granter of perfection. These are the names of
the nine Durgas united in succession in the path of perfection, given from the beginning of time.
These nine Durgas will be the greatest illumination in the path of every woman in her spiritual
development. In the path of material life, these nine forces take us to the culmination of our
goals.

And these Durgas are something we find inside ourselves?

Yes! At every point in time, a woman could ask herself, “Which Durga am I illuminating right
now? Am I the goddess of inspiration or am I the teacher of sacred knowledge? Am I performing
my practice? Am I surrendering the darkness of my egotism? Am I illuminating the great radiant
light?” These are questions we’ll ask ourselves all through the day.

Temple land and importance of Earth divinity

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Temples are the most attractive features of India. India is known for the divine culture for a long
time. Almost in all occasions and ceremonies God play a significant role. In marriage, child birth
and all mundane life, divinity is upheld. This custom and practice continue for centuries without
any deviation. The other political and social changes don’t affect that system and further it is
strongly imbibed and integrated with an average Indian life.
The temple has a history of ages. Almost in all parts of the world, temple has been constructed
and worshiped. Owing to the political changes, the worshiping method has only changed, but the
whole worshiping is ultimately one and the same.

Now, we can examine the places of the natural positive divine presence. The Tantric texts say
that the neighborhood of pilgrim centre, the banks of rivers, the shores of estuaries, littoral area,
on the top of the mountain and hill, foot of the mountain and hill, forest, thick forest, garden,
places famous for Siddha and holy people, great people like Bhuddha, middle of a village,
middle of a town, harbor, places where peace of mind is felt are the places of positive energy.
The temple should be constructed in these featured places. The natural positive energy flow
happens in these places.  Further, the lake and pond where abundance of lotus, swans group,
pond with still water or with mild waves that attracts birds, trees which give shelter to the birds,
bushes with attractive blooms, hovering and resting places of rare species of birds are also
present with the positive energy. Many invisible divine powers roam in these areas.
To fix a place for the construction of a temple, we have to choose one of the above mentioned
lands. The Tantric Acharyas like those places more, where plenty of water, pond, and lake are
present. We can see that many spiritual people chose similar places to get enlightenment. In the
legendary, we have heard that the great Bhuddha got enlightenment while sitting under a Banyan
tree in a village.

The land of temple is classified into four. 1) Supathma 2) Badhra 3) Purna 4) Dumra
The Features of Supathma Land
The land will be full of coconut trees, scent and perfumes extracting trees, incense trees, sandal
wood trees, areca nut trees, canes, lotus and those things used for Puja purposes. The land will
have slight slope towards east and north. This land will have ponds with enough water even in
the scorching summer time. It may be beside a mountain or hill divide. If a temple is constructed
in this type of land, the temple will remove all kind of dangers.

The Features of Bhadra land

The sea shore, littoral area, oceanic places, river

banks for pilgrimage, paddy and agriculture in the south or the right side of the main deity in the
temple, the woods and other sacred things used for the Yaga and Yajna, the trees with full of
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flowers and fruits, garden are the feature of Bhadra land. If a temple is constructed in this land, it
will provide and fulfill all kind of desires.

The Features of Purna land

The place where Peepul tree, banyan tree, Neem tree, the trees mentioned in the Puranic books,
hill top, down hill, land with scarce water are the features of the Purna land. If a temple is
constructed in this land, it will bring all kind of fortunes. Also, this land will have herbs, and the
land will have fertile soil, arbor of trees for the worshippers as well as birds and quadrupeds. In
case of quadrupeds, generally cattle are given importance.

The Features of Dhumra land

The place where horrible trees are thriving, trees causing allergy and infection, bushes with
thorns, full of gravel, land with hard soil structure, having burrows, clay, eagle, vulture, crow,
fox, monkey, jackal are widely traversing places is called Dumra. If a temple is constructed in
this land, it brings negative effects. It means that this land is suitable for worshipping evil
powers. I presume that it is useful for the practices of the Adharva Veda hymns (the black
magic).
Hence, we can say that we have to identify a suitable land for both the construction of temple,
worshiping of the divinity and a centre for spiritual activities. Apart from ascribing the power
derived from the Kundalini flow, the land should also be suitable for the construction of the
temple. This implies that man has no separation from the nature. He is strongly fused with the
nature. Nature is divine. This is the principle of Vedic science. All that needed is that we have to
identify different natural forces present in the different part of the world. Some powers are
positive and some are negative. We opt for the positive powers, positive energies to get
realization.

In India, we can see a number of temples that spread all over the land. These temples are
constructed upon various principles. The structure of the temple, the size and the form of the
deities, the practices of worshiping and all are, though basically same, different in different
places. The agricultural system, geographical significance, the interest of the ruler, the wealth of
the principality have influenced the temple construction. All temples are associated with the
harvest. The festivals are conducted in accordance with the harvest. The forefathers compiled a
comprehensive worshiping system after observing the movement of the Sun. they knew well that
sowing, ploughing and reaping must be related to the rainfall. To that end, they created a

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systematic almanac and followed it. They succeeded in that endeavor as well. Next, the
landscape and the structure of the soil were very important to construct the temple. High and
strong temples are not possible where the soil base is week. More over, the land structure is
important as zigzag land can not hold a vast and extended temple. The local rulers were in
competition to prove their capacity to construct the temples with utmost perfection, to show their
pomp in front of other kings. The richness of the temple is dependent on the wealth of that
region. The wealth, in olden times, was coming from agricultural sector.
In Kerala, the temples were constructed with a strong and logical method which I would like to
write below. That system is still followed without any change. Baskaracharya, the famous
Tantric, lived some centuries ago had commented that he was an ardent follower of the Kerala
system of temples.

The Tantra means science or application of science or a methodology. The Tantra system
was evolved from the agama system or yet another modified form of agama system. In
Karnataka and Tamilnadu, the agama system is popular whereas in Kerala, the Tantric system is
very popular.
In Tantric system, apart from Vedic practices, the Yoga science is also implicated. The power of
Kundalini that is supposed to be lying below the spinal end and that power is presumed to be
ascending through an invisible channel along with the spinal chord, after passing six energy
vortexes, reaching on the top of the head, called Sahasra Ara, literally, a lotus with 1000 petals.
Anatomically and physiologically, such a power has not been detected. This may be due to the
fact that this Kundalini power is associated with micro level of body ( Sukshma Sarira). The
Acharya who installs the deity inside the sanctum sanctorum gives that power acquired through
Prana yama( Systematic breathing pattern), that is compulsory for the Kundalini Arousal. He at
the same time does a prayer from the deepest of his heart, which will be discussed later.

