Thanjavur, Rice Bowl of Tamil Nadu

  • General Information

    Other Name:
    Tanjore
    District:
    Thanjavur
    State:
    Tamil Nadu
    Country:
    India
    Area:
    30 Sq. Km.
    Language Spoken:
    Tamil and English
    Long Distance Code:
    +91-4362
    Importance:
    Best Time To Visit:
    November to February and In May-June to witnees the 9 day annual festival.

  • Description:

    This erstwhile capital of the Chola Kings, this small town of Thanjavur is famous today for its beautifully architectured temples and the amazing bronze works it creates. It is centre for the classical arts like dance and music.
    According to a legend this temple town was named after a demon called Thanjan, who was slayed here and the Gods granted his last wish of naming the town after him. Thanjavur came into prominence only during the reign of the Chola Kings. There are as many as 74 temples in this town each having its own charateristics. The architecture and the paintings of Thanjavur were encouraged by the Chola Kings.

  • Location:

    Around 345 kms from the state capital of Chennai, Thanjavur is around 50 kms from Trichy and is most famous for its Brihadeeswara Temple.

Sri Brihadisvara Temple

Sri Brihadisvara TempleBuilt by the great Chola king, Raja Raja I in the 10th century AD, this temple is an outstanding example of the Chola architecture. Dedicated to Nandi, the bull and the mount of Lord Shiva, it has a gigantic stuatue of the diety made of granite rock. The unique feature of this temple is that although it is 216 feet high, its shadow never falls on the ground! Guarding the inner shrine of the temple is the gigantic statue of Nandi, the Bull, while the walls of the sanctum are covered, with the wall paintings of Chola and Nayak periods, comparable to the famous Ajanta cave frescoes.
There is a beautiful palace right next to the temple built by the Marathas and the Nayaks in the 16th century which is worth visiting for its magnificent masonry. The palace houses the Mannar Saroboji Saraswathi Mahal Library, Art Gallery and Sangeetha Mahal. The library has one of the most important oriental manuscripts collections, in India. Established around 1700 AD, the library contains a collection of over 44,000 palm leaf, and paper manuscripts in Indian and European languages. Over eighty per cent of its manuscripts are in Sanskrit, many on palm leaves, some very rare or even unique. The Tamil works includes treatises on medicine, and commentaries on works from the Sangam period.

Temples near Thanjavur

Temples near ThanjavurThanjavur being the city of temples, there are many temples also in the vicinity of the town. The Gangaikondacholapuram temple lies right next to Kumbakonam. The son of Chola king Raja Raja, Rajendra Chola, had built the temple on the lines of the Big Temple of Thanjavur. Till date even the ruins of the temple are visited for the splendid specimens of the Chola sculpture. Similarly the sculptures at the Nageswaraswami temple of Kumbakonam and the temple of Airavateswara of Darasuram will not fail to sweep you off your feet. The artistic carvings are amazing. The visit to the Gangaikondacholapuram temple, Nageswaraswami Temple and the Airavateswara Temple is mandatory to complete the trip to Thanjavur.
At a distance of 13 kilometers from Thanjavur is the Thiruvaiyaru associated with saint Thyagaraja. While at Thiruvaiyaru do visit the celebrated Panchanatheswara temple, which has been dedicated to Lord Shiva. In fact Thiruvaiyaru also happens to be the host for the eight-daylong annual Thyagaraja Aradhana music Festival in the month of January.
From Thanjavur at a distance of 36 kilometers at Kumbakonam are the semi erotic sculptures at the Sarangapani, Kumbeswarar, Nageswara and Ramaswamy temples attract many tourists. Kumbakonam is the venue of the magnificent Mahamaham festival that is celebrated once in every 12 years.