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Kapaleeswarar Temple at Mylapore in Chennai is dedicated to Lord
Shiva. The main deity Shiva is worshipped as Kapaliswara and Goddess
Parvathi is worshipped as Karpagambal here. The name Kapaliswara is
derived from "Kapalam" meaning forehead.
It is said that the Lord appeared before his consort Uma holding the
Kapalam shaped begging bowl. It is also believed that the Goddess
Sri Karpagambal worshipped the Lord in the form a Peacock ("Mayil"
in Tamil). So the place got the name Mylapore. The speciality of
this temple is that, all the 63 Nayanars (devotees of Lord Shiva)
are taken out in procession around the main streets, at the same
time.
The seven storeyed tower of this temple which are illuminated during
the festivals and the tank in the front with floating diyas are real
treat to the thousands of devotees who throng here. The Teppam or
float festival in the large temple tank, and the biweekly Pradosham
festival also draw huge crowds here.
Mylapore Kapaleeswarar Temple Photo Gallery
The Kapaleeswarar Temple is a delightful introduction in Dravidian
temple architecture. There are some fragmentary inscriptions of 1250
AD which were damaged in 1566 by the Portugese and the original
temple was demolished. The present temple was built by the
Vijayanagar Kings in the 16th century.
The saint poet Thiruvalluvar lived here. This shrine is a must-see
destination for the pilgrims.
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