Kalikambal Temple

Main Entrance, via Wikimedia

The Kalikambal Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Goddess Kalikambal (Kamakshi) and Lord Kamateswarar, located inGeorge Town, Chennai, India. The temple is located on Thambu Chetty Street, a prominent financial street running parallel to Rajaji Salai.

The temple was originally located closer to the sea shore and was relocated to the current site at 1640 AD. It was then built in 1678.^[1] Shivaji, the Maratha warrior and the founder of the Hindawi-Swarajya in the 17th century, had worshiped in this temple incognito on 3 October 1667.^[2] It is believed that a fierce form of Goddess was held in worship earlier and that this form was replaced with the shanta swaroopa (calm posture) form of Goddess Kamakshi.

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Kachchaleswarar Temple

Front Entrance, via Wikimedia

Kachchaleswarar Temple, also known as the Great Kachali Pagoda, is a Hindu temple located in Armenian Street, Chennai, India. Constructed on land belonging to dubash Kalavai Chetty in 1725, the temple belonged to the left-hand castes and was the site of the first major conflict between left and right-handed castes in the then Madras city.

The temple is modelled on the Kachaaleshwarar temple at Kancheepuram. Kachaaleshwarar (Lord Shiva) is the main deity and Soundaraambikai, the consort deity.

The temple was built in 1725 by Kalavai Chetty, a 'dubash' working for the British East India Company, on a land belonging to him. A huge retinue of dancing girls were attached to the temple in the earlier days. These dancing girls resided in a quarter adjoining the temple. A plaque in the temple records the year of the first kumbhaabishekam (consecration) as 1728. Post-Independence, a mahaa-kumbhaabishekam (great consecration) was held on 8 July 1962. A major renovation of the temple began on 20 February 1984 and another great consecration was held on 9 July 1989.

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Jagannath Temple, Chennai

Jagannath Temple, Chennai - via Wikimedia

Jagannath Puri Temple Chennai is a Hindu temple dedicated to the divine trinity Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadrain Chennai, India. The temple located in Kannathur off the EC Road by the seaside is built in Kalinga architecturereminiscent of the Jagannath Temple, Puri. The temple has shrines dedicated to Shiva, Ganesh, Bimala. The annualRathyatra is the main festival celebrated.

The temple was built in 1725 by Kalavai Chetty, a 'dubash' working for the British East India Company, on a land belonging to him. A huge retinue of dancing girls were attached to the temple in the earlier days. These dancing girls resided in a quarter adjoining the temple. A plaque in the temple records the year of the first kumbhaabishekam (consecration) as 1728. Post-Independence, a mahaa-kumbhaabishekam (great consecration) was held on 8 July 1962. A major renovation of the temple began on 20 February 1984 and another great consecration was held on 9 July 1989.
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Ettampadai Temple

The Ettampadai Idols, via Wikimedia

The Ettampadai Temple is located in Murugan. It is an ancient temple dedicated to Lord Muruga. 

This Temple is the ancient temple in South India. The Lord Murugan kalvettu in this temple is only placed in Kandhaswamy temple and Thiruporoor Murugan Temple. In early days pilgrims refreshen up while carrying Kavadi.
This land of this temple was donated by Ms. Pachayammal, later it was maintained by Dharmakartha Mr.K.S.Kathirvel Pillai and Mr.K.Subramaniyam.To restructure this temple the devotees of Murugan (Thiruvallikkeni Thirumuruganadiyargal", started a Devotional Musical Organization named as "BHAJANASHWARA" in the year of 1978.) From the remuneration they started initial structure of this temple.
In the first inner prahāram, or ambulatory, around the heart of the temple, shrines are Pillayar, Kumbeshwarar, Ambigai, Sri Kanaga Durga, Navagraha Sannathi and besides one to the Ancient Pillar of Lord Muruga.

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Dandeeswarar Temple

Dandeeswarar Temple

Dandeeswarar Temple (Shri Dandeeswarar Temple) is a Shiva temple situated in Velachery, a suburb of Chennai. The temple was built during the Pallava reign and was repaired and rebuilt during the Chola reign. The temple complex consists of a main temple complex and a tank, and is 2 kilometers towards the east from Guru Nanak College on the Velachery main road. This temple is administered by the HR & CE Department of the Government of Tamil Nadu.

