Shivaratri » Shiva Temples » Tarakeshwar Temple

Tarakeshwar Temple

Tarakeshwar Temple Dedicated: Lord Shiva
Temple Timing: Kailashanatha (Shiva)
Morning: 6 am to 12:30 pm
Evening: 4 pm to 8:30 pm
Temple Festivals: Chitharai madham – 18 days festival

Aipasi: Raja Raja Chola birthday function is known with the name "Aipasi" here at the temple. This great day of the temple is celebrated at the temple premises during sathya natchathiram right from 9 am in the morning to 3 pm in the afternoon. This festival is celebrated on the temple complex with utmost zeal and pomp. The whole of the temple is decorated during the festival and a wide variety of food items are made available to the devotees. Everything happens with utmost zeal and enthusiasm during this with grand decoration of the God's images. Also, a special Pooja is performed on this day at the temple's premises.

Note: In addition to these grand celebrations, special rituals and functions are held during festivals like Deepawali and Pongal.

Temple Address: Piragatheeshvarar Temple (Tanjore Big Temple),

Tanjore – 613 001

Nearest City to the Temple: Tanjore

Location: Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, South India

Temple Tree: Vanni Tree

Poets who sang its praise: Karuvoorar

Phone No: +91-4362- 274476

Introduction

Tarakeshwar temple is one of the most well-known and celebrated temples of South India and is popularly known as Brihadeeswarar Temple, Rajarajeswaram and RajaRajeshwara Temple. The temple has been built to celebrate the existence of the popular Hindu deity Lord Shiva. The temple was built by Raja Raja Chola I and is considered as one of the best examples of the Tamil architecture. This great Indian temple also has registered its name among a few of those famous UNESCO heritage sites with the title "the great Chola temples".

Describing the Strong Walls of the Temple:

Brihadeeswarar Tarakeshwar Temple that is considered as one of the most well-known possessions of the country India has been built between the staunch walls. These walls have been believed to have been built in the 16th century and it provides a strong protection to the existence of the temple. One of its temples, "Vimana", is believed to be the World's tallest tower with eight of around 66 m.

Kumban: The upper part of the temple has been named as "Kumbam", "Kalasha" or "Chikharam" and is believed to have been built from a single stone.

Nandi Bull Rock Carving: This one is another rock carving that that stands at the entrance of the temple and has a height of 13 feet and width 6 feet.

In 2010, this temple competed 1000 years! The process of building the temple started in 1010 by Raja Raja Chola I. It has been built from granite and with its gigantic space the temple is generally known with the name as "Big Temple".

Temple History:

This gigantic temple of the South India in Tanjore, Tamil Nadu speaks a lot about the existence of the craftsmanship of India with its beautiful architecture. This is a testimony of the great work of the Chola dynasty and it stands tall at 212 feet high. And this temple features the largest Shiva Linga of India. The mammoth Nandi Bull stands at the entrance gate of the temple as the guard of the temple. All these gigantic structures makes this temples refer to this temple as the "Big Temple".

This temple was built by the greatest king of the Chola dynasty, Raja Raja Chola I in 985 AD to 1014. These rulers were believed to be the most supreme rulers of the Chola dynasty. The Tarakeshwar temple is considered as the testimony of the successful ruling of the Chola dynasty. The main structure of the temple had been built completely with granite. This is so incredible that in that era, this mammoth amount of granite would have been so tough to obtain. And, the fact that, there isn't any trace of the granite quarry in around 100 km of the temple site makes it look even more astonishing.

The beautiful structure at the top of the temple known as Vimana or Shikhara which has been built in the shape of Lotus has a weight of around 80 tons. This is so astonishing to understand the incredible mind and the creativity of the architects of that time to carve such a gigantic structure. This, 80 tons tower of height 212 feet built in the 11th century is the evidence of the engineering mind of the people of the era.

About the Architecture

The three sides of the temple have been surrounded by the pictures of Lord Vishnu, Durga and Shiva.

The walls on the Southern side of the temple have the images of the Vishnu, Ganesha and their consorts. Also, there are images of Lakshmi, Bhudevi, Kalanta, Bhikshatana, Seidevi, Dvarapalas, Dakshinamurti and Vishnu anugraha murti.

On the other part, the Western part of the temple has the images of Ardhanarishvara, Harihara, two Chandrasekharas with one having halo and other without halo and a pair of dvarapalas.

On the Northern side, there are depictions of Gangadhara, Alingana Chandrasekhara, Adhanarisvara, a pair of dvarapalas, Virabhadra (with a sword and a shield), Siva holding a Sula (spear), Mahishasuramardini, a pair of dvarapalas, Bhairava and Sarasvati. On the top of the temple the small circular area features Vrishabavahana, Varaha, Narasimha and Bhikshatana.

In addition to that, the each and every wall of the temple has beautiful images and carvings that depict the rich history, culture and mythology of the Chola era.