Thread by @narayanagl

#Thread
1.Main Deity: Kapaleeshwarar (Bhagwan Shiva)
Consort: Karpagambal (Maa Parvati)
Sthal Vriksh: Punnai Tree (Calophyllum inophyllum)
Sthal Theerth: Kapali, Kadavul, Veda, Vali, Ganga, Velli, & Rama Theerth. #Kapaleeshwarar Temple is of typical Dravidian #architecture style

2. There are 2 entrances to the #temple marked by the Gopuram on either side with the Gopuram overpowering the street on which the Temple present. The East Gopuram is about 40 m height, while the smaller western Gopuram faces the Holy Pond, with intricate patterns of sculpture

3. figures in cool eye-passing colors is a treat to watch. The Temple is also a testimonial for the Vishwakarmas #Sthapathis. There are inscriptions on the Temple Structure which dates to the 7th Century. The view of the Temple from the outside is magnificent & awesome. This is a

4. modern structure, built based on the descriptions in the Pauranika & Thevaram; the huge Temple pond is the site of the popular Theppam festival in the month of Tamil month Thai (Jan-Feb). Sattology - #Kapaleeshwar Temple is one of the prominent Shiva Temples in India situated

5. in Mylapore, Chennai. Here Shiva is worshiped as Kapaleeshwar (Swambhu) & Maa Shakthi as Karpagambal. There is a Pauranik behind how the place got the name Mylapore & the same story is the root of this magnificent pilgrim center. Goddess Karpagambal wished to know the meaning

6. of the five lettered divine mantra “Na Ma Shi Va Ya”. She pleaded to Shiva to teach her the true meaning of the mantra along with the significance of Holy Ash. He agreed once while he was teaching the same to Uma Devi, her eyes fall upon a beautiful peahen dancing & lost her

7.concentration. Shiva displeased by her, cursed her to become a peahen. In order to free herself from the curse she was asked to go to Earth & do penance on him. Therefore Goddess Karpagambal worshiped the Shivalinga under the Punnai tree here where the Temple stands. Pleased by

8. her devotion, Shiva freed the Goddess from the curse & she regained her original form. This is how the place came to be known as Mylapore (Mayil - Peacock in Tamil) where Goddess Karpagambal in her peacock form worshiped the Shivalinga and freed herself from the curse. Ptolemy

9. the Greek Geographer (A.D. 90-168) has referred to Mylapore in his books as ‘Millarpha'. It was apparently a well-known sea port town with a trade. It must have also been a place of culture, as Poet #Tiruvalluvar the celebrated author of #Tirukkural, the World-famous ethical

10. treatise, lived in Mylapore nearly 2,000 years ago. The Saivite Sages of the 7th Century. St. Thomas, one of the apostles of Jesus, is reported to have visited Mylapore in the 2nd Century AD. His tomb is in the St. Thomas basilica, a beautiful cathedral about half a mile from

11.the Temple. The commonly held view is that the Temple was built in the 7th Century CE by the ruling Pallavas. Thru hymns it references to the Kapaleeshwarar Temple being located on the seashore of Mylapore. The scholarly view that accounts for the discrepancies is that the

12.original Temple was built on the shore but was destroyed by the Portuguese (present day Santhome Church) in 1566 AD. The current Temple (1.5 kms from sea) was built by the Vijayanagara kings during the 16th Century, using some remains of the Old Temple. There are fragmentary

13. inscriptions from the old Temple, still found in the present Shrine & in St. Thomas Cathedral. The existing structure of the Temple is only 300 years old. According to the Temple authorities, the old Kapaleeshwarar Temple was in Santhome Beach, which was destroyed by the

14.Portuguese. There are inscriptions dating back to 12th Century inside the Temple. The Temple is maintained & administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamilnadu. The Rath Yatra of 1968 is in the documentary film Phantom India by Louis Malle.

@Vaidyvoice @RajiIndustani @sfeksk @InfoVedic @BharatTemples_ @smittal_ips #SanatanaDharma #SanatanaSanskriti #Sattology #Chennai #Mylapore #TamilNadu

Source Images: @arunprasad72 Google and Flickr
Information Source Credit: Temple Website.

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