The Divinity Present on the Earth

Here, I am discussing the divinity on the earth. Divinity is present everywhere. As per the logic, I
slightly change the meaning of divinity into two energy levels. One is positive energy and the
other is negative energy. We can see the different types of natural phenomenon that takes place
around the world. Many catastrophe and calamities, flood, land slide, hurricane take place
around us. These are the negative powers. Good agricultural growth, fertility of the soil, plenty
of water availability for both drinking and agricultural purposes, thriving trees, blooming in a
wonderful way are positive powers.
The temple must be constructed where the positive energy is present. More over, meditation,
yoga etc. shall be held in these areas to get the positive powers, positive energy into our body.
Scientifically also, we can say that plenty of vital energy is found in these area and it will nourish
the basic needs of the body. Also, it purifies our body and mind. Mind relaxation takes place
without our conscious knowledge. Hence, the temple gives mental satisfaction as well as body
purification.

Adopted from ~ K. Kailasnath, Vedic Astrologer, Kerala, India.

https://www.sanskritimagazine.com/vedic_science/astrology/temple-land-importance-earth-
divinity/

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The Agni Purana,is a Sanskrit text and one of the eighteen major Puranas of Hinduism. The text
is variously classified as a Purana related to Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Shaktism and Smartism, but
also considered as a text that covers them all impartially without leaning towards a particular
theology.
The text exists in numerous versions, some very different from others. [3] The published
manuscripts are divided into 382 or 383 chapters, containing between 12,000 and 15,000 verses.
The chapters of the text were likely composed in different centuries, with earliest version
probably after the 7th-century, but before the 11th-century because the early 11th-century
Persian scholar Al-Biruni acknowledged its existence in his memoir on India. The youngest layer
of the text in the Agni Purana may be from the 17th-century.
The Agni Purana is a medieval era encyclopedia that covers a diverse range of topics, and its
"382 or 383 chapters actually deal with anything and everything", remark scholars such as Moriz
Winternitz and Ludo Rocher. Its encyclopedic secular style led some 19th-century Indologists
such as Horace Hayman Wilson to question if it even qualifies as what is assumed to be a
Purana. The range of topics covered by this text include cosmology, mythology, genealogy,
politics, education system, iconography, taxation theories, organization of army, theories on
proper causes for war, martial arts, diplomacy, local laws, building public projects, water
distribution methods, trees and plants, medicine, design and architecture, gemology, grammar,
metrics, poetry, food and agriculture, rituals, geography and travel guide to Mithila (Bihar and
neighboring states), cultural history, and numerous other topics.

Agni-purana, Chapter 38, Texts 1-50. | From Manmatha Nath Dutt’s “A Prose English Translation of
Agni Puranam”, Vol. I, (Calcutta, 1903), pp. 142-6; adapted by M. Eliade

“Agni said: I will now describe the fruits of making temples for the residence of Vasudeva and
other deities. He who attempts to erect temples for gods is freed from the sins of a thousand
births. Those who think of building a temple in their minds are freed from the sins of a hundred
births. Those who approve of a man’s building a temple for Krishna go to the region of Acyuta
[Vishnu] freed from sins.

Having desired to build a temple for Hari, a man immediately takes a million of his generations,
past and future, to the region of Vishnu. The departed manes of the person who builds a temple
for Krishna live in the region of Vishnu, well adorned and freed from the sufferings of hell. The
construction of a temple for a deity dissipates even the sin of Brahmanicide. By building a
temple one reaps the fruit which he does not even gain by celebrating a sacrifice. By building a
temple one acquires the fruits of bathing at all the sacred shrines.

The construction of a temple, which gives heaven, by a religious or an irreligious man, yields the
fruit reaped by persons slain in a battle undertaken on behalf of the celestials. By making one
temple one goes to heaven; by making three one goes to the region of Brahma; by making five
one goes to the region of Shambhu; by making eight one goes to the region of Hari. By making
sixteen one attains all objects of enjoyment and emancipation. A poor man, by building the
smallest temple, reaps the same benefit which a rich man does by building the biggest temple for
Vishnu. Having acquired wealth and built a temple with a small portion of it, a person acquires
piety and gains favours from Hari.

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By making a temple with a lakh of rupees, or a thousand, or a hundred, or fifty, a man goes
where the Garuda-emblemed deity resides. He who in his childhood even sportively makes a
temple of Vasudeva with sand, goes to his region. He who builds temples of Vishnu at sacred
places, shrines, and hermitages, reaps three-fold fruits. Those who decorate the temple of Vishnu
with scents, flowers, and sacred mud, go to the city of the Lord. Having erected a temple for
Hari, a man, either fallen, about to fall, or half-fallen, reaps twofold fruits. He who brings about
the fall of a man is the protector of one fallen. By making a temple for Vishnu one attains to his
region. As long as the collection of bricks of Hari’s temple exists, the founder of his family lives
gloriously in the region of Vishnu. He becomes pious and adorable both in this world and in the
next.

He who builds a temple for Krishna, the son of Vasudeva, is born as a man of good deeds and his
family is purified. He who builds temples for Vishnu, Rudra, the sun-god, and other deities,
acquires fame. What is the use to him of wealth which is hoarded by ignorant men? Useless is
the acquisition of riches to one who does not have a temple built with hard earned money for
Krishna, or whose wealth is not enjoyed by the Pitris, Brahmanas, celestials, and friends.

As death is certain for men, so is his destruction. The man who does not spend his money for his
enjoyment or in charities and keeps it hoarded is stupid and is fettered even when alive. What is
the merit of him who, obtaining riches either by an accident or manliness, does not spend it for a
glorious work or for religion? [What is the merit of him] who, having given away his wealth to
the leading twice-born, makes his gift circulated, or speaks of more than he gives away in
charities?

Subject Chapters Illustrative content

Pancaratra texts, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Pingala-Sutras, Am
Book summary 21-70
arakosha, etc.

