Kalyanasundareswarar Temple

Getting there

• By air

  The nearest airport to Mayiladuthurai is Tiruchirappalli International Airport, about 136 km away, with domestic and international flights.

• By train

  Mayiladuthurai Junction is the railway station in Mayiladuthurai town, on the main line between Chennai and Tiruchirappalli.

• By road

  NH-32, the East Coast Road from Chennai to Thoothukudi, gives the region road connectivity.

Why devotees come here

Kalyanasundareswarar Temple stands in Thirumanancheri village, near the Cauvery River in Mayiladuthurai district. It is one of the Paadal Petra Sthalams, the Shiva temples praised in the Tevaram hymns. Temple tradition says Shiva married Devi Kokilambal here.

The presiding deity is Udhvaganathar, also called Arulvallanathar, a self-manifested lingam. His consort is Kokhila, known as Devi Kokilambal. It belongs to the Paadal Petra Sthalams, the group of Shiva shrines that the Nayanars Appar and Sambandar sang about in their Tevaram hymns.

In the legend, Parvati emerged from the fire of a sacrifice held by the sage Bharata, and then married Shiva at Thirumanancheri. Temple tradition holds that Shiva appeared here as Kalyana Sundarar and married Devi Kokilambal. Devotees believe that worship here can help overcome obstacles and delays in marriage, and rituals of the divine marriage are performed daily.

The temple was first built of brick in the 7th century CE, at the time of Appar and Sambandar. It appears to have been rebuilt in stone around the fourth regnal year of Parantaka I. Its inscriptions include two of Parantaka I and three of Rajaraja I. The three of Rajaraja I record a gift by Sembiyan Mahadevi, mother of Uttama Chola. The outer-wall sculptures appear to date to Uttama Chola's reign. The main gateway tower, the rajagopuram, has five tiers.

Tips for your visit

• Thirumanancheri is a village near the Cauvery River, while Mayiladuthurai is a special grade municipality and the district headquarters town.
• On the outer walls of the sanctum, look for Dakshinamurti on the south, Lingodbhavar on the west and Brahma on the north.
• Mayiladuthurai Junction has five platforms, and the town lies 256 km from Chennai, the state capital.

Questions people ask