Cilappatikāram, also referred to as Silappathikaram or Silappatikaram, is the earliest Tamil epic. It is a poem of 5,730 lines in almost entirely akaval (aciriyam) meter. The epic is a tragic love story of an ordinary couple, Kaṇṇaki and her husband Kōvalaṉ. The Cilappatikāram has more ancient roots in the Tamil bardic tradition, as Kannaki and other characters of the story are mentioned or alluded to in the Sangam literature such as in the Naṟṟiṇai and later texts such as the Kovalam Katai. It is attributed to a prince-turned-monk Iḷaṅkō Aṭikaḷ, and was probably composed in the 2nd century CE.
Chidambaram is a major town and municipality in Cuddalore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, on the banks of the Vellar River where it meets the Bay of Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Chidambaram taluk. The town is believed to be of significant antiquity and has been ruled, at different times, by the Pallavas until ninth century, Medieval Cholas, Later Cholas, Later Pandyas, Vijayanagara Empire, Thanjavur Nayakas, Marathas and the British. The town is known for the Thillai Nataraja Temple and Thillai Kali Temple, and the annual chariot festival held in the months of December–January and June to July. One of the Divya Desams Divya Sri Govindaraja Perumal Temple (Thiruchitrakoodam) is a part of Thillai Nataraja Temple complex. Thiruvetkalam Shiva Temple, Vadakiruppu, Thirunelvayil Shiva Temple, Sivapuri and Tirukkazhippalai Palvannanathar Temple are the other three ancient Shiva temples in the region.
Perumal or Tirumal is a Hindu deity. Perumal is worshipped mainly among Tamil Hindus in South India and the Tamil diaspora, who consider Perumal to be a form of Vishnu.
Thillai Nataraja Temple, also referred as the Chidambaram Nataraja Temple, is a Hindu temple dedicated to Nataraja, the form of Shiva as the lord of dance. This temple is located in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India. This temple has ancient roots and a Shiva shrine existed at the site when the town was known as Thillai. Chidambaram, the name of the city literally means "stage of consciousness". The temple architecture symbolizes the connection between the arts and spirituality, creative activity and the divine. The temple wall carvings display all the 108 karanas from the Natya Shastra by Bharata Muni, and these postures form a foundation of Bharatanatyam, an Indian classical dance.
The Nellaiappar Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Shiva, located in Tirunelveli, a city in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Shiva is worshipped as Nellaiappar represented by the lingam and his consort Parvati is depicted as Kanthimathi Amman. The deity Vishnu is also worshipped here, having witnessed their wedding according to legend. Hence, this temple is regarded as an abhimana kshetram of Vaishnavism. The temple is located on the northern banks of Thamirabarani River in Tirunelveli district. The presiding deity is revered in the 7th century Tamil Saiva canonical work, the Tevaram, written by Tamil saint poets known as the nayanmars and classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam.
Tamil mythology refers to the folklore and traditions that are a part of the wider Dravidian pantheon, originating from the Tamil people. This body of mythology is a fusion of elements from Dravidian culture and the parent Indus Valley culture, both of which have been syncretised with mainstream Hinduism.
Various dance forms are practiced in Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, who speak Tamil language, one of the oldest surviving languages in India. With archaeological evidence pointing to the Tamilakam region being inhabited for more than 3,800 years, Tamil culture has seen multiple influences over the years and has developed diversely. With its diverse culture, many forms of individual and group dances have their origins in the region.
Terukkuttu is a Tamil street theatre form practised in Tamil Nadu state of India and Tamil-speaking regions of Sri Lanka. Terukuttu is a form of entertainment, a ritual, and a medium of social instruction. The terukkuttu plays various themes. One theme is from the Tamil language versions of the Hindu epic Mahabharata, focusing on the character Draupadi. The terms Terukkuttu and Kattaikkuttu are often used interchangeably in the modern times; however, historically the two terms appear to have distinguished, at least in certain villages, between two different kinds of performance: while Terukkuttu referred to mobile performances in a procession, Kattaikkuttu denotes overnight, narrative performances at a fixed performance space.
