Thiruporur Kandaswamy temple
| Kandaswamy Temple | |
|---|---|
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 Kandaswamy Temple
Location in Tamil Nadu
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| Geography | |
| Coordinates | 12°43′31″N 80°11′20″E / 12.72528°N 80.18889°ECoordinates: 12°43′31″N 80°11′20″E / 12.72528°N 80.18889°E |
| Country | India |
| State | Tamil Nadu |
| District | Kanchipuram |
| Location | Thiruporur |
| Culture | |
| Primary deity | Kandaswamy (Murugan) |
| Architecture | |
| Architectural styles | Dravidian architecture, Rock cut |
| History and governance | |
| Website | thiruporurmurugantemple |
Thiruporur Kandaswamy temple (or Thiruporur Murugan temple or Kanthaswamy temple) in Thiruporur, a panchayat town in Kanchipuram district in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, is dedicated to the Hindu god Murugan. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, the temple is believed to have been expanded during the 18th century with the images excavated from Thiruporur.
The temple has a five-tiered gateway tower leading to a pillared halls and the sanctum. The temple is open from 6:30 am – 12:00 pm and 5 - 8 pm. Four daily rituals and many yearly festivals are held at the temple, of which the Vaikasi Visagam celebrated during the Tamil month of Vaikasi (May - June), Kanthasasti festival and Navarathri festival being the most prominent. The temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu.
As per Hindu legend, Murugan fought with demons in three places, namely, the sea at Tiruchendur, land at Thirupparankundram and in air at Thiruporur. It is believed that sage Agastya on his way to Pothigai hills visited this place. Since Muruga won over Tharuka asuran, this place came to be Porur (por in Tamil means war) and also called by other names like Tharukapuri and Samarapuri. According to the sthala puraanam, at some point of time, the place was submerged in a deluge. A sage named Chidambara Adigal was residing in Madurai and a divine voice asked him to unearth the statue under a palm tree. He dug out the statue and built a temple around it. There is a separate shrine dedicated to him in the temple and he is given special respect during the Vaikasi Visagam festival. During the last event of the festival, he is depicted merging with the presiding deity.
The temple is believed to have been built during the Pallava era in the 10th century CE. Chidambara Swamigal, believed to be a descendant of the Sangam age poets, rebuilt the temple during the 17th century. An effort was made to dig up a room in the temple by archaeologists during 2013, which yielded only items used during rituals and not any archaeological artifact. During 2013, as many as 36 acres (15 ha) belonging to the temple located at Thandalam that was leased earlier, was recovered from the land grabbers. The recovered land was valued at ₹100 crores. In modern times, the temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu religious and charitable endowments Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu.
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