|
South
India Temple Tours takes you on a fascinating
journey to the land rich in momentous temples.
There are several towns in South India that are
specifically known as the 'Temple Towns' owing to
some of the brilliant temples of the town. The
south Indian style of temple architecture is
called Dravida Style of Temple Architecture. The
Vimana and the Gopurams characterize this style.
The Vimana is a tall pyramidal tower consisting of
several diminishing smaller storeys standing on a
square base. The Gopuram is two storeys gateway to
the temple separated by a horizontal molding. The
Prakara or the outer wall encloses the temple. The
Pallavas, the Cholas, the Pandyas, the Vijayanagar
rulers and the Nayaks had contributed to the
development of South Indian temples.
The first temple on South India
Temple Tours is the Guruvayoor Temple, one of the
most sacred and important pilgrim centers of
Kerala. Located 29 km to the west of Trichur, the
Sri Krishna Temple draws maximum pilgrims and
tourists. According to local legends, Guru, the
Teacher of the Gods and Vayu, the God of Winds,
together build this temple. The square shaped Sri
Kovil is the sacred sanctum of the temple and
enshrines the main deity. The temple also houses
the images of Ganapati, Sri Ayyappa and
Edathedathy Kavil Bhagavathy. Only Hindus can
enter the temple.
The second temple on South India
Temple Tours is 2000-year-old Meenakshi Temple is
situated in the city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu.
Dedicated to Lord Shiva and his consort Parvati
known here as Sundareswarar and Meenakshi, the
temple s a masterpiece of Dravidian Temple
Architecture. The original temple was built by
Kulasekara Pandya but the real credit for making
the temple as grand as it stands today goes to the
Nayaks. The present temple was conceived in 1560
AD by Vishwanatha Nayak and subsequently built
during the reign of Thirumalai Nayak.
The Brihadeeswara Temple is
situated at Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu. The temple
was constructed under the patronage of the King
Rajaraja Chola in the 10th century AD and designed
by Sama Varma, the architect. The most unique
feature of the temple is that no shadow of the
temple is cast on the ground at any time of the
year. The temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The
inner wall of the sanctum is embellished with 108
different dancing postures of Shiva. The temple is
one of the finest contributions of the Chola
Dynasty to the Dravidian Temple Architecture.
Kanchipuram is 75 km from Chennai
in Tamil Nadu and is one of the most visited
pilgrimage centers in India. Kanchipuram is famous
for magnificent and elegant Dravidian temples. On
the tour of Kanchipuram, one must visit the
Kailashanatha Temple, Kamakshi Amman Temple,
Kumara Kottam, Ekambareshwar Temple and Varadaraja
Temple.
Mahabalipuram or Mamallapuram, once
the port city of the Pallava rulers, is located 50
km from the south of Chennai on the shores of Bay
of Bengal in Tamil Nadu. The temples of
Mamallapuram are excellent specimen of Dravidian
temple architecture and Pallava art. There are 11
temples at Mahabalipuram excavate out of the rock.
The most important temple here is the Shore
Temple. The Shore Temple built during the reign of
Rajasimha in the 7th century AD. Rajasimha
constructed the Shore Temple in the 7th century
AD. It was the first Pallava structure to be built
of stone rather than being carved out of stone
like the older temples.
Another temple to visit on South
India Temple Tours is at Somnathpur village
located on the banks of river Kaveri, 140 km from
Bangalore in Karnataka. The commander of the
Hoysalas, Somnath built the Keshava Temple almost
740 years ago with permission grants received from
the king. The names of the sculptors can be seen
on the sculptures, as they have inscribed their
names on their works. It was not a common practice
during that time.
The most important temple to visit
on South India Temple Tours is at Tirupati, 67 km
from Chittor district in Andhra Pradesh. The town
is famous for the holy shrine of the Shri
Venkateshwara. The Balaji Temple with its gopuram
at Tirupati is a classical example of Dravidian
architecture. The temple is dedicated to Lord
Venkateshwara also known as Srinivasa or Balaji,
who is believed to have attributes of both Shiva
and Vishnu.
|
