காமாட்சியம்மன் திருக்கோயில் காஞ்சிபுரம்
Often referred to as the City of a Thousand Temples, Kanchipuram is an ancient city in India that has has been inhabited continuously since perhaps the Palaeolithic period. It is one of the oldest and holiest cities in India. It has a long tradition as a centre of learning for Hindus, Buddhists and Jains. Although the city has many temples, the Kamakshi Amman temple is considered the most important and is central to many other temples. Here the Goddess has a temple all to herself and her consort Lord Shiva is housed in a separate temple nearby, the Ekambarishvarar. It is of note that many of the Sivan temples in Kanchipuram do not have an Ambal shrine. The Kamakshi Amman is the Ambal shrine for all these temples.
It is one of the 51 Shakthi Peedams in India and together with Madurai Meenakshi and Akilandeshvari at Thiruvanaikkaaval, it is one of the three most revered temples dedicated to Goddess Parvati in Tamil Nadu. It is a very important pilgrimage site. It has a strong association with Adi Sankaracharya, the 8th century saint-philosopher who contributed much to the revival of Hinduism in the south and elsewhere in India. He is credited with installing the Sri Chakra Yantram that is worshipped in the sanctum to this day. The Goddess here is found as a seated idol in a Padmasana pose.
The antiquity of the temple likely predates the Pallavas who ruled from here since the 6th century to the 9th. They likely rebuilt the temple, although inscriptional evidence is lacking. It has been rebuilt again since and Chola artisans from the 14th century are responsible for the surviving architecture in the inner core. The Vijayanagara and Nayakkan kings of course have left their mark especially with lofty gopurams.
Given its long history, the layout of the temple is somewhat complicated with the additions over many eras. At 5 acres in area, it is certainly not huge. The vimanam over the sanctum has a gold plated cap. Together with the nearby Ekambarishvarar and the Kumarakottam Murugan Temple in between, the three temples are built to represent the Somaskanda manifestation of Lord Shiva.
The temple is located in Kanchipuram, about 2 hours or 80 km southwest of Chennai.
We visited in July 2010. We were based in Chennai.
Credits: Google Maps
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