Kaaval Deivam temple at Kochadai
These photos were taken at the Villayuthamudaiya Ayyanar temple, a Kaaval deivam temple at Kochadai on the outskirts of Madurai. Kaaval deivam (literally means protector God)temples are an interesting feature of the villages of Tamil Nadu. The deities are considered guardians of the village and are depicted with huge and fierce statues. A typical kaaval deivam temple has 21 guardian deities and 61 servant deities. These temples date back to older than the Vedic period and have been in existence since the Sangam period (200 BC) and the worship at these temples are by means of folk songs and folk art forms.
While growing up these temples were a source of fascination and fear and the last time I was in India I clicked these pictures at the Villayuthamudaiya Ayyanar kovil.
While growing up these temples were a source of fascination and fear and the last time I was in India I clicked these pictures at the Villayuthamudaiya Ayyanar kovil.
2 comments:
I was equally fascinatd with similar figures brightly painted.
thanks anil. The interesting thing is that the newly renovated village temples are brightly colored, while the older more remote ones are fading, pale colored.
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