Kattaikkuttu is a rural theatre form practised in the State of Tamil Nadu in South India. The performers – by tradition only men – sing, act and dance and the musicians accompany them on the harmonium, the mridangam and the mukavinai. The terms Terukkuttu and Kattaikkuttu are often used interchangeably. However, historically the two terms appear to have distinguished, at least in certain villages, between two different kinds of performance: while Terukkuttu referred to mobile performances by two actors participating in a procession for the village deity Mariamman, Kattaikkuttu denotes overnight, narrative performances at a fixed performance space acted by an ensemble of about fifteen actors and musicians.
Karakattam, or Karagam Puja in the Caribbean, is an ancient folk dance of Tamil Nadu performed in praise of the rain goddess Mariamman. The ancient Tamil epic says that this type of dance derived from Bharatham and a mixture of multiple forms of Tamil dance forms like Bharatanatyam postures and mudras. The offering of this dance is to the goddess to bless rain. The dance accompanies songs like folk Carnatic (Amrithavarshini).
Thirukutralam represents one of the five Pancha Sabhas of Nataraja - Chitra Sabhai. The five dance halls of Shiva are Chidambaram, Madurai, Thiruvalangadu, Tirunelveli and Kutralam. Kutralam is also known as Trikootaachalam.
Thiruvathira or Thiruvathirai or Arudhra Darisanam is a Hindu festival celebrated in the Indian states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Thiruvathirai (Arudhra) in Tamil means "sacred big wave". In Chidambaram in Tamil Nadu, the Nataraja Temple's annual festival is celebrated on this date. In the month of Makaram Thiruvathira Star is celebrated in Mathira Peedika Devi Temple, owned by Thiruvithamcore Devaswom Board, near Kadakkal in Kollam District of Kerala state.
Thillai Kali Temple is a Hindu Temple located on the outskirts of the town of Chidambaram, Cuddalore District Tamil Nadu in India. It was built by Chola King Kopperunjingan who ruled between 1229 and 1278.
Iconography of Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu is governed by the Shaiva Agamas (IAST:Āgama) that revere the ultimate reality as the Hindu deity, Shiva. Āgama in the Hindu religious context means a traditional doctrine or system which commands faith. Temple worship according to Āgamic rules can be said to have started during the Pallava dynasty in South India, but they were fully under establishment during the Chola dynasty The temples during the Chola period expanded to Sri Lanka and islands in South East Asia. The temple complex was expanding with niches for various deities on the stipulated sides of the sanctum. Lingam was universalised and prakarams (precincts) with subsequent deities came up. The temple parivara expanded considerably during the Chola period. The niches of following Āgamic rules for building Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu, a South Indian state continues even in the modern era. Some of the prime images like that of lingam, Vinayagar and Parvati are present in all the Shiva temples. Almost all the temples follow the same custom during festivals and worship methods with minor exceptions. Most of the Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka are built in Dravidian architecture.
Hinduism in Tamil Nadu finds its earliest literary mention in the Sangam literature dated to the 5th century BCE. The total number of Tamil Hindus as per 2011 Indian census is 63,188,168 which forms 87.58% of the total population of Tamil Nadu. Hinduism is the largest religion in Tamil Nadu.
The Kuravar is an ethnic Tamil community native to the Kurinji mountain region of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, India.
Spatika Lingam or Crystal Lingam is a type of Lingam made from quartz. Spatika Lingam is called sphatika Sivalingam, ,, . Sphatikam in Sanskrit means "made of crystal, crystalline", referring to quartz and alum.
The Govindaraja Perumal Temple, also called Thiruchitrakoodam, is a temple situated in Chidambaram, a town in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, the temple is inside the premises of the Thillai Nataraja Temple, constructed in the Dravidian architecture. The temple is glorified in the Naalayira Divya Prabandham, the early medieval Tamil canon of the Alvar saints from the 6th–9th centuries CE. It is one of the 108 Divya Desam dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshipped as Govindaraja Perumal and his wife Lakshmi as Pundarikavalli Thayar.
Thilagavathi Palani is an Indian social activist and Therukoothu artist, performing primarily through the form of Kattaikkuttu. She is one of the founders of the Sri Krishna Kattaikattu Kuzhu, a Koothu group in Tamil Nadu. Thilagavathi is the recipient of the Akademi Award for her contribution to traditional theatre.
