Hymns in Granite – The magnificent temples of Tirunelveli

Nellaiappar shrine at Tirunelveli town, Brahmadesam temple at Ambasamudram, Kasi Viswanathar temple at Tenkasi town & Venkatachalapathy temple at Krishnapuram – all found in the Tirunelveli district of Southern Tamil Nadu are amongst the finest monuments from the lengthy ‘high-renaissance’ period of Tamizh art & architecture (7^th – 14^th century AD). Hymns in granite – a writer called them.

Protected from the destruction of Muslim invaders, in a zone safe from natural disasters & untouched by internal strife (like the Shaivite – Vaishnavite conflicts) – these magnificent works of architecture have been left well preserved for us to savour. Importantly, unlike the ASI-preserved UNECSO heritage sites at Thanjavur & Mahabalipuram – these have not been ‘re-built’ as the original by experts. These have been in religious use since their commemoration centuries ago & additions to the original structures by various Rajas have mostly enhanced their original grandeur.

Nellaiappar temple at Tirunelveli town

Grandest of these is the Nellaiappar temple at the heart of Tirunelveli town along the banks of the river Thamiraparani. This 7^th century edifice built by kings of the Pandya dynasty was originally two separate temples – one of Goddess Kanthimathi (Lord Siva’s consort) & the other of the presiding deity Lord Nellaiappar (i.e. Siva); the tall corridor connecting the two temples is a most beautiful 16^th century addition. Architectural highlights that will enthrall you include –

• The entrance via the south Gopuram (aka tower) contains intricate wood cladded interiors on the roof. Details include sculptures of deities, erotic postures, mythical animals – all carved in wood
• Small shrines around the sanctum sanctorum contain magnificent statues of Kalabhairava, Mahishasuramardhini & Dakshinamurthy – all in granite stone. A separate enclosure contains panchaloha (composed of 5 metals) statues of Nataraja, six-headed Subramanya, Parvathi et al.
• Curiously, a fearsome statue of the villain from the epic Ramayana, Ravana, seen lifting Mt. Kailasa is a magnificent presence. Directly above Ravana, is the statue of Somasundarar (another incarnation of Lord Siva), who seems to be pressing down on the mountain with his toe nullifying Ravana’s superhuman efforts.
• To the immediate right of the sanctum sanctorum is a large statue of Nellai Govindan (i.e. Lord Vishnu), where the lord in all his glorious calm, unusually reclining on his back is performing rituals to a small Siva Lingam below.
• Tamirai Sabha (i.e. lotus hall), a small circular enclosure to the right of the main Nellaiappar Shrine has a most exquisitely carved interior roof of wooden sculpture.
• Other equally worthy artifacts include the pillared hall near the Kanthimathi temple (Vasantha Mandapam). The small statues of the 63 Shaivite scholars or Nayanars – each said to look alike the original saint. Outside the Nellaiappar’s sanctum–
  1. The gigantic life sized statues are the immediate attention grabbers
  2. There are two giant granite pillars carved out of single stone that contain 48 small sub pillars. These produce musical notes when struck by expert local hands.

Erotica in Wood – on the roof of the entrance

Shiva in a flowing dance pose

Exquisite wood sculpture on the roof of the Tamira Sabha

Gopuram – as seen from inside the temple

Life-sized statue of a god I couldn’t recognize

Layout of the Nellaiappar temple

Giant-sized statue of Nandi – Lord Shiva’s mount

Musical Pillars – the 2 pillars are carved out of single block of granite

Lotus shaped roof leading to the Tamira Sabha

Tall corridor that connects the Nellaiappar & Kanthimathi temple

Cart used to draw deities during street festivals

View of the Nellaippar temple from the East Car street

Detail in the Nellaiappar temple gopuram

Magnificent wood sculpture on the roof of the entrace

Venkatachalapathy temple at Krishnapuram

Some 15 mins away from Tirunelveli center is the hamlet of Krishnapuram; famous for its relatively diminutive yet superb Vekatachalapathy temple (built in the 16^th century by the Nayak dynasty). I hadn’t heard of this temple until 5 yrs ago, when a local sculptor introduced it to me as ‘the place’ where students of granite sculpting were taken for study. Unlike the vast expanses & myriad attractions of large Tamizh temples, the sole attraction here are 8 pillars covered with the most amazing life-sized sculpture …. nearly 40 of them. The workmanship is so astounding combining detail, expression, liveliness that it will leave you breathless!

