Temple Tales 2 - Lord of the Ants!
The Erumbeeswarar Temple, with an evening glow, 17-35mm lens@35mm, f/2.8, 1/60sContinuing the series on "Temple Tales", today I introduce a feature on the "Erumbeeswarar Temple" at Thiruverumbur between Trichy and Thanjavur. The Trichy - Thanjavur belt, on the banks of the Cauvery River was the seat of power of the mighty Cholas who were great patrons of art. Under their rule, they built and revived innumerable temples like the Brihadeeshwarar temple, SriRanganathaswamy Temple. This area also has a lot of hidden treasures - small temples, seeping with history, and architecture. Many of these small temples are currently patronized by the locals of the area who take great pride in its history. One such temple is the Erumbeeswarar Temple located on top of a small hillock midway between Trichy and Thanjavur.
A panoramic view from the top of the hillock, 17-35mm@17mm, f/2.8, 1/100sLiterally translated, the word erumbu means ant in Tamil. The story goes that, the asura (demon) Karan captured the hillock temple of Lord Shiva and unleashed his tyranny on the local residents and prevented people from entering the temple. The worried devas (demi gods) assumed the form of ants and entered the temple premises, slipping past the guards. The Lord in the form of a Shiva Lingam transformed into an anthill to show that He heard their prayers and helped the devas overcome Karan. The Shiva Lingam today has a rough texure like an anthill.
Archaeologists trace the temple's construction to the 7th century and the site is a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India. The temple walls have numerous inscriptions from the Chola and Pandya eras. The temple is housed inside fortress like walls and one ascends a flight of granite steps to access the temple.
Archaeologists trace the temple's construction to the 7th century and the site is a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India. The temple walls have numerous inscriptions from the Chola and Pandya eras. The temple is housed inside fortress like walls and one ascends a flight of granite steps to access the temple.
The flight of steps to climb to the top, 17-35mm@24mm, f/2.8, 1/60s
The temple walls are adorned with nandis, 17-35mm@35mm, f/2.8, 1/60s
A close-up view, 17-35mm@35mm, f/2.8, 1/80sLike many smaller and lesser known temples, this temple also went through a phase of disrepair and neglect. But in the recent years, with local support and help from BHEL,Trichy (located a few miles away) the temple has been revived.
Due to the rocky nature of the granite hillock, irrigation and watering of the nandavanam plants was a problem and for many years it was just thorny brush. But with rainwater harvesting techniques to fill up the temple tank located at the foot of the hillock, drip irrigation facilities and use of specialized concrete ring pots the problems have been overcome. Technical and monetary support for these improvements came from BHEL.
Due to the rocky nature of the granite hillock, irrigation and watering of the nandavanam plants was a problem and for many years it was just thorny brush. But with rainwater harvesting techniques to fill up the temple tank located at the foot of the hillock, drip irrigation facilities and use of specialized concrete ring pots the problems have been overcome. Technical and monetary support for these improvements came from BHEL.
The Temple Tank, 17-35mm@25mm, f/2.8, 1/250s
A view of the tank while climbing up the hillock, 17-35mm@35mm, f/2.8, 1/50s
The nandavanam inside the temple prakaram, 17-35mm@32mm, f/2.8, 1/60s
View of a ruin by the temple, 17-35mm@35mm, f/2.8, 1/125s
The ruins from another angle, 17-35mm@32mm,f/2.8, 1/40s
The shikaram over a subsidiary shrine, 17-35mm@17mm, f/2.8, 1/60s
The kalasam over te main shrine, 17-35mm@35mm, f/2.8, 1/50sComing up next in the temple tale series, Koln Cathedral
Previously in the series
Sri Meenakshi Temple, Houston, TX
8 comments:
Nice! I went to engineering college close by (not REC, but further toward Thanjavur) and must have passed by the temple a lot, never stopped. But then as someone once told me, you start noticing things around you only after you are no longer there regularly.
And if I am right about its location, there used to be a huge speed bump (that every bus driver ignored) right in front of the temple on the highway.
Fun days!
Hi Rajan,
Thanks for the post and the pictures! Makes me nostalgic since I spent 4 years in the near by REC. I would make my way to the temple every once in a while - it was such a peaceful place, and there was always a cool breeze blowing at the top, even on the hottest days.
Once, a priest pointed me to what looked like a tunnel entrance and claimed it went all the way to Tanjavur!
anantha and sharad: thanks for your comments, I'm glad it brought back memories of college days to you guys.
there indeed is a speed bump on the highway near the temple that was constructed after a number of accidents at that spot.
Thank you for this info. I am in search of beautiful but non crowded old temples to visit.
If and when they renovate this temple, hopefully they wont paint the gopurams in gaudy pink and blue as has been the case in most temples in Tamil Nadu
thanks, revathi. I agree with you about the gaudy colors on some of the recent temple "renovations". I love the austere and serene look of the ancient stone of most of ur temples.
very interesting to read this..I havent been to several temples in TN and I hope to do so soon ..thanks
Thanks for your comments, backpacker
Post a Comment