kids encyclopedia robot

Annamalaiyar Temple facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Annamalaiyar Temple is a Tamil Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Shiva, located at the base of Annamalai Hill in the town of Tiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu, India.It is significant to the Hindu section of Saivism as one of the temples associated with the five elements, and specifically to the element of fire, or Agni. The main deity of the temple is Arunachaleshwarar (Shiva) and his consort, Unnamalai Amman(Parvati).

The temple complex covers 10 hectares, and is one of the largest in India. It has four gateway towers known as "gopurams". The tallest is the eastern tower, with 11 stories and a height of 66 metres (217 ft), making it one of the tallest temple towers in India.

The Karthigai Deepam festival is celebrated during the day of the full moon between November and December, and a huge beacon is lit at the top of the hill.The event is witnessed by millions of pilgrims from different parts of Tamil Nadu.

Images for kids

  • see caption

    The Annamalai hills with temple towers in the foreground

  • Gateway tower with multiple storeys

    The Raja gopuram – the Eastern gateway, the tallest temple tower and a view of the tank

  • Temple tower with people passing through.

    View of the temple complex

  • Thousand pillar

    The View of Thousand Pillar Mahal at temple premises

  • Tiruvannamalai Temple Procession

    Temple deities in a procession.

kids search engine
All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:
Annamalaiyar Temple Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.