The Temple traces its mythology to that of Lord Yama (God of Death) who is said to have installed this Lingam and prayed to Lord Shiva for forgiveness and restoration of his strength after he was kicked on his chest by Lord Shiva in Thirukadavur at the behest of saving the life of Sage Markandeya. Lord Yama having lost his strength is said to have created a Tank (Yama Theertham) and installed this Lingam and had fervently prayed to Lord Shiva for forgiveness and restoration of his strength so that he can carry out his duties in full measure. Pleased by his prayers Lord Shiva is said to have granted a Staff (Dhandam) to Lord Yama in this place and restored his strength and hence the name Dandeeswarar - or bestower of mythical staff. The Lords Consort is Goddess Karunambika (Merciful Mother).

The other important incident associated here is that the 4 Vedas came and prayed to this Lord and regained their strength after they were taken by Hiranyaksha and were kept immersed in Sea before being rescued by Lord Vishnu in Matsya avatar. Thus this place is an apt one for any one wishing to regain their lost strength and vitality. The name Velachery is said to be corruption of Veda Shreni (Place of Vedas).

The Temple sports a 5 Tier Vimana and has separate shrines for Ganapati, Subrahmanya and Shasta as well. We can find the idols of Lord Surya and many other deities including 63 Nayanmars.

The Temple however, has been badly maintained in the past as one can see broken pillars and remnants of carvings spewed around. The Pillars have Tamil and Devnagri etchings. The Temple has however seen good patronage in the recent times after Velachery has become an active suburb.

It is said that the rays of the Sun would fall on the Lingam on the exact date of Tamil New Year and this is not happening now as High rises have been built around the Temple. The Temple poojas starts from about 6.30 am and go on up to 11.30 am and is open again from 4 pm to 8.30 pm daily. Visit Ishtadevata to know more about Dandeeswarar Temple and many more.

Chennai Om Sri Skandhashramam

Roof Designs of the Temple

Chennai Om Sri Skandhashramam is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Murugan (Swaminatha Swami) in Chennai, India. It is located at Selaiyur, Tambaram, a southern neighbourhood of Chennai. The temple is known of its huge idols of several deities, including Kamala Siddhi Vinayakar, Panchamukha Heramba Ganapathy, Dattatreya, Panchamukha Hanuman, Sanieswara, Ayyapan, goddess Ashtadasabhuja Durga Parameswari, Sarabeswara (form of Shiva), goddess Prathiyankira, goddess Bhuvaneshwari, Swaminathaswamy (chief deity at the temple), Sudarshanachakathalwar, Lakshmi Narasimhar, Maha Sahasralingamurthy (1008 lingams), Nandikeswarar, goddess Annapurani and Chakra Poorna Maha Meru. There is also an idol of Saint Sathguru Santhananda Swamigal, who built the temple.

Chennai Om Sri Skandhashramam temple was consecrated by Saint Swami Santhananda on 24 June 1999.^[2] Before building the temple at Chennai, Shanthananda Swamigal also built the Judge Swamigal Adhishtanam at Pudukkottai, Om Sri Skandasramam at Salem and Dattagiri at Sendamangalam.^[3] The temple is dedicated to goddess Ugraprathyangira Devi and god Sarabheswara. This is said to be the first temple in India to have been dedicated to goddess Ugraprathyangira Devi. It is also said to be the first temple of god Sarabheswara constructed in modern times. There is an old Chola temple dedicated to Lord Sarabheswara atThribhuvanam near Thanjavur, also in Tamil Nadu. Swami Santhananda died before the completion of the temple.

The temple boasts over 15 life-sized and larger idols of various gods and goddesses, weighing dozens of tonnes each. Visit Ishtadevata to know more about this temple, an many more all over the world.

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Bhaktavatsala Perumal Temple, Thirunindravur

Bhaktavatsala Perumal Temple, Thirunindravur Via Wikimedia

Sri Bakthavatsala Perumal temple is a Hindu temple, located at Thirunindravur, in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, is dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, the temple is glorified in the Divya Prabandha, the early medieval Tamil canon of the Azhwar saints from the 6th–9th centuries AD. It is one of the 108 Divyadesam dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshipped as Bhaktavatsala Perumal and his consort Lakshmi as Ennai Petra Thayar.