Regional geography 114-116 Mithila (now Bihar), rivers, forests, towns, culture

Medicine 279-286, 370 Ayurveda, herbs, nutrition

8
 Summary of the Buddhist text Yuddhajayarnava, mantras
Buddhist incantations 123-149
of Trailokyavijaya

Structure of a state, education and duties of a king and key

ministers,
organization of army, theory of just war, ambassadors to other
Politics 218-231
kingdoms,
system of administration, civil and criminal law, taxation,
local administration and court system

239, 247, 282,

Agriculture, planning Fortification, trees and parks, water reservoirs
292

Martial arts, weapons 249-252 32 types of martial arts, making and maintaining weapons

Cow 310 Holiness of cow, breeding and taking care of cows

Hindu temple, 25, 39-45, 55-

Design, layout, construction, architecture
monastery 67, 99-101

Metrics, poetics, art Summary of different schools on poetics, music, art of poetry,
328-347
of writing Alamkara, Chandas, Rasa, Riti, language, rhetoric

Eight limbs of yoga, ethics, meditation, samadhi,

Yoga, moksha 372-381
soul, non-dualism (Advaita), summary of Bhagavad Gita

Therefore, a wise man should have temples built for Vishnu and other deities. Having entered the region
of Hari, he acquires reverential faith in Narottama [Vishnu]. He pervades all the three worlds containing
the mobile and the immobile, the past, future, and present, gross, subtle, and all inferior objects. From
Brahma to a pillar everything has originated from Vishnu. Having obtained entrance into the region of the
Great Soul, Vishnu, the omnipresent god of gods, a man is not born again on earth.

By building temples for other gods, a man reaps the same fruit which he does by building one for Vishnu.
By building temples for Shiva, Brahma, the sun, Candi, and Lakshmi, one acquires religious merit.
Greater merit is acquired by installing images. In the sacrifice attendant upon the setting up of an idol
there is no end of fruits. One made of wood gives greater merit than one made of clay; one made of bricks
yields more than a wooden one. One made of stone yields more than one made of bricks.

Images made of gold and other metals yield the greatest religious merit. Sins accumulated in seven births
are dissipated even at the very commencement. One building a temple goes to heaven; he never goes to
hell. Having saved one hundred of his family, he takes them to the region of Vishnu. Yama said to his
emissaries: ‘Do not bring to hell persons who have built temples and adored idols. Bring those to my view
who have not built temples. Range thus rightly and follow my commands.

Persons can never disregard your commands, except those who are under the protection of the endless
father of the universe. You should always pass over those persons who have their minds fixed on the

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Lord. They are not to live here. You should avoid from a distance those who adore Vishnu. Those who
sing the glories of Govinda and those who worship Janardana [Vishnu or Krishna] with daily and
occasional rites should be shunned by you from a distance. Those who attain to that station should not
even be looked at by you.

The persons who adore Him with flowers, incense, raiment, and favourite ornaments should not be
marked by you. They go to the region of Krishna. Those who smear the body [of Vishnu] with unguents,
who sprinkle his body, should be left in the abode of Krishna. Even a son or any other member born in the
family of one who has built a temple of Vishnu should not be touched by you. Hundreds of persons who
have built temples of Vishnu with wood or stone should not be looked at by you with an evil mind.

By building a golden temple one is freed from all sins. He who has built a temple for Vishnu reaps the
great fruit which one gains by celebrating sacrifices every day. By building a temple for the Lord he takes
his family, a hundred generations past and a hundred to come, to the region of Acyuta.

Vishnu is identical with the seven worlds. He who builds a temple for him saves the endless worlds and
himself attains immortality. As long as the bricks will last, the maker [of the temple] will live for so many
thousands of years in heaven. The maker of the idol attains the region of Vishnu and he who consecrates
the installation of the same is immersed in Hari. The person who builds a temple and an image, as well as
he who consecrates them, come before him.

This rite of pratishtha [installation] of Hari was related by Yama. For creating temples and images of the
deities, Hayashirsha described it to Brahma.” https://www.sanskritimagazine.com/indian-
religions/hinduism/merits-building-temple-agni-puran/

TEMPLE: HINDU TEMPLES

"The Indian temple, an exuberant growth of seemingly haphazard and numberless forms," wrote
Stella Kramrisch in 1922, "never loses control over its extravagant wealth. Their organic
structure is neither derived from any example seen in nature, nor does it merely do justice to
aesthetic consideration, but it visualizes the cosmic force which creates innumerable forms, and
these are one whole, and without the least of them the universal harmony would lack
completeness" ("The Expressiveness of Indian Art," Journal of the Department of Letters,
University of Calcutta, 9, 1923, p. 67). This intuitive understanding of the temple's structure and
significance has been fleshed out and confirmed by Kramrisch and others in the years since those
words were penned.
Axis, Altar, and Enclosure
Hindu temples are built to shelter images that focus worship; they also shelter the worshiper and
provide space for a controlled ritual. Between the fifth and the fifteenth century ce, Hindu
worshipers constructed stone temples throughout India, but sacred enclosures of another sort had
been built centuries before. Tree shrines and similar structures that enclose an object for worship
(tree, snake, liṇga, pillar, standing yakṣa, all marked by a vertical axis) within a square railing, or
later within more complicated hypaethral structures, have been illustrated in narrative relief-
sculptures from the first few centuries bce and ce. Whatever the variations, these structures mark
a nodal point of manifestation, as does Viṣṇu in reliefs from the fifth century ce that show him
lying on the cosmic ocean, with a lotus that springs from his navel supporting Brahmā, who
proceeds to generate the universe.
In creation myths and in the imagery of the lotus, as in the structure of Mauryan monolithic
pillars (from the third century bce), the cosmic axis separates heaven from the waters. Creation

