Information of Mahabalipuram Temple (Shore Temple), Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu

The Mahabalipuram Temple also known as the Shore Temple is situated at Mahabalipuram which is a village in the southern Chennai city in the state of Tamil Nadu. The temple is popularly known by the name of Shore temple owing to the reason that the structure commands a view of the Bay of Bengal's shore. The temple has actually been constructed on a peninsula that projects out into the Bay of Bengal in Mahabalipuram.

Mahabalipuram Temple (Shore Temple) Religious Significance

The Shore temple is supposed to be amongst the most multifaceted kind of temples within the country including two places of worships that are positioned at the back of each other. The temple complex is known to house three temples among which one is large and the other two comparatively small in size. The reigning deity of the temple is none other than the popular revered Hindu god Lord Shiva. One of the shrines faces the east side and the other west side. An interesting aspect is that these two mentioned places of worship are divided by another one that is the third place of worship. The initial two places of worship are Saiva and the third one being Visnava that has a representation of Lord Anantasavi made out of live rock. Here, Vishnu, one of the supreme Hindu gods can be observed to be lying on a serpent chesterfield and is identified as the Stalasayana Perumal.

Mahabalipuram Temple (Shore Temple) Mythology & History

According to the legends, the Shore temple was formerly included among the famous Seven Pagodas of Mahabalipuram, the origin of which was in mythical words. A prince named Hiranyakasipu rejected the request of worshipping the Hindu god Vishnu. Prahlada, who was the son of the prince revered and worshipped Vishnu and as a result disapproved of his father's disbelief or faith in the god. Prahlada was driven out by his father who later gave up and permitted his son to come back home. An argument took place between the son and the father regarding the existence of Vishnu and his nature. Prahlada stated his belief that Vishnu had his presence everywhere, even in their home's walls. Fuming with anger to such an explanation, Hiranyakasipu kicked on a pillar and to his astonishment Vishnu appeared in a man's shape with a head of a lion and killed him. As a result, Prahlada was crowned as the king and later was blessed with a son called Bali who was the one to have established Mahabalipuram on this location.

Mahabalipuram Temple (Shore Temple) Architectural Significance

The temple depicts Dravidian pattern of architecture and was constructed by Narasimhavarman II of the Pallava dynasty during the 8th century. The temple was built at the time when the Bay of Bengal's coast was considered to be the dynasty's official trading port. It has been recently learnt that the architectural pattern of the Shore temple was carried on by the rulers of the Chola dynasty who reigned over Tamil Nadu after overpowering the Pallavas. The temple was constructed with huge granite blocks. The temple was labelled as UNESCO World Heritage Site way back in the year 1984 and is counted amongst the ancient structural temples made of stone in South India. The temple faces the east direction based on the logic that the sunrays keep shining on the presiding deity that is the Shiva Lingam in the temple. The temple is five storied and has the structure similar to a pyramid which is 60 feet tall and is built on a raised square shaped podium of 15 metres.