The temple is believed to have been built by the Pallavas of the late 8th century AD, with later contributions from Medieval Cholasand Vijayanagar kings. A granite wall surrounds the temple, enclosing all the shrines and two bodies of water. There is a four-tieredrajagopuram, the temple's gateway tower, in the temple.

Bhatavatsala Perumal is believed to have appeared to Kubera. Six daily rituals and three yearly festivals are held at the temple, of which the Krishna Janmasthami festival, celebrated during the Tamil month of Aavani (August–September), being the most prominent. The temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu.

Legend is that Varuna, Samudraraja had worshipped Vishnu at this place. It is also said that Vishnu, reurning from this place followed by Lakshmi, stayed here and hence it is called Thirunindravur. It is also that Thirumangai Alvar did not sing any paasuram(songs) here and followed by Vishnu followed Thirukadalmallai and sang song praising the deity Bhaktavatsala Perumal from there. Lakshmi requested Perumal to appear before the azhwar, but when he did Azhwar had already reached Tirukannapuram. Perumal again appeared in the dreams of the Azhwar who felt that he is viewing Bhatavatsala in Tirukannapuram.

The temple is revered in Nalayira Divya Prabandham, the 7th–9th century Vaishnava canon, by Thirumangai alvar. The Azhwars have sung praise on the different forms of Bhaktavatsala Perumal. The temple is classified as a Divyadesam, one of the 108 Vishnu temples that are mentioned in the book. Many Acharyas have also written songs on the various forms of God in this Temple.

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Ashtalakshmi Temple, Chennai

The Ashtalakshmi Kovil is a Hindu temple, which lies on the shorelines near the Elliot's beach, in Chennai, India. The temple is dedicated to the goddess Lakshmi, and her eight primary forms – the Ashtalakshmi – the giver of all eight forms of wealth, namely, offspring, success, prosperity, wealth, courage, bravery, food, and knowledge. The sanctorums are depicted on a multi-tier complex in such a way that visitors could visit all the shrines without stepping over any of the sanctorums.

"Ashtalakshmi Kovil - Temple of Eight Lakshmis , Chennai , Tamil Nadu , India" by Summer yellow. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

The temple was constructed on the wishes of Sri Chandrashekarendra Saraswati swamigal ofKanchi Mutt. The foundation was land in January 1974 by public participation. The consecration of the temple took place on 5 April 1976 in the presence of the 44th guru of the Ahobila Mutt Vedhantha Dhesika Yatheendhra Mahadhesikan Swami.

The temple measures 65 ft in length and 45 ft in breath. It is modeled after the Sundhararaja Peruma Temple in Uthiramerur. In this temple, the Ashtalakshmis, the eight forms of goddess Lakshmi, are present in four levels in nine separate sanctums. The shrine of Lakshmi and her consort Vishnu is in level two. One starts the worship from here. Taking the stairs, the path leads to the third floor, which has the shrines of Santhanalakshmi, Vijayalakshmi, Vidyalakshmi and Gajalakshmi. Further few steps would lead to the shrine of Dhanalakshmi, which is the only shrine on the fourth floor. Exiting the main shrine, in the first level, there are shrines for Aadilakshmi, Dhaanya lakshmi and Dharyalakshmi. The temple also has Dashavatara (avatars of Vishnu), Guruvayoorappan, Ganesha, Dhanwanthari and Anjaneyar deities.

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Anna Nagar Ayyappan Koil, Chennai

Anna Nagar Ayyappan Koil is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Ayyappan in Chennai, India. It is located at the junction of 6th Main Road and 2nd Avenue in Anna Nagar.

"AnnaNagarAyyappanTemple OuterView" by Rasnaboy . Licensed under CC0 via Wikimedia Commons.

The temple is built on a 40-cent land near the Visveswarayya Tower, in 1984. The temple has shrines for Ganesha, Muruga, Durga, Anjaneya, Navagrahas and Nagaraja. The main sanctum of Lord Ayyappa faces west with Lord Ganesha and Lord Subramanya to the left and Goddess Durga to the right, all facing east. The Navagraha shrine is located on the southeast corner of the temple and the Anjaneya shrine is located in the southwest corner, facing east. The main door at the entrance is covered with brass plates. There is an auditorium, named after Sri Adisankara, covering about 3,600 sq ft, which can accommodate about 1,000 persons, for conducting spiritual and cultural programs and discourses. The design of the auditorium involves the Koothambalam style found in Kerala temples.

