हिंदीOn this day
Standing

Vilwanatheswarar Temple, Tiruvallam

A temple on the Ponnai river whose walls hold records from the Pallava age, among them one of the earliest inscriptions to speak of the Tevaram singers. Sambandar sang it.

Built: Temple with inscriptions from the 8th century (Nandivarman II Pallava) onwards; Chola and later additionsWhere: Tamil Nadu (Vellore district)Deity: Bhagwan Shiva as Vilwanatheswarar; Devi as Vallambikai12.98° N, 79.27° E
Photo: Ssriram mt · CC BY-SA 4.0

01Going round the Lord

The temple’s katha ties the name to Shri Ganesh. When Shiva offered a fruit to whichever son first went round the world, Kartikeya flew off on his peacock while Ganesh walked round his parents and won it. Tiru-valam, the sacred going-round, is said to have happened here. The Nandi faces east, away from the linga, guarding against an asura who troubled the place, and the bilva tree is the sthala vriksha, from which the Lord takes his name. Sambandar’s hymn on Tiruvallam is in the Tevaram.

02Pallava and Bana records

Tiruvallam was a seat of the Bana chiefs who ruled this country under the Pallavas, and the temple’s walls carry inscriptions from the reign of Nandivarman II Pallava in the eighth century onward, followed by Chola grants. An inscription on the north wall is among the earliest records anywhere to name the singing of the Tevaram hymns in a temple. Much of the present masonry, including the five-tiered gopuram, is Nayaka-period work of the sixteenth century.

Visiting

About 15 km east of Vellore on the Chennai highway; Tiruvalam railway station is close.

Nearby

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