10
flows from this nodal point toward the cardinal directions, producing a universe that is square,
marked by the railing-enclosure of these early shrines, by the harmikā (upper platform) of the
Buddhist stupa, and by the edges of the brick altar used for sacrifice. The Āpastamba Śulbasūtra,
a text probably of the fourth century bce, comments that "though all the earth is vedi [altar], yet
selecting a particular part of it and measuring it they should perform the yajña ['sacrifice'] there"
(6.2.4). The identity of the altar and the entirety of creation is thus established quite early, and
this configuration of vertical axis, square altar, and enclosure persists in Indian architecture to
demonstrate the participation of each monument in the cosmogonic process.
Diagram of Construction
The Vāstupuruṣa Maṇḍala—the square diagram on which the altar, temples, houses, palaces, and
cities are founded—also outlines creation (see figure 1). The myth of the vāstupuruṣa portrays
the first sacrifice, in which a demon is flayed and his skin held down by divinities who ring the
diagram (padadevatā s; lit., "feet deities"). In the center is the "place for brahman "—the
formless, ultimate, "supreme reality." The use of this diagram for the construction of houses and
the laying out of cities on a grid of eighty-one squares (nine by nine) is recorded in a chapter on
architecture in Varāhamihira's sixth-century ce text, the Bṛhat Saṃhitā; the use of a grid of sixty-
four squares (eight by eight) as a special case for the construction of temples (figure 1) is
recorded in a separate chapter.
Cave, Mountain, and Shelter
By the early centuries ce the use of anthropomorphic images to focus worship had moved from
"substratum" cults into mainstream Hinduism and into Buddhism. Early Hindu images often
represented cosmic parturition—the coming into present existence of a divine reality that
otherwise remains without form—as well as "meditational constructs," to use T. S. Maxwell's
phrase. The representation of the Buddha became permissible with the emergence of two new
conceptions: the Buddha in cosmic form, replacing or supplementing the stupa as focus for
meditation, and the boddhisattva s, figures who mediate between the aspirant and the ultimate
reality of nonexistence. Behind anthropomorphic imagery in India, however, is always an
ultimate reality without form.
Early shelters for anthropomorphic images were of several types: apsidal brick structures
resembling the caitya-gṛha s of the Buddhists, elliptical structures perhaps suggesting the
"cosmic egg," open altars and hypaethral structures (both extending earlier aniconic formulas),
small stone chatrī s (umbrellas or pavilions), cave shrines, and eventually temples with towers.
Rock-cut shrines of the early fifth century ce (particularly those at Udayagiri, near Vidiśa, in
central India), present two imperative metaphors for the temple: the sanctum as
womb (garbha) in which the seed of divinity can be made manifest, and the temple as mountain.
As the cave opens up the earth, so the sanctum opens up the temple.
If existing cave shrines emphasize the cave metaphor, an inscription dated 423/4 ce from
Gaṅgadhāra in western India already compares a temple there to "the lofty peak (śikhara) of the
mountain Kailāśa," and the so-called Pārvatī Temple at Nachna of about 465 ce ornamentally
rusticates its exterior walls to suggest Kailāśa's piled rocks and animal-filled grottoes. The
metaphors of cave and mountain for sanctum and temple are explicit in inscriptions and texts, but
it is the concept of divinity made manifest and the practice of devotional worship (bhakti) that
make the temple possible. The cosmic mountain and its womb/cave ultimately shelter a tender
divinity, in the form of an image, and must open out to include and give shelter to the worshiper,
who approaches the central point of cosmic manifestation along a longitudinal axis.

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Iconicity of Architectural Form
In North India, the fifth century ce saw experimentation in the means by which architecture
could supply shelter to images. Small cave shelters were excavated (Udayagiri), cavelike cells
were constructed (Sāñcī), structures with towers were built in impermanent materials
(Gaṅgadhāra), and stone "mountains" were built (as at Nachna) with cavelike sanctums. Some
temples began to show multiple and variant images of the central divinity on the walls (Maḍhia),
and others became complexes by adding subsidiary shrines to shelter other deities (Bhumara,
Deogarh). Such a proliferation of images can be seen as a product of the Hindu conception of
cosmic parturition: if divine reality is formless, through the process of creation it takes an infinity
of forms in this (created) world; though the
individual may choose one divinity as "trunk" for worship, others take up appropriate positions
as "branches."
Only in the sixth century did such experiments lead to a North Indian temple form that was
complete in its symbolism and architectural definition. On plan, the North Indian temple grows
from the Vāstupuruṣa Maṇḍala (see figure 1): its corners are those of the square vedi ; its walls
are half the width of the sanctum in thickness (as prescribed in the Bṛhat Saṃhitā ); at its center
is the brahmasthāna. The outer walls begin to acquire projecting planes that measure the
dimensions of the interior sanctum and the "place for brahman." The central projections on the
wall now and then show closed doorways but most often frame secondary images
(parśvadevatā s) that extend and differentiate the form of the divinity within. In elevation, these
planes continue up through the superstructure as bands that curve in to meet a square slab at the
top of the temple, from which a circular necking projects. The necking supports a large, circular,
ribbed stone (āmalaka) that takes the form of an āmala fruit and normally is crowned by a stone
waterpot (kalaśa) from which leaves sometimes sprout.
The imagery (and its iconicity) is explicit. Just as the block of the temple's walls projects planes
outward in order to display the images that make its sacred content manifest, so too the temple
"grows" in altitude, marking the process of cosmic parturition by its form. The womb of the
temple, its sanctum (garbhagṛha), provides the dimension for an uttaravedi ("upper altar") that
terminates the tower (some seventh-century shrines show this altar as a shallow, pillared
platform at the top of the curvilinear superstructure). Extending the dimensions of
the brahmasthāna, the necking above this vedi takes the form of the emerging "world
pillar" (axis mundi), which passes symbolically through the sanctum with the body of the temple
as its sheath.

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As North Indian architecture evolves between the sixth and the thirteenth centuries, the plan of
the temple shows more and more offsets, the walls gain more images, and the central tower of
the temple becomes clustered by other, miniature towers, increasingly giving the effect of a
mountain peak through specifically architectural means. If this variety of constructional forms,
buttresses, and images "body" forth reality in the manifest world, the ribbed āmala stone at the
top of the temple, much like the staff that sprouts in Tannhäuser, presents the ripening seed's
potentiality for fruition. Both the pot with germinating seeds that is buried under the foundation
and the vase finial placed on top of the temple as an act of final consecration ritually help to
perpetuate cycles of cosmic growth and fruition.
Palace, Hut, and Fortress
The temple thus combines physically the pillar that marks the axis of cosmic parturition, the altar
of sacrifice taking the shape of the created universe, and the need for shelter of the tender
divinity and the human worshiper; it unites the cosmic mountain and potent cave. South Indian
temples, built in stone from the seventh century ce, give emphasis to the temple's role as shelter
for anthropomorphic divinities by retaining throughout their evolution a terraced, palatial form
crowned by a domed śikhara that has the shape of the ascetic's hut. As early as the Ājīvika caves
in the Barabār Hills of Bihar, dating from the third century bce, the hut of the living ascetic had
been an architectural form appropriate for presenting the concept of sacred potentiality.

