To visit
Trichy, summary of the name true Tiruchirapalli, is the city of the "Crowned Rock" which abruptly dominates the town of its 80 vertiginous meters. The place made strong impression on Pierre Loti when this well-known writer visited it one century ago...
Kings Chola built there an almost impregnable fortress which was with the wire of the centuries, reinforced then named the Strong Rock'n'roll by the English at the time of colonization.
The rise is stiff by staircases fortunately rather easy that it is more pleasant to climb the morning. Upon the departure, on the level of the street, one is plunged in an intense atmosphere of religiosity. The temples follow one another of level in level, all cut in the mass of the rock. Part of the rise is carried out in tunnel. On both sides, of the closed grids open on immense obscure rooms. To especially notice a rupestral cave of Pallava time which it is advisable not to forget, on the left side, recognizable with its massive gantries, its columns worked and the sculptures in low-relief on the rock face of the bottom.
One believes being arrived at the top but there remains a good hundred steps to climb the last dome of round form, at the top of which the small temple of Ucchipillaiyar is drawn up, a form of Ganesh. Peripheral gallery, one enjoys a single sight on the city, the basins crowned downwards, a large very white church, the Kaveri river and, beyond, on its island, the famous one and gigantic temple of Ranganath Swami.
This same rock hill present, at the base of its southern face, a rupestral temple, superb artificial of Pallava time, very interesting and quite typical cave, that one reaches by small streets. It comprises a hypostyle room with, on the wall of the bottom, a large low-relief of Ganesh accompanied by two Gana.
The caves of the Rock and their ornamentations were disengaged from the granite at the 7-8 2nd century, under the reign of Mahendra Varman 1 er.
In the suburbs of Trichy, on the island of Shrirangam in the medium of Kaveri, the temple of Ranganath Swami, whose construction spread out over several centuries, of Chola in Nayak, is dedicated to the Vishnu god, in its shape of Lord of the Universe. It is an immense temple with seven concentric enclosures. The three first are occupied by dwelling houses and an animated bazaar.
Beyond the fourth enclosure, only part of the interior of the temple is accessible to the not-Hindus. There is thus favours to benefit from which is generally quoted to you to reach a terrace, point of view from where one enjoys a single sight on the 21 gopuram and the roof of gold of the Holy of Holies, where resides the god.
While going down again, one will admire, very close from there on the left, the beautiful sculptures on the walls of the small temple of Come Gopala (particular name from Krishnâ, dating the 13 2nd century. To observe the very old character of its architecture and the smoothness of the low-reliefs of déhanchées female figures, like the player of vînâ.
Further, of the mural frescos violement coloured, then, still, a small a little dusty museum but proposing bronze statues of divinities, Chola time, inter alia, as well as beautiful carved ivories.
In a withdrawn court draws up splendid a mandapa of which the pillars external are carved, in the Vijayanagar style, of pulled up horses. The riders are armed with lances of which they transpierce wild beasts. The extreme realism of these sculptures is impressive, and their seizing effect.
Further, the mandapa of the 1000 columns is also a beautiful monument.
Still in the suburbs of Trichy, in Tiruvanaikkaval, the famous temple of the Lord Shiva Jambukeshvara, the Lord of the thicket of jambosiers is. Built to the 17 2nd century, it represents the Nayak style perfectly, with its enormous gopuram pyramidal of fifteen stages with slightly concave edges. It comprises only four enclosures and seven of these gopuram but its surface remains however gigantic. The lingam of Tiruvanaikkaval, famous in all India to represent the element water, is venerated under a tree jambosier.
The jambose is also expensive in Ganesh which, in this temple, is represented vis-a-vis the Akhilandeshvari goddess, the Sovereign one of all the universe. This goddess presented an aspect so frightening formerly that the faithful ones and visitors of the temple feared it enormously. To the 8 2nd century, Shankara visited this temple and made the goddess more pleasant by offering to him a pair of earrings out of gold and diamond and installing vis-a-vis it a statue of Ganesh. This divine child made it smile, says one, for the first time and it became less terrible. It is in a side part of the temple that is the Akhilandeshvari goddess. Many women come there in pilgrimage, to ask him of the assistance.
The principal interior sanctuary, to which one does not have access, shelters the lingam immersed by the water of a source.
One can saunter a long time in the mandapa, vast rooms hypostyle where reign a semi-half-light, to attend the meal of a crowned elephant that the mahout nourishes while charging deeply in his mouth of large cereal pulp mouthfuls...
Viralimalai
With to 26 km in the south of Trichy, Viralimalai is characterized by a temple from Subrahmânya (Murugan), with the top of a beautiful flight of steps
Kudumiyamalai
At the price of a turning, which is worth the sorrow of it, by a small poor road, one arrives at Kudumiyamalai where the very interesting temple of Sikhanathaswami is, of the 7 2nd century, leaned with a large rock hill. Its visit holds pleasant surprised of two the mandapa remarkable ones, especially the second, for the quality of the sculptures, of Nayak style which equip the pillars. Unfortunately, much suffered from degradations during the 14 2nd century the Moslem invasions:
It is necessary to open a door of the back enclosure of the temple to reach the rock (southern side). One discovers there a beautiful carved low-relief of sitted Ganesh. This Ganesh de Kudumiyamalai is very famous in the area because it was engraved close to a significant inscription sanskrite of musical theory in characters Pallava grantha of the 7 2nd century. This inscription is on the right of Ganesh, however that a text corresponding was engraved in characters tamouls, at one later time, on the left.
A small building, near, gives access to a cave dug in the rock. Is there a cella with Shiva lingam, preceded by a hall and a court mandapa. The cella is kept by two beautiful dvârapâla. With ground sat pretty Ganesh Valampuri of black stone.
One also notes, in a side part of the principal temple, a representation with the ceiling of a mandapa, showing the signs of the zodiac.
The Eastern road, via Pudukkotai (or Puttukotai), allows other stops.
Pudukkotai
The agglomeration even of Pudukkotai, located at 50 km in the south of Trichy, has small but pretty museum in the district of Tirugokarna. One admires there fort good sculptures of SAPTA Mâtrikâ, dess Jyestha, etc...
Not far from there, a temple of rather large Shiva, but curiously arranged is. The recent parts constitute a juxtaposition of several mandapa, sometimes on different levels, and variable styles, more or less refined. The most interior part of the temple is dug in the rock, which is with the back. It is a cave devoted to Shiva in its form of Lingam. At the immediate outside of the cella and hall where a statue of Ganesh is, one still finds Ganesh, accompanied by the Seven Mothers, and a character who could be Virâbhadra.