Thillai Nataraja Temple, also referred as the Chidambaram Nataraja Temple, is a Hindu temple dedicated to Nataraja, the form of Shiva as the lord of dance (cosmic dancer). This temple is located in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India. This temple has ancient roots and a Shiva shrine existed at the site when the town was known as Thillai.Pal 1988, p. 19 Chidambaram, the name of the city literally means "stage of consciousness". The temple is commonly called "Kovil" (The Temple) in Tamil Shaivism Tradition. The architecture symbolizes the connection between the arts and spirituality, creative activity and the divine.Chidambaram, Encyclopædia Britannica The temple wall carvings display all the 108 karanas from the Natya Shastra by Bharata Muni, and these postures form a foundation of Bharatanatyam, an Indian classical dance. it is the only Shiva temple common to both the Pancha Sabha Thalam and the Pancha Bhuta Thalam.
The present temple was renovated into current form in the 10th century when Chidambaram was one of the main cities of Chola dynasty. As per the Thiruvalangadu Copper plate and Thiruvilandur Copper plate inscriptions, the Golden roof of the shrine was constructed by Parantaka Chola I during 9th CE. The temple is mentioned in 7th CE Thevaram and Thiruvasagam Hymns making it older than Medieval Cholas. Cholas revered Nataraja as their family deity,Harle 1994, pp. 292–304, 311–313 as per Periyapuranam Cholas got crowned in this temple. This temple has been damaged, repaired, renovated and expanded through the 2nd millennium. Most of the temple's surviving plan, architecture and structure is from the late 12th and early 13th centuries, with later additions in similar style.Harle 1994, p. 321 While Shiva as Nataraja is the primary deity of the temple, it reverentially presents major themes from Shaktism, Vaishnavism, and other traditions of Hinduism. The Chidambaram temple complex, for example, has the earliest known Amman or Devi temple in South India, a pre-13th-century Surya shrine with chariot, shrines for Ganesha, Murugan and Vishnu, one of the earliest known Shiva Ganga sacred pools, large mandapas for the convenience of pilgrims (choultry, ambalam or sabha) and other monuments.Harle 1994, pp. 321-323Pal 1988, p. 36 Shiva himself is presented as the Nataraja performing the Ananda Tandava ("Dance of Delight") in the golden hall of the shrine Pon Ambalam.Ca Ve 1985
The temple is one of the five elemental lingas in the Shaivism pilgrimage tradition, and considered the subtlest of all Shiva temples (Kovil) in Hinduism. It is also a site for performance arts, including the annual Natyanjali dance festival on Maha Shivaratri.
Etymology Chidambaram is one of the many temple towns in the state which is named after the groves, clusters or forests dominated by a particular variety of a tree or shrub and the same variety of tree or shrub sheltering the presiding deity.Reddy, 2013, p. 10 The town used to be called Thillai, following Thillaivanam, derived from the mangrove of Tillai trees (Excoecaria agallocha) that grow here and the nearby Pichavaram wetlands.T. A. Gopinatha Rao, Kalyan Kumar Dasgupta. (1971). Elements of Hindu iconography, Volume 1, Part 1. pp.43
The word Chidambaram comes from the Tamil word Chitrambalam (also spelled Chithambalam) meaning "wisdom atmosphere". The roots are citt or chitthu means "consciousness or wisdom", while ampalam means "atmosphere". This composite word comes from its association with Shiva Nataraja, the cosmic dancer and the cultural atmosphere for arts. The word Chidambaram is translated by James Lochtefeld as "clothed in thought".
The town and temple name appears in medieval Hindu texts by various additional names such as Kovil (lit. "the temple"), Pundarikapuram, Vyagrapuram, Sirrampuram, Puliyur and Chitrakuta. Additional names for Chidambaram in Pallava era and North Indian texts include Kanagasabainathar, Ponnambalam, Brahmastpuri and Brahmapuri.
Location The Nataraja temple in Chidambaram is located in the southeastern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is about north of the Kollidam River (Kaveri), west from the coast of Bay of Bengal, and south of Chennai. The closest major airport is about north in Pondicherry (IATA: PNY). The National Highway 32 (old numbering: NH-45A) passes through Chidambaram. The Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation and private companies operate services connecting it to major cities in the state. The site is linked to the Indian Railways with daily express trains to South Indian cities.
Chidambaram is a temple town, with the Nataraja complex spread over within a nearly square courtyard in the center. Its side roads are aligned to the east–west, north–south axis. It has double walls around its periphery with gardens. It has had entrance gateways on all four sides.
History
The Nataraja temple has ancient roots, early textual evidence, such as those of the Sangam tradition, suggest a temple existed here along with Madurai in ancient times, but the town is not named Chidambaram in these pre-5th-century texts. The earliest mention of "dancing god of Chidambaram" as Shiva is found in 6th- and early-7th-century texts by Appar and Sambadar. The Suta Samhita embedded inside Sri Kanda Puranam and variously dated between 7th and 10th century mentions the Chidambaram dance. Likely following the temple architecture tradition that is found all over South India from at least the 5th century when many older brick and wooden temples were being replaced by more lasting temples from cut stone as the building blocks in dozens of places across South India. The surviving Nataraja temple has a structure that is traceable to the early Chola Dynasty. Chidambaram was the early capital of this dynasty, and Shiva Nataraja was their family deity. The Chidambaram temple town remained important to the Cholas, albeit with increasing competition from other temple towns when Rajaraja Chola I moved the capital to Thanjavur, built a new city and the massive Brihadeeswarar Temple dedicated to Shiva in the early 11th century, which is now a world heritage site.Thanjavur, Encyclopædia Britannica
Nataraja Shiva and his "dance of bliss" is an ancient Hindu art concept. It is found in various texts such as Tatva Nidhi which describes seven types of dance and their spiritual symbolism, Kashyapa Silpa which describes 18 dance forms with iconographic details and design instructions, as well as Bharata's ancient treatise on performance arts Natya Shastra which describes 108 dance postures among other things. Reliefs and sculptures of Nataraja have been found across the Indian subcontinent, some dating to the 6th century and earlier such as in Aihole and Badami cave temples.
