Sri Murugan Temple, Salavankuppam

Address

Sri Murugan Temple, Salavankuppam Mamallapuram, Kanchipuram – 603 104

Diety

Murugan

Introduction

The 2,200-year-old Murugan Temple near Mamallapuram has been damaged by social enemies and the stone fence has been broken . The temple of Lord Murugan is found all over Tamil Nadu. But this one is the Murugan Temple Sangam period. As such, its structure remains unchanged and is found only in Salavankuppam near Mamallapuram. The only temple that mentions the brick construction mentioned in the Sanga literature is the ‘SalavanKuppaMurugan Temple’ The temple has been damaged by unidentified persons. As a sign of contemporary construction in the temple which was already damaged by natural factors such as wind and rain and Sun.The foundation stone was laid planted during the early Pallava period.

Puranic Significance

Near Mamallapuram is the village of SalvanKuppam. Here are the Pallava period Tiger Temple and the Pallava period cave temples called Athiranandeswaram. Nearby is the Murugan Temple. The temple was buried in the soil till 2004. The temple was exposed by the tsunami.Earlier, an inscription found in the area in 1972 mentions ‘Nivantham given to the Murugan temple by Kulothunga III’.The much-sought-after Murugan Temple was unearthed during the 2004 tsunami. The three-line inscription on the rock here conveys rare messages.The inscription of KulothungaChola III near the Tiger Cave and the inscription of the newly emerged Third Rashtra Krishna also give references to the Subramanian Temple there.But since the Murugan temple is not nearby, they are researching the surrounding places. A rock, a Chola coin and some bricks were found nearby.And this place is higher than other places. Due to this, the foundation of the temple has been excavated here.The hall was excavated in the first phase and the vestibule in the second study. No inscription has been found here after the inscription of KulothungaChola III.So it is believed that the temple may have been destroyed after that period.This is the oldest temple found in Tamil Nadu. This town is mentioned in the inscriptions as Tiruvilichil. The development of the temple is not known as it has undergone many changes during the different periods. A vale was discovered during the second phase of excavation. It was made of stone. The flagpole of the temple is found at the place. This is a rare find of the temple.Despite being a protected symbol, the Pallavas with Sanskrit Granth inscriptions did not provide the same protection to the cave temples as the contemporary temple with Tamil inscriptions nearby.Pillars with Tamil inscriptions are also scattered. The temple and the stone work were the source of the construction of the Sanga period temple. . Archaeologists are still struggling to gather enough evidence before reaching the final conclusions about the status of the temple.They have said that they will soon put the broken fence together. Considered one of the oldest temples in the Indian subcontinent, historians attribute the damage to the negligence of the Central Archaeological Survey.

Special Features

The temple of Lord Murugan is found all over Tamil Nadu. However, the structure of the temple remains the same as it was during the Sangam period and is found only at Salavankuppam near Mamallapuram.