Tirtha Atlas

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

1122 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
High medieval · Hindu · India

Tiruvallesvarar Temple

Tiruvalithayam (Padi), Chennai, Tamil Nadu · 13.1000°, 80.1830°

Shiva (Tiruvalleswarar), with Parvati as JagathambikaiCholaDravidianPaadal Petra Sthalam
Sacred since
1000 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
11th c. (Chola)
Chola

History & significance

A Shiva temple in the Padi neighbourhood of Chennai, revered in the 7th-century Tevaram and counted among the 275 Paadal Petra Sthalams. Fourteen Chola inscriptions survive here, and it is one of only three temples where Guru Bhagavan is said to have worshipped.

Sthala katha — the legend

Sage Bharadwaja is said to have worshipped the deity in the form of a sparrow called valiyan, which gave the temple its name.

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Related sites

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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