Tamil Architecture

Nearly 33,000 ancient temples, many at least 800 to 2000 years old, are found scattered all over Tamil Nadu. As per Tamil Nadu Hindu Endowments Board, there are 38,615 temples. Most of the largest Hindu Temples reside here. Studded with complex architecture, variety of sculptures, and rich inscriptions, the temples remain the very essence of the culture and heritage of Tamil land, with historical records dating back to at least 3,000 years.

The state also abounds with a large number of temple tanks. The state has 2,359 temple tanks located in 1,586 temples and also confluence of many architectural styles, from ancient temples to the Indo-Saracenic style (pioneered in Madras) of the colonial era, to churches and mosques, to the 20th-century steel and chrome of skyscrapers.

History

Throughout Tamil Nadu, a king was considered to be divine by nature and possessed religious significance. The king was 'the representative of God on earth’ and lived in a "koyil", which means the "residence of God". The Modern Tamil word for temple is kovil. Titular worship was also given to kings. Other words for king like "kō" ("king"), "iṟai" ("emperor") and "āṇḍavar" ("conqueror") now primarily refer to God. Tholkappiyar refers to the Three Crowned Kings as the "Three Glorified by Heaven". In the Dravidian-speaking South, the concept of divine kingship led to the assumption of major roles by state and temple.

Sangam period architecture

From 580BCE - 300CE, the greatest accomplishments of the kingdoms of the early Chola, Chera and the Pandyan kingdoms included brick shrines to deities Murugan, Shiva, Amman and Vishnu. Several of these have been unearthed near Adichanallur, Kaveripoompuharpattinam and Mahabalipuram, and the construction plans of these sites of worship were shared to some detail in various poems of Sangam literature. One such temple, the Saluvannkuppan Murukan temple, unearthed in 2005, consists of three layers. The lowest layer, consisting of a brick shrine, is one of the oldest of its kind in South India, and is the oldest shrine found dedicated to Murukan. It is one of only two brick shrine pre Pallava Hindu temples to be found in the state, the other being the Veetrirundha Perumal Temple at Veppathur dedicated to Lord Vishnu. The dynasties of early medieval Tamilakkam expanded and erected structural additions to many of these brick shrines. Sculptures of erotic art, nature and deities from the Meenakshi Temple, and Ranganathaswamy Temple date from the Sangam period. Many of the temples of this time have been built on either bricks or granite stones but they didn't survived till modern times due to the destruction caused by the invasion of the Delhi Sultanate Empire under the leadership of Malik Kafur.

Several brick structures dating to the Sangam era have been unearthed at places across Tamil Nadu such as keeladi, adichanallur and kodumanal. The findings at these sites indicate that the buildings were built using burnt bricks.

Pallava architecture

The Pallavas ruled from 600 CE to 900 CE and their greatest constructed accomplishments are the single rock temples in Mahabalipuram and their capital Kanchipuram, now located in Tamil Nadu.

Pallava art and architecture represent an early stage of Dravidian art and architecture which blossomed to its fullest extent under the Chola Dynasty. The first stone and mortar temples of South India were constructed during Pallava rule and were based on earlier brick and timber prototypes.

The earliest examples of Pallava constructions are rock-cut temples dating from 610 to 690 CE and structural temples between 690 and 900 CE. A number of rock-cut cave temples bear the inscription of the Pallava king, Mahendravarman I and his successors. The greatest accomplishments of the Pallava architecture are the rock-cut Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram at Mahabalipuram, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, including the Shore Temple.Mamallapuram
Encyclopedia Britannica This group includes both excavated pillared halls, with no external roof except the natural rock, and monolithic shrines where the natural rock is entirely cut away and carved to give an external roof. Pallava sculptors later graduated to free-standing structural shrines which inspired Chola temples of a later age. Some of the best examples of Pallava art and architecture are the Kailasanathar Temple at Kanchipuram, the Shore Temple and the Pancha Rathas of Mahabalipuram. Akshara was the greatest sculptor of their time.

Pandyan architecture

After the close of the Sangam age, the first Pandyan empire was established by Kadungon in the 6th century CE by defeating the Kalabhras, The empire ruled from 6th to 10th century CE.

Rock cut and structural temples are significant part of pandyan architecture. The Vimana and mandapa are some of the features of the early Pandyan temples. Groups of small temples are seen at Tiruchirappalli district of Tamil Nadu. The Shiva temples have a Nandi bull sculpture in front of the ''maha mandapa''. In the later stages of Pandyas rule, finely sculptured idols, gopurams on the vimanas were developed. Gopurams are the rectangular entrance and portals of the temples. Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai and Nellaiappar Temple in Tirunelveli were built during the reign of the Pandyas.

Nellaiappar Temple

Nellaiappar Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Shiva, located in Tirunelveli, built by Pandyas and the sanctums of the temple were constructed by Nindraseer Nedumaran who reigned in the 7th century. The mani mandapam with its famous musical pillar was built by Later Pandyas in the 7th century.

Nellaiappar temple is spread over 14 acres. The gopuram of this temple is 850 feet long and 756 feet wide. Sangili Mandapam built on 1647 by vadamalaiyappa pillayan connects the Ganthimathi Amman and Nellaiyappar temples. From the inscriptions of Kulasekkara Pandiyan we learn that he defeated the Chera, Chola and Hoysala kings and built the outer walls of the temple with the war booty.

Kalugumalai temples of Pandyas

The temples in Kalugumalai, a rocky hill in Thoothukudi district in southern Tamil Nadu. Kalugumalai houses the 8th century Jain Beds, Vettuvan Koil and Kalugasalamoorthy Temple, a Murugan temple at the foothills. The rock-cut temples, sculptures and the carvings are exemplary of early Pandyan architecture. The Jain beds are dedicated to the Jain and Hindu religious figures. Constructed in rock cut style, the unfinished temple was built during the reign of Pandyan king Parantaka Nedunjadaiya (768-800 CE).

There are approximately 150 niches in the bed, that includes images of Gomateshwara, Parshvanatha and other Tirthankaras of the Jainism.

The carvings in the Vettuvan Koil show the top portion of the temple, with an unfinished bottom. The sculptures and the carvings are indicative of Pandyan art during the period. The granite rock looks like a blooming lotus, with hills surrounding it on three sides. The vimana (ceiling over the sanctum) has niches of Parsavadevatas, the attendant deities of Shiva, like ganas, Dakshinamurthy depicted playing a mridanga