Sathya Vageeswarar Temple, Kalakkad
| Sathya Vageeswarar Temple | |
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 Location in Tamil Nadu
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| Geography | |
| Coordinates | 8°30′59″N 77°33′00″E / 8.51639°N 77.55000°ECoordinates: 8°30′59″N 77°33′00″E / 8.51639°N 77.55000°E |
| Country | India |
| State | Tamil Nadu |
| District | Tirunelveli |
| Location | Kalakkad |
| Culture | |
| Sanctum |
Sathya Vageeswarar(Shiva) Gomathi (Parvathi) |
| Architecture | |
| Architecture | Dravidian architecture |
Sathya Vageeswarar(Shiva)
Sathya Vageeswarar Temple in Kalakkad, a village in Tirunelveli district in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. It is located 30 km from Tirunelveli. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, the temple has three precincts. Shiva is worshipped as Sathya Vageeswarar and his consort Parvathi as Gomathi.
A granite wall surrounds the temple, enclosing all its shrines. The temple has a 135 ft (41 m) gateway tower containing 1,500 stucco images. The temple was originally built by Pandyas during the 13th century and Nayak kings commissioned pillared halls and major shrines of the temple during the 15-16th century. The temple has artistic sculptures representative of Nayak art. The temple has close to 200 paintings in the temple depicting Indian epic tales. The temple also has a granary made of masonry, which is believed to be commissioned during the 13th century. There is a hall of musical pillars, commissioned by the king of Travancore, Boothala Veera Udaya Marthanda Varman during the 16th century.
The temple is open from 6 am - 12 pm and 4-8 pm on all days except during festival days when it is open the full day. Four daily rituals and three yearly festivals are held at the temple, of which the Vaikasi Visakam festival during the Tamil month of Vaikasi (May - June) being the most prominent. The temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu.
Inscriptions from the temple from the 15th century indicate that the place was called Cholanadu Vallipuram and Vanavan Naadu. The inscriptions also indicate that the temple worship services and gifts to the temple were endowed by Marthanda Varman, while he was residing at Virapandiyan Palace. The temple was originally built by Pandyas during the 13th century. The Vijayanagar Empire and Nayak kings commissioned pillared halls and major shrines of the temple during the 15-16th century. The temple has artistic sculptures representative of Nayak art. There are lot of paitings in the temple depicting Indian epic tales. There is also an image of the king of Travancore, Boothala Veera Udaya Marthanda Varman from the 16th century. He is believed to have commissioned the musical pillared halls in the front portion of the temple. In modern times, the temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu. A plaque in front the temple installed on 12 December 1911 indicates the coronation of king George V, when India was ruled by the British.
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