Tirtha Atlas

The sacred geography of the Indic world — every site mapped, dated, storied, and cited.

1122 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
Early medieval · Hindu · India

Nageswaraswamy Temple (Kudanthai Keezhkottam)

Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu · 10.9604°, 79.3821°

Shiva (Nageswarar, lord of the serpent king), consort PeriyanayagiCholaEarly Chola with Pallava influencesPaadal Petra Sthalam
Sacred since
800 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
9th c. (Aditya Chola)
Chola

History & significance

Reckoned among the earliest of all Chola temples, raised in the 9th century under Aditya Chola in Kumbakonam. It is a Paadal Petra Sthalam revered by the Nayanars in the Tevaram.

Sthala katha — the legend

During Rajendra Chola's Ganges expedition the army is said to have brought back a beautiful Vinayagar image, installed here as Gangai Vinayagar.

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1003–1010 CE
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c. 1035 CE
Airavatesvara Temple
Darasuram, Kumbakonam · India
mid-12th c. CE
Meenakshi Amman Temple
Madurai · India
current structure largely 16th–17th c.
Ranganathaswamy Temple
Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli · India
built up 10th–17th c.; Rajagopuram 1987
Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram
Chidambaram · India
core 10th c.; expanded to 13th c.

Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-27 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Chola