The Brihadeeshwara Temple

-Reshmi

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The Brihadeeshwara Temple also known as the Peruvudaiyar Kovil is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Shiva located in Thanjavur in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is also known as Periya Kovil, RajaRajeshwara Temple and Rajarajeshvaram. It is one of the largest temples in India and is an example of Dravidian architecture during the Chola period. Built by emperor Raja Raja Chola 1 and completed in 1010 AD, the temple turned 1000 years old in 2010. The temple is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the "Great Living Chola Temples“.

Rajaraja-1 named this temple as Rajarajeshvaram and the deity Shiva in Linga form as Peruvudaiyar, the temple is also known in the deity's name as Peruvudaiyarkovil (in the Tamil language). In later period Maratta and Nayaks rulers constructed various shrines and gopurams of the temple. In later period when the Sanskrit language was more popular during the Maratha rule the temple was named in Sanskrit as Brihadeeshvaram and the deity as Brihadeeshvara. Now-a-days it is called as Thanjai Periya kovil (Tanjore Big temple).The Brihadeeshwara Temple was completed in around 1010 in the southeastern part of the new capital Thanjavur constructed in the basin of the Kaveri River by the king of the Chola Dynasty, Rajaraja 1. It has also been called Rajarajeshvara Temple after the king’s name.

It is one of the two greatest temples from the age of the Chola Dynasty together with the Rajendra-Cholishvara Temple built in the next new capital which was constructed by his successor Rajendra 1. Those constructions were prodigious national projects showing the Chola Empire’s hegemony in south India. At a height of more than 200 feet (60 m), the temple's main shrine is the highest pyramidal shrine tower in south India. Brihadeeshwarar temple is the first complete granite temple in the world. Around 60,000 tons of granite is said to be used to build the temple. Brihadeeshwarar temple, also known as the Tanjore big temple expounds the number of alphabets in Tamil by the distance and height it is designed. A long-associated myth with this temple is that the shadow of the main structure does not fall on the ground. However, this has been proven wrong by scientists. The statue of Nandi at the entrance of the temple is carved out of a single stone.The inscriptions also mention the different kinds of jewels used in the period. Each of these jewels are mentioned in detail. A total of twenty three different types of pearls, eleven varieties of diamonds and rubies are mentioned in these inscriptions. The inspiration to build the temple came to Raja Raja Cholan during his visit to Sri Lanka and is a result of a dream he had. Dedicated to Lord Shiva, Brihadeeswara Temple was divided into 5 sections. the sanctum with the towering superstructure (Sri vimana), the Nandi hall in front (Nandi-mandapam), and in between these is the main community hall (mukha mandapam), the great gathering hall (maha mandapam), and the pavilion that connects the great hall with the sanctum (Antrala).

Temple Map

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-by S.Reshmi 7"A"