Vikramapandeeswarar Cholapuram

God

Vikramapandeeswarar, facing east

Goddess

Kuzhalvaimozhi Amman, facing east

Other Deities

Surya, Naalvar, 63 Nayanmar, Sidhdhi Vinayaka, Kanni Vinayaka, Mahalakshmi, Arumugan, Muruga with consorts, Saneeswara, Nataraja, Bhairava. Sanctum niches – Vinayaka, Dakshnimurthy, Mahavishnu, Brahma, Durga, Chandikeswara

Vikramapandeeswarar Cholapuram is a large and beautiful east-facing temple. The outer prakaram is entered through a large gopuram without the upper tiered portion. Straight ahead is the entrance to the inner prakaram where the Sanctum Sanctorum of the main deity is present. On the south side of the outer Prakaram is the separate shrine of goddess Kuzhalvaimozhi Amman. The inner Prakaram is entered through a small doorway. A large open mandapam with beautiful pillars is before the Ardha mandapam and the sanctum sanctorum of the main deity. The sanctum is a beautiful large structure typical of Chola architecture. The outer walls are wonderfully carved and the idols are all beautiful. A small doorway on the south side leads to the goddess shrine in the outer prakaram.

Holy Water (Theertham) – No information

Sacred Tree (Sthala Vriksham) – No information

History

Vikramapandeeswarar Cholapuram is an ancient temple built by Vikrama Pandya (regnal years 1180 – 1190 CE). The details of the inscriptions are not available as of now. Kulothunga Chola III had taken over the Pandya Kingdom and given it to him from Jadavaraman Veerapandya. Vikrama Pandya was thankful to him and remained loyal to Kulothunga Chola till the end. The name of the village comes from his relationship with the Chola King. The temple had been in ruins till some time back. A devotee from a nearby village took up the cause and renovated the temple with great dedication. During our visit, he had brought in a large group of saivite devotees to clean the temple.

Legend

No information

Directions

Vikramapandeeswarar Cholapuram is about 8 kilometers south of Rajapalayam on the road that goes to Tirunelveli via Shankarankovil.

Stay and Food

None locally. The closest is Rajapalayam or Shankarankovil (23 kilometers) depending on your travel plans.