Airavateshwara is an ancient Indian Temple located in the town of Darasuram near Kumbhakonam in the Tanjavur District of Tamil Nadu. It is built in the Dravidian Architecture by the King Raja Raja Chola in the 12th Century.
It is one among a cluster of eighteen large Hindu Temples in the Kumbhakonam area of the Medieval Era. This temple is dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva. It displays Shaivism, Vaishnavism and Shaktism traditions of Hinduism.
Structure and Deities
The Airavateshwara temple is built in the Chariot structure. The deities in the temple include Durga, Sawaswathi, Lakshmi, Ganga, Yamuna in addition to Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma, the Hindu Trinity. Also it has Indra, Agni, Varuna, Vayu, Surya, Subrahmania, Ganesha, Kama, Rati, Saptamtrikas and others. The shrine at Periya Nayaki Amman temple is dedicated to Shiva’s consort.
The temple has a water tank which has connected channel bringing water from Cauveri River. It is believed that Indra’s White Elephant Airavata got the white skin after it took a dip in this tank.
Airavateshwara Temple is listed in the UNESCO World Heritages Site list along with the Brihadeeshwara Temple at Thanjavur.
