The thought of the sacred town of Chidambaram immediately brings to mind the famed Siva temple dedicated to Nataraja. Many visitors to this historic place are unaware of another ancient temple nearby dedicated to Goddess Kali and known as the Thillai Kali Amman temple. The Kali temple is an old one, dating at least to the 13th century AD. It is this goddess who protects Chidambaram, and a pilgrimage to this ancient town is incomplete without a visit to this temple. The traditional story (Sthala Puranam) associated with this temple is that there was a dance contest between Siva and Kali during which Siva performed the Urdhva Tandava or lifting a leg vertically upwards. Kali acknowledged defeat and settled down at the place where this temple is situated.
The main sanctum enshrining Thillai Amman faces west. This Goddess, also called Brahma Chamundi, is seen in a benign form in a standing pose with four arms and four heads which are said to represent the four Vedas. On being worshipped by Brahma, this deity, who was fierce, calmed down. Close by is the east-facing sanctum, also for Goddess Kali, worshipped as Thillai Kali Amman who is seen in a ferocious form, dressed in white with vermillion (kumkum) applied all over.
The sanctum for the processional deities (Utsava-murti) has the image of Thillai Amman with four faces. There are small shrines for Chandikeshwara and Bhairava in the temple enclosure while the niches on the outer walls of the main sanctum house the images of Durga, Brahmasvarupini, Nagavaishnavarupini, Kadambavana Dakshinarupini and Veenai Vidyambikai.
There are many inscriptions found in this temple which reveal that the present shrine was constructed in the reign of Kadava Kopperunjina, a valiant chieftain of the 13th century AD who belonged to the ancient Pallava lineage and who was a challenge to the Cholas. In his inscriptions, the deity is known as Pidariyar, Thillai-vanam-Udaiya-Parameshwari and Thillai Thiruchittrambala Mahakali. Incidentally, Thillai is the ancient name of Chidambaram.
Chithra Madhavan
cityexpresschn@gmail.com
The writer is a historian who focuses on temple architecture