>Johnsoniensis at 12:35, 5 January 2019

2019-01-05T12:35:30Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2018}}
The '''Gingee Venkataramana Temple''', built in the 16th century is the largest temple in [[Gingee]]. It was built by Muthialu Nayakan (Muthyala Nayaka) (1540 - 1550 CE) and dedicated to [[Venkateshwara]].<ref name=srinivasachari>{{cite book |last= C.S |first= Srinivasachari |year= 1943 |title= History Of Gingee And Its Rulers |url= https://archive.org/stream/historyofgingeea035396mbp/historyofgingeea035396mbp_djvu.txt }}</ref>
[[File:10. The Venkataramana Temple of Gingee was also called the 1000 pillar temple.JPG|thumb|10. The Venkataramana Temple of Gingee was also called the 1000 pillar temple]]

==History==
The ruins of the Venkataramana temple is located in the outer lower fort inside the [[Gingee Fort]] complex. Parts of the temple were dismantled by different personages. In 1761 CE, when Gingee fell to French occupation, many tall graceful monolithic ornamental pillars were dismantled from this temple and taken to Pondicherry to be set around the base of the statue of [[Joseph François Dupleix|Governor Dupleix]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.liveindia.com/gingee_fort/venkatramana-temple.html |title= Venkataramana Temple Gingee |author= |date= |website= |publisher= |access-date= 28 March 2017}}</ref><ref name=srinivasachari/> Later, in 1860 CE, a Jain official in the Madras Provincial Services, Sri Baliah, facilitated the dismantling of several stone-pieces including the great stone elephants from the Gingee Venkataramana temple, to make edifices in the [[Mel Sithamur Jain Math|Sittamur Jain temple]].<ref name=srinivasachari/> The successor of Muthialu Nayaka, named Venkatappa Nayaka, had permitted a Jain merchant to build the Sittamur shrine.<ref name=srinivasachari/>

==Architecture==

The temple is a large, well-planned structure of mostly a single phase of construction.<ref name=gm>{{cite book |last= Michell |first= George |year= 1995 |title= Architecture and Art of Southern India, Volume 1 |pages= 84–86 |publisher= Cambridge University Press |isbn= 0521441102}}</ref> The temples's most admirable carvings are found in the panels located on either side of the entrance gateway depicting Ramayana scenes, Vishnu's incarnations and the puranic legend of [[samudra manthan]]. To its west lies the Anaikulam tank used for bathing elephants, further west to which are the famous tanks of Chakrakulam and the Chettikulam, fed by perennial springs which do not dry even in summer—a key feature of Senji being its water works with dams and canals constructed by [[Nayaks of Gingee|Krishnappa Nayaka]] and his immediate successors.<ref name=srinivasachari/>

The Chettikulam was built either in the 17th century by Rama Chetti<ref>{{cite journal |last= Deloche |first=Jean |title= Senji |journal= Publications de l'Institut français d'indologie |volume= 10 |pages= 181 |year= 2005 | isbn= 2855396603}}</ref> or in the 18th century by Rama Shetty under the Maratha Kingdom.<ref name=srinivasachari/> The Chakrakulam was constructed by Muthyala Nayaka, who also constructed a mandapa beside the Venkataramana temple on a road leading to the [[Sankaraparani River|VarahaNadi]] and a temple of [[Sudarshana Chakra|Chakraperumal]] on its bank.<ref name=srinivasachari/> Raja Design's cremation site is near the Chettikulam. Near the Chakrakulam is a big natural boulder with a hollow which served as the prisoner's well into which the condemned were thrown.

To the east of the temple is the Kalyanamahal, an architectural treasure piece; which according to the MacKenzie manuscripts were built by one Krishnappa Nayaka, who was possibly [[Nayaks of Gingee#The Nayaka Rulers clan|Tubaki Krishnappa Nayaka]]. The attractive monument, built in the [[Vijayanagara architecture|Vijayanagara style]], is made up of a square court surrounded by rooms with verandahs on arches with stairways, in the middle of which is an 8-storey square tower with a pyramidal roof. The temple contains a number of inscriptions in Tamil which also refer to several structures built elsewhere in the Tamil country by other nayaks.<ref name=srinivasachari/>

Shrines of Goddesses are placed in the western corners of the temple, each with a small mandapa with a pier having multiple colonettes while another shrine with Narasimha and Krishna carvings is placed away from the middle of the western wall.<ref name=gm/>

==Other structures==
The Venugopalaswami shrine is tucked away in one of the gateways of the inner fort, in a state of ruin and disrepair. Only a stone slab cut out on the side of a rock exists. It is a remarkable piece of sculpture in bold relief in which is carved a panel of Krishna, Rukmani and Satyabhama and two other female figures.<ref name=iyer>{{cite book |last= Iyer |first= P.V.Jagadisa |year= 1982 |title= South Indian Shrines: Illustrated |pages = 181–183 |publisher= Asian Educational Services |isbn = 8120601513}}</ref> The Jesuit traveller, Father
Pimenta, who visited Gingee in 1599 AD mentions it in his accounts.<ref name=srinivasachari/> The Pattabhirama shrine, (aka Pattabhiramaswami temple) situated at the foot of the Chakkali Durgam hill, also has several carvings of interest.<ref name=iyer/>

==See also==
*[[Gingee Fort]]
*[[Chenjiamman]]
*[[Senji Singavaram Ranganatha Temple]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
{{commons category|Gingee Venkataramana Temple}}
*http://dspace.wbpublibnet.gov.in:8080/jspui/bitstream/10689/12483/24/Vol5_Chapter17-19_1104-1160p.pdf

{{coord missing|Tamil Nadu}}

[[Category:Tamil Nadu under the Vijayanagar Empire]]
[[Category:Hindu temples in Viluppuram district]]
[[Category:Vishnu temples]]
[[Category:16th-century Hindu temples]]

Gingee Venkataramana Temple - Revision history

>Johnsoniensis at 12:35, 5 January 2019