For example – The statue of Manmatha (God of Love) armed with his weapon of choice (a bow of Sugar Cane). This curved bow stands 5 ft tall & if you drop a stone in the hole at the top of the bow, it comes out of the bottom.

Kailasanathar Temple at Brahmadesam

Located on the Tirunelveli – Tenkasi state highway is the town of Ambasumudram. ~4 kms from this town is the quiet village of Brahmadesam. The 7 story Kailasanathar temple here majestically towers over all of the surrounding landscape. This is the least habited, enigmatic & ancient looking of the four featured in this write-up. This temple is a collective effort of various dynasties over the course of four centuries. The original temple incl. the sanctum is attributed to the 10th century under the Chola regime. Pandya kings built the two most beautiful halls & the Chera kings (from Kerala) embellished various existing structures of the temple. The Nayak dynasty built the magnificent Gopurams at both entrances. Hoysala kings from Karnataka also supposedly added artistic contributions.

Sans the usual colourful painting that marks most temples, the mostly exposed stone structure adds to the aura. Other than the Gopuram, architectural highlights are the long hall that connects the Gopuram to the sanctum, the Yagna Mandapam (pillared ritual hall) with its majestic mythical Yazhi’s (part elephant, part lion) & lions, intricate interiors of the hall (near the south of the temple) whose roof is inspired by Keralite wood styling – needless to say this copy is of pure granite.

But the seamless blending of various architectural styles in a single site is probably the most memorable legacy of this temple.

Chain like sculpture – built from single block of stone (no adhesives!)

Beautiful Yazhi figures in the Yagna Mandapam

Pillared hall (possibly built by the Chola’s)

Hall connecting the Gopuram to the Sanctum

Another Mandapam

Gopuram & the temple tank

Kasi Viswanathar temple at Tenkasi

The interesting fact about this temple is that its standout architectural highlight, its 9 storey – 180 foot tall Gopuram was completed only in the 1990s! The original Gopuram from the 14^th century was weathered by age & eventually destroyed by a thunder strike in 1824.

Set against the backdrop of the majestic Western Ghat mountain range, in an area with narrow streets brimming with people & commercial activity –  the sudden appearance of this gigantic tower never ceases to amaze (even after several visits). My favourite part of  this temple is the hall in front of the Sanctum which houses 8 life-sized sculpture – e.g. Rathi (Goddess of beauty) seated on a swan, a ferocious Kali displaying her complete arsenal of weaponry, the genteel flute playing Krishna, the angry Siva in a dancing pose with his leg touching his forehead. In the Mani Mandapam (hall of bells), the story of the Mahabharata etched in stone is not worth missing.

Unfortunately, the temple authorities don’t allow picture taking and hence I have little to show for.

But a columnist describing this temple says “It looks as if the stones have melted in the hands of the artisans, lending itself to any form that the sculptor had in mind.”. I couldn’t have put it better.

1820s – The original Gopuram weathered by age & felled by a thunderstrike

A view from inside the temple

Magesterial Gopuram as it stands today – took 40 yrs to build

I hope you’ll visit this region and its magnificent temples some day!

Image Credits

All photos shot with my humble Canon ixus 700 and iPhone 6. The only exception being the dilapidated Tenkasi temple gopuram, which was sourced from the Harekrsna organization

While I rarely dedicate any of these blogs, this one will be an exception. To Anna – whose move from rural Tirunelveli to Bangalore in his teems (1950s) & tireless efforts since has uplifted an entire family, but an opportunity to see these monuments in his own hometown continues to elude him……we’ll make him see it soon.