The temple is called prāsāda ("palace") in North India, and the architectural veneer of its
superstructure, in both north and south, allude to forms of palace architecture. In the north, these
have been completely subordinated to the temple's vertical ascent, becoming body for the altar
that still presents itself at the top of the temple, open to the sky. In the south, deities sheltered
within the temple's compact, palace-like structure increasingly took on the accoutrements of a

13
secular ruler, through ritual and the cycle of festivals. While divinity in the form of images
(mūrti s) could take on qualities of royalty, and kings did validate their role by patronage of
temples, the king was considered a reflection of divine order principally through the quality of
his actions and the nature of his responsibilities, not by divine right.

If the temple is palace for divinity, it also is fortress, protecting the world from disorder and
chaos. Corners are "attended with evils" according to the Bṛhat Saṃhitā (53.84), and "the
householder, if he is anxious to be happy, should carefully preserve Brahman, who is stationed in
the center of the dwelling, from injury" (53.66). In the puranic leg-end of Śiva conquering the
three worlds, he frees three "cities" of demons, making them his devotees and transforming the
cities into his temples. In fact, images of Guardians of the Quarters (dikpāla s) are placed on the
corners of temples from about the seventh century, and a number of geometric experiments with
plans based on the rotation of squares seem to play on the fort as a form for temple architecture.
Large temples in South India often enclose the sanctum in a series of ambulatory paths and walls
that simulate rings of fortification around a walled city, and in fact use the eighty-one-
square maṇḍala appropriate for the city, with a single square at the center surrounded by
concentric rings of squares, to define the temple's plan. If practice in South India increasingly
emphasized the royal personality of the divinity and his relation to his subjects and kingdom by
use of great festival processions, it also began to surround temples and contiguous sections of the
city with walls pierced by gateways (gopura s) that became the focus of patronage themselves.
Access and Aspirant
The Hindu temple must also act as access and approach for aspirants and worshipers. This role
changes the temple from a centralized, bilaterally symmetrical structure (reflecting the nature of
the cosmogonic process) to one with a defined longitudinal axis. On that axis the worshipers
approach their personal divinity within the sanctum; but also on that axis the aspirants
increasingly can place themselves, in halls built for that purpose, as if under the umbrella of the
sacrificer, positioning themselves for ascent. "The whole intention of the Vedic tradition and of
the sacrifice is to define the Way (mārga) by which the aspirant … can ascend [the three]
worlds," wrote Ananda K. Coomaraswamy. "Earth, Air, and Sky … compose the vertical Axis of
the Universe.… [These are] the Way by which the Devas first strode up and down these
worlds … and the Way for the Sacrificer now to do likewise" ("Svayamātṛṇṇā : Janua Coeli,"
in Coomaraswamy, vol. 1, Selected Papers: Traditional Art and Symbolism, ed. Roger Lipsey,
Princeton, 1977, pp. 465–467, 470). The temple is as much a monument to the procession of
time as it is a static model of the cosmos or a marker of its origin. Padadevatā s ringing
the vāstumaṇḍala (grid) are identified with the asterisms (nakṣatra s) of the lunar calendar, and
the temple both helps generate and acts as a focus for the ritual time of the festival calendar.
Personal ritual within the temple involves both approach and circumambulation, and movement
by the aspirant through time toward release had to be a recognized part of the architect's program
for the temple.

All sides of the temple allow access to the divinity through imagery, but the entry that pierces
and makes ritual approach possible, most frequently on the east, is given increasing importance
and architectural definition as temples evolve. Halls for ritual and assembly are added along this
axis and sometimes used for dance or music to entertain the divinity, but often they serve simply
as shelters for approach. One common and potent configuration places the sanctum (sometimes

14
surrounded by an enclosed ambulatory path) behind a closed hall that may also be fronted by an
open hall and an entry pavilion.

In the Kaṇḍarīya Mahādeva Temple at Khajuraho (c. 1025–1050), for example, space for the
worshiper within the closed hall takes the same dimensions as the sanctum, with parallel rings of
the maṇḍala defining walls of the sanctum, the space within the hall, ambulatory walls, and the
outer enclosure. Ceilings in such halls imitate the canopy over the ritual sacrificer; this intention
is made architecturally clear in some cases by having a separately defined pavilion within the
hall over the central platform, as at Sinnar in Maharashtra or at the great Jain temple at
Ranakpur. The ritual fire can be placed in this position, and worshipers gather there as much to
carry out ritual as to face the image of the deity.

The Temple in the Human Image

In such an architectural context, yogin and god are equal participants: the place of divine
manifestation and the path of the aspirant have been given consubstantiality along the temple's
longitudinal axis; sanctum and sacrificer's space both have become altars manifesting supreme
reality in human form. In the Hindu temple, the axis of cosmic creation and the ritual path for
release of the aspirant/worshiper/sacrificer (yajamāna) meet; the temple shares in the image of
the "Supernal Man" (Puruṣa). As Kramrisch has written, "Puruṣa, which is beyond form, is the
impulse towards manifestation" ("The Temple as Puruṣa," in Studies in Indian Temple
Architecture, ed. Pramod Chandra, New Delhi, 1975, p. 40). This is true whether that
manifestation is of the cosmos, of divine forms, or of human potential.

Bibliography
Bhattacharyya, Tarapada. The Canons of Indian Art. Calcutta, 1963. A pioneering modern work
on India's architectural texts.
Coomaraswamy, Ananda K. "Early Indian Architecture: II, Bodhi-Gharas." Eastern Art 2
(1930): 225–235. In this series Coomaraswamy establishes a basis for understanding the forms of
early Indian architecture.
Kramrisch, Stella. The Hindu Temple. 2 vols. Calcutta, 1946. Kramrisch's monumental work lays
out, as no other, the ritual and metaphysic of the temple and establishes a groundwork for the
analysis of standing monuments.
Meister, Michael W. "Maṇḍala and Practice in Nāgara Architecture in North India." Journal of
the American Oriental Society 99 (1979): 204–219. An article that demonstrates through the
analysis of standing monuments the practical applicability of the ritual vāstumaṇḍala.
Meister, Michael W., ed. Encyclopaedia of Indian Temple Architecture, vol. 1, pt. 1, "South
India, Lower Drāviḍadēśa." Philadelphia, 1983. The first in a series of volumes intended to cover
the full spread of India's temple architecture with technical detail.