Poojas at the temple are conducted by Kerala namboodiris. Chief among the poojas are the mahaganapathy homam and the mritunjaya homam, performed as offerings by devotees throughout the year. The annual temple festival is celebrated during the second week of December. Other annual celebrations include the Arattu procession (when the utsavamoorthy is carried from the temple to the Marina Beach), pratishta dinam, panguni uthiram, Navarathri, Skanda Shasti, Vinayaka Chaturthi and Rama Navami. Kotiarchana is performed every fourth year by Ayyappa devotees observing vritham (fasting).

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Luz Anjaneya Temple

Luz Anjaneya Temple

The Luz Anjaneya Temple is the oldest temple to Hanuman in the city of Chennai, India. It is located in the neighbourhood of Mylapore in the district known as Luz.

The Luz Anjaneya temple was constructed by Salivahana Chettiars from Mysore who migrated and settled down in Mylapore in the 18th century. With land granted by the Nawab of the Carnatic, the Chettiars constructed two Vinayaga temples. While digging a well, they found the self-manifested idol of the Hindu god Hanuman. As a result, they constructed a Hanuman temple on the spot. A shrine to the Hindu god Rama was constructed within the complex in 1954. The temple celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2000.

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Anjaneya Temple, Nanganallur

"Nanganallur Hanuman Temple 2005 12 29". Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.5-2.0-1.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

The Anjaneya Temple at Nanganallur, Chennai is a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Hanuman. The principal idol of Hanuman is 32-feet tall and sculpted from a single piece of granite. The idol was installed in 1989 and consecrated in 1995.

Sri Maruti Bhakta samajan trust, consisting of people with high spiritual beliefs, wished for this temple. with the blessings of Sri Ragavendra swami and Sri Kanchi Paramacharyar entrenched the 32 foot idol of Sri Anjaneyar in 1989 and consummated the Kumbabishekam in 1995. The distinguished factor of the 32 feet idol is that it was molded out of a single rock.

The main shrine houses Anjaneya inside a Temple Tower 90 feet tall. Anjaneya is facing West and the main entrance is on the West. There is an auxiliary entrance on the southern side used during temple festivals. The main Temple building has path-ways all around the sanctum sanctorum and also a large covered space (Mandapam) for devotees to assemble in front of the Lord for offering worship. On the North-West corner, a full-fledged Sannidhi for Sri Rama has been built and here He has taken abode with Seetha and Lakshmana with Anjaneya in attendance. The Gods are facing East. Rama's role as the protector and ruler is signified here as Rama is seen carrying his bow, hence the name "Kothanda Rama" for the Lord here. On the South-West, a Sannidhi for Lord Krishna with Rukmani and Satya Bhama, all facing East has been built. Even though a Sannidhi for Lord Rama is normally built in Anjaneya temple, rarely a Sannidhi for Lord Krishna is built.

Here, Krishna Sannidhi is built to remind the devotees that among the Gods it was only Anjaneya who was present in both the Indian epics. In Ramayana, as a direct disciple of Rama and in Mahabaratha, in the flag of Arjuna's Chariot as ordained by Lord Krishna to save it from destruction by the opponents. In the North-East part of the Temple, on a small platform, "Vinayaka" is housed facing East and to his left on a yet another platform 'Naga' has been installed. Saint Raghavendra has taken His abode facing Lord Krishna.

The temple is now under the custody of HR & CE.

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Anjaneya Temple, Alamelumangapuram

 Anjaneya Temple

The Anjaneya Temple at Alamelumangapuram, a part of Mylapore in Chennai, India was constructed at the directions of Jayendra Saraswathi, the Shankaracharya of Kanchi matha. The idol was installed on March 31, 1985 and consecrated on June 26, 1986.

The temple has the tallest statue of Hanuman in Chennai - about 14 foot high. The tall Hanuman was made and installed at the request of Jayendra Saraswathi. At present there are shrines for Hayagriva Perumal, garudar, Ganapathy, a small shrine for two seated and one standing Anjaneya idols, a shrine for Kothandaramar with Sitapirati and Lakshmana.The speciality of the temple is the koti archana wherein one crore names of the Hindu god Hanuman are being recited over a period of two years.

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