கபாலீசுவரர் திருக்கோயில் மயிலாப்பூர் சென்னை
This ancient temple was originally located close to the seashore in Mylapore. It was destroyed during the Portuguese occupation of this area in 1566. The original site is believed to have been where the San Thome Cathedral stands today. It was built in the 7th century by Pallava kings. It was rebuilt at the current site about 1.5 km inland later in the 16th century by Vijayanagar kings. Some of the stones of the original temple were used in the reconstruction of the new temple. Inscriptions dating back to the 12th century have been found in the temple. Some inscriptions pertaining to the temple have been found close to the original site too. The current structure was built only about 300 years ago. The towering 120 feet or 37 m rajagopuram over the eastern entrance was built only in 1906. So it is a relatively modern temple complex despite its ancient past.
It is a Paadal Petra Sthalam and Thirugnasampanthar rendered the pathikam here. There is a legend that he revived a young girl named Poompavai who had died from a snake bite. She was the daughter of an ardent Siva devotee at Mylapore called Sivanesar. The pathikam sung here is known as the Poompavai Pathikam. In his pathikam Sampanthar describes a temple on the seashore.
The temple has a typical Dravidian temple layout. It has many mandapams. One of the mandapams houses the bronze images of the 63 nayanmar which are taken out in procession during the Arupathimoovar Festival in March or April. It is a popular temple and attracts huge crowds on special days. It is now controlled by the HR and CE Department of the Government of Tamil Nadu.
It is located in Chennai.
We visited in January 2005, July 2010 and May 2023. We stayed in Chennai.
Credits: Google Maps
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