15
Before that what is a Temple? – Is it a huge structure with Deities installed therein and rituals
regularly performed? – Can we imagine a Temple without Devotees? – Power and popularity of
a Temple structure get amplified when Divine poetic sages outpour songs/prayers in pure total
Devotion – which is free-flow of Divinity touching The Heart. They are the personification of
Divinity – eternal Grace overwhelming not as a man-made intellectual poetic stanzas – but Pure
Love elevated to the highest plane of Devotion – a manifestation of Divinity unplugged.  Can
any school or college train and inculcate Devotion or such Divine Poets manufactured in the
man-made academic curriculum?  – The Truth is – a Temple arrives when The Lord ordains it to
be – by His Grace.

It naturally follows criticism on building a Temple is an intellectual function.  Rishis and Sages
have proclaimed whatever happens is only due to Divine Grace – discrimination analysis are
mental faculties – Divinity is indeed far beyond such measuring minds – In our astrology, Moon
is Manas-karaka …. Sun is Arma-karaka.

Days surrounding the Full Moon night – just before & after & during – entire land is immersed
in cool-cool Moon light.  The trees, tall and short, shine in silvery streaks, their leaves in ecstacy
of Moon-bathing; the grass and the greens, majestic mountains and hills, deep valleys, musical
rivers and their tributaries, man made buildings electric poles wide metalled roads country-side
narrow paths – nothing is spared – from the silvery delight.   Graceful Moon appears on vast
Ocean surface, huge reservoirs, lakes, ponds – It is steady in calm peaceful water-surfaces – or
shakes when the winds giggle them – Yet Moon is Moon in any reflection.  None of the water-
sources ever try to capture/own the Moon image – they all exist aligned to Mother Nature with
little choices, can’t amplify the Moon-light nor diminish it at any moment – spontaneous
existence – effortless meditative absorption is natural to them.   Moon wanes and waxes – a day
of total rest – how nicely it fits with human mind – peaceful & still at times, oscillating with the
wind of the moment, waning/waxing phenomena; but humans think they own the mind – swayed
by its plus/minus swings; believe they have succeeded or failed in moments.  Moon is reflection
of The Sun.

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Scriptures and Sages have proclaimed – whenever we experience a joy, be it in eating a tasty
mango, or something accomplished in mundane activities, The Soul (Innate Spirit) manifests in
such moments – the satisfaction derived in the moment – is in fact a tiny reflection of the natural
happiness, the very nature of Beings.  Similarly when some damage occurs in objects mentally
enemical to one, the momentary pleasure is also a miniature satisfaction derived from within.   
Both types of joys are transitory – when one desire is met, ten more line up in queue.   The
plus/minus swings go on and on – without realizing their impermanence.
Several magnificent huge temples were built by Maharajas in ancient times – architectural
marvels.  With all the advancements, we are yet to replicate such marvels – without cranes &
modern tools, it is amazing how such monumental structures were built in perfect harmony – and
have stood the test of time – witnessed many storms upheavels in human civilization – several
eras have come and gone – such ancient Temples have survived.  Bitter truth today, is we are
unable to maintain many such Temples – so vast & huge they are; this is also a reflection of
Devotion of the day.

Back to Moon-light – Can tube-lights be ever compared with The Moon or The Sun? — Howeve
much man may illuminate an area with powerful light decorative shows – they can never match
th Natural glow – its all-encompassing permeance.  Temples wherein The Divine Idol is
Swayambhu (not crafted & installed by humans – but spontaneous) do mark the eternal vibes.
Divine Grace is never restricted to a Temple or Worship place.  There are great stalwarts – who
rarely visit a Temple or few may not at all) – but the Grace they permeate around as Human
Shrines is unmistakable… Nobel laureate Satyarti name & such others come to mind in this
category.  Basic Greatness of God is impartiality equanimity – Divinity is never restrictive in
nature; precisely why it is immeasurable unfathomable by our intellectual prowess.  Lazy way-
laid students or luck-dependent businessmen – can never succeed by mere visits to Temples
customarily ostensibly – if there is no applied spirituality in their endeavours.
Let us hope & pray that the latest addition to millions of Temples – at the Ramjanmabhoomi –
comes up at par with the glory & marvels of ancient archaeological wonders – boosts national
integration – and motivates the rulers & architects to go for crucial reforms, the revival of the
drooping economy, sectors, jobs/avocations, team-spirit to boost enterprising natural groups to
shine – in mundane affairs – by His Grace.  Citizens at large repose more faith in Divinity
than……………? 

Temples Amalgamation Of Art And Divinity Written by Pranav Gulati

After an extraordinary confluence of religion and art, these famous temples in South India have
become a shining example of the cultural heritage and diversity of India. Of all the existing ones,
take a look at some of the finest  architectural creations made over a period of thousands of
years by historic dynasties for the creators and preservers of this beautiful planet.
In India, for hundreds of years, the only form of tourism that existed was purely religious and
devotional. Even to this day, millions of devotees flock to these incredible famous temples in
South India every year in a quest for moksha and inner peace.
Famous Temples In South India
Many of the famous temples in South India have often been considered by historians and
architects as the finest devotional constructions ever to be made. What made these temples not

