Sri Kambarajapuram Shiva temple, Kambarajapuram

Address

Sri Kambarajapuram Shiva temple Kambarajapuram, Trivallam town, Vellore district Tamilnadu

Diety

Shiva

Introduction

A half-buried stone structure surrounded by thick vegetation may not attract tourists to this remote village of Tiruvallam in Vellore district. Inscriptions on the slabs of the ruined structure, show that king Vikrama Chola (1118-1135), a Chola king who ruled the region during the 12th century, had donated generously to the temple.Situated among the paddy fields in Kambarajapuram, a remote village barely a kilometer from Tiruvallam town, the temple is in ruins. Despite lying close to the historic Shiva temple in Tiruvallam, this one is today a neglected site.The temple is known as `KaruppuKoil’ because of the black colour of the rock used for its construction. “The most interesting aspect of the temple is that it has beautiful `Makara Thoranas,“ (Crocodile arches). The structure must have been there since the 10th century. As the ruined temple doesn’t belong to either the state archaeology department or the Archaeological Survey of India(ASI), no one takes care of it. “It has been more than five decades since a Pooja was performed here. There is no sign of worship. It’s a picture of ruins. If we don’t take care of it now, even portions that survived will disappear soon.