Temples in Tirumananjeri

Tirumananjeri, which is in the Mayuram taluk in the Tanjavur district, is about 21 km. from the town of Mayuram and about 5 km. from Kuttalam and Tiruvelvikkudi. There are two fine Chola temples here, one dedicated to Udvahanathasvamin and the other to Madhyannesvara. I have already dealt with the Udvahanathasvamin temple in my Early Chola Temples (a.d. 907-985) (pp. 188-190).

Madhyannesvara temple

Here we are concerned with the Madhyannesvara temple. On the north wall of the central shrine of this temple, there is an inscription dated in the third year of Kulottunga III which mentions a gift of a night lamp to the temple of Tiru-Edirkolpadi Udaiyar in Kurukkai nadu, by Arasukkadiyan Tirunilakandan Seraman Tolan of Kiranur, who built the temple of stone (ARE 27 of 1904).

From a record of the seventh year of the Chola king Tribhu-vanachakravartin Rajarajadeva III, we gather that Vimappillai, the wife of Kannamangalam udaiyar and daughter of Puliyur udaiyan Adittadevaraiyan of Milalai nadu, gave money and lands for building the shrine of ‘Tirukkamakkottam udaiya nachchiyar’, a monastery (gtthai) called after Alalasundarar for the use of Pugalivendar of Pundi, and for offerings, lamps, etc. (ARE 28 of 1914).

Amman shrine

Thus this temple is a foundation of the third year of Kulottunga III, and should have come into existence before a.d. 1181. The Amman shrine was added before the seventh year of his successor Rajaraja III (a.d. 1223).