The earliest historically verifiable Shiva temple at Chidambaram is traceable in inscriptions that date to the rule of Aditya Chola I in the early 10th century, and far more during the rule of the 10th-century Chola king Parantaka Chola I. For them, the dancing Shiva was the kula-nayaka (family guide or deity) and Chidambaram was the capital they built.Dehejia 1990, pp. 97-101 These inscriptions and texts from this period suggest that the significance of the Agama texts and Shaiva Bhakti movement was strengthening within the Chola leadership and thought.
The copper plate inscriptions of Parantaka I (c. 907–955 CE) describe him as the "bee at the lotus feet of Shiva" who built the golden hall for Shiva, with Chit-sabha, Hema-sabha, Hiranya-sabha and Kanaka-sabha (all mandapam, pillared pilgrim rest places). He is referred to as "Pon veinda Perumal", which means "one who covered with gold" the Chit-sabha of Chidambaram. Both Aditya I and his Chola successor Parantaka I were active supporters of arts and temple building. They converted many older brick and wooden temples into more lasting temples from cut stone as the building blocks in dozens of places across South India.
Raja Raja Chola I (985–1013 CE) embarked on a mission to recover the hymns of the 63 Nayanmars after hearing short excerpts of the Tevaram in his court.Culter 1987, p. 50 He sought the help of Nambiyandar Nambi, who was a priest in a temple.Cort 1998, p. 178 It is believed that by divine intervention Nambi found the presence of scripts, in the form of cadijam leaves half eaten by white ants in a chamber inside the second precinct in the temple. The brahmanas (Dikshitars) in the temple are supposed to have disagreed with the king by saying that the works were too divine, and that only by the arrival of the "Naalvar" (the four saints)—Appar, Sundarar, Tirugnanasambandar and Manickavasagar would they allow for the chambers to be opened. Rajaraja, however, created idols of them and prepared for them to be brought to the temple through a procession. but Rajaraja is said to have prevailed.Vasudevan 2003, pp. 109-110 Rajaraja thus became known as Tirumurai Kanda Cholan meaning one who saved the Tirumurai.
In another version of the story, Rajaraja is said to have experienced a dream from lord Shiva telling Rajaraja that the hymns in Thillai Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram are in a state of destruction and to recover the remaining hymns from the chambers. The brahmanas (Dikshitars) in the temple, however, are supposed to have disagreed with the king by saying that the works were too divine to be accessed, and that only by the arrival of the 63 Nayanmars would they allow for the chambers to be opened. Rajaraja, devising a plan, consecrated idols of each of them and prepared for them to be brought into the temple through a procession. It is said that the 63 idols are still present in the Thillai Nataraja Temple. When the vault was opened, Rajaraja is said to have found the room infested with white ants, and that the hymns were salvaged as much as possible.
The temple, according to inscriptions found in South India and Southeast Asia, was also historic recipient of a precious jewel from the king of Angkor who built the Angkor Wat through Chola king Kulothunga, who submitted it to the temple in 1114 CE. Kulothunga I and his son expanded the Chidambaram Nataraja temple sixfold.
Chidambaram temple thrived during the Chola dynasty rule through mid-13th century, along with the later Shiva-based Thanjavur and Gangaikondacholapuram capitals, as well as Vishnu-based Srirangam temple towns. Its facilities infrastructure was expanded. Naralokaviran, the general of king Kulothunga Chola I was responsible for building the steps that lead to Sivaganga water pool, a goddess shrine, a shrine for child saint Thirugnana Sambanthar, temple gardens and a pilgrim road network in and around Chidambaram. He constructed a hall for recitation of Tevaram hymns and engraved the hymns in copper plates.Dehejia 1990, pp. 99-101 The thousand pillar choultry, with friezes narrating Hindu texts, was built in the late 12th century. Between the second half of the 12th century and the early 13th century, the Chola kings added colorful and high gopura stone gateways as easily identifiable landmarks, starting with the western gopura. Thereafter, about mid 13th century, the Pandya dynasty ended the Chola dynasty. The Hindu Pandyas were liberal supporters of Chidambaram temple, along with other Shiva and Vishnu temples, just like the Chola. Sundara Pandya added the huge eastern gopura at Chidambaram, beginning the colossal gateway tradition. Most of the structure and plans currently seen in the Chidambaram complex, including the mandapas with their pillar carvings, the various shrines with polished granite sculptures, the sacred water pool and the early gopurams are from the 12th and 13th century, attributed to the late Chola and early Pandya kings.Harle 1994, pp. 321-326 with figures 252-256
Invasions