17
lose their charm with the passage of time was the strong and dedicated devotional purpose for
which they were built. Here are a few:
 Padmanabhaswamy Temple – Trivandrum
 Ramanathaswamy Temple – Rameshwaram
 Ranganathaswamy Temple – Trichy
 Venkateshwara Temple – Tirupati
 Chennakeshava Temple – Belur
 Arunachaleswar Temple – Thiruvannamalai
 Brihadeeswarar Temple – Thanjavur
 Meenakshi Temple – Madurai
 Guruvayur Temple – Guruvayur
 Kailasanathar Temple – Kanchipuram
 Ekambareswarar Temple – Kanchipuram
 Sarangapani Temple – Kumbakonam
 Vadakkunnathan Temple – Thrissur
 Annapoorneshwari Temple – Horanadu
 Shore Temple – Mahabalipuram
 Sivagiri Temple – Varkala
 Mahabaleshwar Temple – Gokarna
 Parthasarathy Temple – Aranmula
 Bhutanatha Temple – Badami
 Murudeshwara Temple – Murdeshwar
 Murugan Temple – Tiruchendur
 Sabarimala Sastha Temple – Pathanamthitta
 Attukal Bhagavathy Temple – Trivandrum
 Sri Krishna Temple – Guruvayoor
 Thirunelli Temple – Wayanad
 Vaikom Mahadeva Temple – Varkala
 Thiruvalla Temple – Thiruvalla
 Aihole Durga Temple – Aihole
 Sri Krishna Temple – Udupi
 Veera Narayana Temple – Belavadi

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1. Padmanabhaswamy Temple – Trivandrum

Padmanabhaswamy Temple is one of the most interesting famous temples in South India in
terms of architectural design. It was built with an intriguing fusion of Kerala style and Dravidian
style of architecture. Built in the 16th century, this temple has been home to many royal families
over the centuries including the Travancore Royal Family.
Main deity: Lord Padmanabhaswamy
Location: West Nada, Fort, East Fort, Pazhavangadi, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala 695023
.2. Ramanathaswamy Temple – Rameshwaram

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One of the southernmost famous temples in South India, Ramanathaswamy temple was
constructed during the 17th century on the Rameshwaram Island of Tamil Nadu. The temple
holds a special importance for Hindus as it contains one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva
around India.Main deity: Lord Shiva.Location: Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu 623526

3. Ranganathaswamy Temple – Trichy

Ranganathaswamy Temple was constructed in the 6th Century AD as a tribute to Lord

Ranganatha (a form of Lord Vishnu). Built in traditional Dravidian architecture, this temple has
been glorified in early Tamil literature scriptures as an important Divya Desam to Lord Vishnu.
Main deity: Lord Ranganatha
Location: Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu 620006
4. Venkateshwara Temple – Tirupati

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Out of all the famous temples in south India, the Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati holds the
achievement of being the most visited and recognized temple. Along with receiving millions of
devotees every year, the temple also receives generous donations of human hair and money by
the loyal worshipers of Lord Vishnu.
Main deity: Lord Venkateshwara
Location: S Mada St, Tirumala, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh 517504

5. Chennakeshava Temple – Belur

Built in the 12th century by King Vishnuvardhana, Chennakeshava Temple was a prime
attraction of Belur, an early capital of the Hoysala Empire. This is amongst the most spectacular
temples in South India, attracting pilgrims from across the country.
Main deity: Lord Vishnu
Location: Temple Road, Belur, Karnataka 573115
6. Arunachaleswar Temple – Thiruvannamalai

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A Tamil Hindu temple built in the 9th century by the Chola dynasty, Arunachaleswar Temple is
one of the most prominent Lord Shiva South Indian temples in existence. Along with being
located in the Anamalai hills in Tamil Nadu, this temple holds a lot of significance to the Hindu
sect of Saivism.
Main deity: Lord Shiva
Location: Pavazhakundur, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu 606601
7. Brihadeeswarar Temple – Thanjavur

A temple that recently completed 1000 years of its existence in Thanjavur, Brihadeeswarar
Temple is a renowned UNESCO World Heritage Site also recognized one of the famous temples
in South India built by the great Chola dynasty.
Main deity: Lord Shiva
Location: Membalam Rd, Balaganapathy Nagar, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu 613007

8. Meenakshi Temple – Madurai

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Believed to be constructed as early as the 7th century AD, Meenakshi Temple has long been the
most artistic, among all the famous temples in South India. Although the legend says that the
foundation of the temple was laid by the Lord Indra, the current structure was last modified in
the 16th century to add color and intricate details.
Main deity: Goddess Paravati
Location: Madurai Main, Madurai, Tamil Nadu 625001
9. Guruvayur Temple – Guruvayur

Located in the town of Guruvayur, this temple is often regarded as the most important place of
worships for Hindus in Kerala who consider this South Indian temple as the “Holy Abode of
Vishnu on Earth”. Known to be as one of the oldest famous temples in South India, earliest
scripted records indicated the temple to be almost 5000 years old.
Main deity: Lord Vishnu
Location: Guruvayur Devaswom, East Nada, Guruvayur, Kerala 680101
10. Kailasanathar Temple – Kanchipuram

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Built between the 685 – 705 AD by Rajasimha (ruler of the Pallava Dynasty), this South Indian
temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. Located on the banks of the Vegavathi river, the temple
contains 58 shrines to denote the different forms and incarnations of Lord Shiva.
Main deity: Lord Shiva
Location: Pillaiyarpalayam, Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu 631501

11. Ekambareswarar Temple – Kanchipuram

Spread out in a space of more than 25 acres, Ekambareswarar Temple is the largest out of all the
famous temples in south India. The temple has 12 festivities around the year, along with six
players offered to the deity every day.
Main deity: Lord Shiva
Location: Ekambaranathar Sannathi St, Periya, Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu 631502
Timings: 6 am to 11 am; 5 pm to 8 pm
12. Sarangapani Temple – Kumbakonam

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Renowned as of one of the three key south Indian temples of Lord Vishnu, Sarangapani Temple
is believed to have been constructed more than 2000 years ago as it has been regularly revered in
the early scriptures of 7th century AD. Also regarded as one of 108 Divya desams, the temple is
believed to contain many significant antiquities of the different dynasties like Cholas and
Vijaynagar Empire.
Main deity: Lord Vishnu
Location: Sarangapani North Madavilagam, Valayapettai Agraharam, Kumbakonam, Tamil
Nadu 612001

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13. Vadakkunnathan Temple – Thrissur

This temple built within the lush green surroundings of Thrissur is dedicated to Lord Shiva.
Explore the classic Kerala architecture in addition to the ancient artworks including the
collection of mural paintings that showcase the Mahabharata. Visit this temple during April and
May when the Pooram festival is celebrated with amazing firework displays.
Main deity: Lord Shiva
Location: Swaraj Round N, Kuruppam, Thekkinkadu Maidan, Thrissur, Kerala 680001

