Sri Sarabheswarar Temple — Attraction in Tamil Nadu

As per inscriptions found in the south wall of the temple, the shrine was constructed by the Chola king Kulothunga Chola III as a memorial of his successful North Indian campaign.[3] The inscriptions indicate the contribution towards the construction of the Nataraja shrine and the mukhamandapa. Some of the other temples that figure in the inscriptions are the Nataraja temple in Chidambaram, the Ekambareswarar templeat Kanchipuram, the Meenakshi temple at Madurai, the Mahalingeswarar Temple at Thiruvidamaruthur and the Brihadisvara Temple at Thanjavur.[5] The inscriptions in the shrine of the presiding deity is similar to the one in the outer gopuram (gateway tower), which indicates the building of the temple by Kulottunga-Choladeva. While it is unclear which Kulottunga it is, scholars have placed it at 1176 CE, which is closer to the reign of Kulothunga Chola III, who is believed to have been the last powerful Chola king. There are four inscriptions from Kulothunga Chola in Grantha script. The inscription 189 of 1907, the one on the southern wall of the central shrine, is damaged and mentions Arya Sri-Somanatha. Inscription 190 on the same wall indicates the building operations of Kulothunga Chola. 191, at the entrance of outer gopura, is a duplicate of the 190. On the same gopura, inscription 192 indicates record of king Kulothunga Chola. There are two inscriptions in Tamil from the period of Jatavarman Tribuvanachakravarthin Parakrama Pandyadeva registered by Epigraphy Department in 1911. One of them, 159, registers a contract between the residents of Tribhuvanavirapuram and Kulamangalanadu, who were urkaval (watchmen) of the village. On the same wall, the inscription numbered 160, records a similar contract in the presence of chief Udaiyar Kulasekharadeva.[1]The main deity of the temple is Shiva lingam in the form of Kampaheswarar.

There is a separate shrine for Sarabeswarar,[6] a fusion of man, eagle and lion - the deity is believed to have relieved the devas (celestial deities) from the fury of Vishnu in the form of Narasimha after he slayed Hiranyakasipu.[3] The sculpture of Sharbeshwaramurti in this Shiva temple is seen with three legs, with body and face of a lion and a tail. It has four human arms, the right upper hand holds axe, noose is held in the lower right hand, the deer in the upper left hand and fire in the lower left hand. Narasimha is shown with eight arms, flaying and struggling under Sharbeshwaramurti’s feet.[7] The shrine has sculptures of Sridevi and Bhudevi, the consorts...

This unique temple of Sarabeswarar is located 7 kms away from Kumbakonam and 4.5 Kilometers from Thirunageswaram. Lord Shiva is worshiped as "Kampahareswarar" as he removed the trembling of a king who was being haunted by a Brahmarakshasa. It was built by Kulothunga Chola III and is considered the last of the four masterpieces built during the Medieval Chola era.

The temple has a shrine for Sharabha, a depiction of Shiva, a part-lion and part-bird beast in Hindu mythology, who, according to Sanskrit literature, is eight-legged and more powerful than a lion or an elephant, The temple is considered in the line of Brihadisvara Temple at Thanjavur, Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple and Airavatesvara temple, with the trio forming the Great Living Chola Temples.

People pray to the lord Sarabeswara to relieve from illness, worries, threats from enemies, adverse effects caused by planets.

Narasimhavathaaram by Lord Vishnu was taken to destroy the asura Hiranyan, who was filled with haughtiness proclaiming himself as God. Asura samharam was over. But Narasimha’s anger didn’t reduce. The Universe couldn’t bear His anger. The ‘devas’appealed to Lord Shiva. To appease Narasimha’s anger, Lord Shiva assumed the form of a bird Sarabha. This form comprises the forms of an animal, human and bird – the face of a yali, human body and the form of a bird. The form of Narasimha consisted of a human body and the face of a lion. Kaali and Durga became the wings of Saraba. Lord Sarabeswara lifted Narasimha to space, drew out the asura blood (Hiranyan’s) and pacified him. He took him to space because even if a drop of asura blood fell on the earth, it would lead to the emergence of many asuras. So, Lord Sarabeswara took Narasimha above the gravitational sphere to prevent his blood falling on earth. The form of Sarabeswara comprises four Gods – Shiva, Kaali, Durga and Vishnu Those praying to Lord Kambakareswarar (Shiva) are blessed with relief from neurology problems, shivering, meaningless fear as mentioned by the purohit...

Thirubhuvanam Sri Sarabeshwarar temple @ Kumbakonam.

Also the main Sarabeswarar temple area photos uploaded .. the pillars and the sculptures on these pillars are just magnificent ..

3 deities on the outer walls ( not inside garbagraha) are also uploaded .. see the divine beauty on the face of Gods..

Photos from personal collection from last fortnight visit ..

PART 1 & PART 2 : Repeated for reference & details only :

built by medieval period Cholas in Thirubhuvanam village just 7 km from the temple city Kumbakonam which forms part of the famous .. Sri Kampahareswar Temple temple built by Kulothunga Chola III ( medieval chola period) is a very big temple and known for beautiful sculptures and magnificent temple lay out ..

Sharabha ( a depiction of Shiva) , a part-lion and part-bird beast in Hindu mythology, who according to Sanskrit literature, is eight-legged and more powerful than a lion or an elephant, possessing the ability to clear a valley in...