14. Annapoorneshwari Temple – Horanadu

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As the name suggests, the temple is dedicated to the Goddess of Food, Annapoorneshwari. It is
one of the oldest temples in Karnataka and located in a serene area on the banks of Bhadra river.
Legend has it that the sage Agastya built a beautiful statue of the Goddess in a standing pose
which is a major attraction inside the temple.
Main deity: Goddess Annapurna
Location: Mudigere – Taluk, Chikmagalur – District, Hornadu, Karnataka 577181. 
15. Shore Temple – Mahabalipuram

One of the oldest temples in Tamil Nadu, built in the 7th century is the astounding seaside
pilgrimage site in Mahabalipuram. The temple has been noted as a UNESCO World Heritage
Site. The 3 major shrines in the temple are dedicated to Lord Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma. The
best time to visit the temple would be during the Mahabalipuram Dance Festival held on the
exterior of the temple complex.
Main deity: Lord Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma
Location: Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu 603104
16. Bhutanatha Temple – Badami

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Lord Vishnu had around 10 incarnations, also called “Dashavataras” spread throughout the ages.
To explore the very essence of the avatars, Bhutanatha temple has been built. The architecture is
a combination of north and early south Indian architectural style. And it’s not  one temple but a
group of temples in a huge complex surrounded by a pristine lake and the Badami rocky
mountains. 
Main deity: Lord Vishnu
Location: Badami, Karnataka 587201

17. Murudeshwara Temple – Murdeshwar

The great temple of Murudeshwara is dedicated to Lord Shiva and located near the beaches of
Bhatkal in Karnataka. The 22-storied high gopuram was and still continues to be the largest
attraction of the temple while the newly built statue of Lord Shiva, which is the second highest in
the world is the new thing. Seek blissful vibes from the surrounding Kanduka hill which
overlooks the Arabian Sea.
Main deity: Lord Shiva
Location: Murdeshwar, Karnataka 581350

18. Murugan Temple – Tiruchendur 

Do you want to feel the serene bliss while also offering your prayers to the lord? Then visit the
Murugan temple in Tiruchendur to get a glimpse of the grand ocean view. The temple has one of
the largest complexes in the entirety of India. The temple is built using red sandstone rock at the
foundation with an iconic Gopuram that gives it an elegant look. Another amazing offering of the
temple are the 120 columns and 16 pillars of Ananda Vilas Mandap.
Main deity: Lord Murugan

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19. Sabarimala Sastha Temple – Pathanamthitta

Be spiritually awakened at this major Hindu pilgrimage centre located in Pathanamthitta, Kerala.
The temple is located in the vicinity of Periyar Tiger Reserve which adds to the lush green
surroundings of the temple. The temple also hosts a mass pilgrimage accounting for 50 million
people. 

29
Main deity: Lord Ayyappan
Location: Sannidhanam, Sabarimala, Kerala 689662

20. Aihole Durga Temple – Aihole

Exhibiting Dravidian style of architecture, Aihole Durga Temple is renowned for its semicircular
structure. The temple is dedicated to Goddess Durga and is frequently visited by pilgrims.
Numerous tourists head to this temple to sneak peek at the marvellous structure of the temple.
Main Deity: Goddess Durga
Location: Aihole, Karnataka 587124

21. Sri Krishna Temple – Udupi

At Sri Krishna Temple the statue of Shri Krishna is facing towards the opposite site of the
entrance. It is said that Kanakadasa, a devotee was denied the entrance due to his cast. He went

30
to the back of the entrance and offered prayers. Locals believe that the lord, supposedly statue
turned towards Kanakadasa and since then the window is called Kanakana Kindi.
Main Deity: Lord Krishna
Location: Temple Car St, Sri Krishna Temple Complex, Thenkpete, Maruthi Veethika, Udupi,
Karnataka 576101

22. Veera Narayana Temple – Belavadi

The architectural marvel of Belavadi, Veera Narayana Temple has relevance with the epic
Mahabharata. The three trikutas of the temple are made up of soapstone. The temple was
commissioned during the reign of Veera Ballala II and is known for its enormous structure.
Main Deity: Lord Narasimha

The rich history of these divine South Indian temples is motivating enough for anyone to go
out explore them on their own. Every temple has its own story, and behind every story.
South India is home to an extensive number of temples that reeks of essence of spirituality. The
main temples of South India includes Chidambaram, Rameshwaram, Madurai, Tirupati,
Kanchipuram, and Thanjavur.Q. Which is the largest temple in South India? A. South India is
known as the land of temples that exhibit eye-catching architecture. The largest temple in South
India is Angkor Wat that covers an area of 1,626,000 meter square approximately.

Kanchipuram or Conjeevaram is also known as the City of Thousand Temples. One of the
ancient cities of the southern part of India, this city reeks of history that dates back to as early as
the Chola capital, the 2nd century BCE.

The City of Thousand Temple, Sacred City, Heritage City or Temple City of India is
Kanchipuram, and hence, the temple city of Tamil Nadu also happens to the same. All the cities

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of Tamil Nadu blankets an extensive number of major temples. There are around 165 temples
dedicated to Shiva in Kanchipuram itself.
What is the best time to visit South India?
If one is seeking to avoid the hot and humid weather conditions of South India, it is best to visit
during the winter season. The peak season for South India usually begins around December and
continues till February.
Which temple is famous in Tamil Nadu?
Home to numerous temples and the Temple City, there is an extensive number of major temples
that attracts flocks of believers all year long. The most famous temple in Tamil Nadu is the
Brihadeeswarar Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, which is located in Thanjavur. This temple is
also one of the largest temples that exhibits a fine example of Hindu architecture.
Which south state is famous for temples?
The entire southern India is known for spiritual and beautifully built temples. From Andhra
Pradesh to Tamil Nadu, all the states of South India have their floors covered with numerous
places of worship.
Which part of South Indian temple is called a gopuram?
A Gopuram is a Sanskrit word that refers to the monumental and ornate entrance towers of the
Hindu Temples. These towers form an important part of the Dravidian architecture that can be
seen in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala.
Who built Rameswaram temple?
The Rameswaram Temple is one of the main temples of South India and was built by King
Achutha Nayak during the 1614-1640s. The King ruled Tanjore during this era and was a
devotee of Lord Rama, an incarnation of Vishnu who took life of a ten-headed demon named
Ravana.

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