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கங்கைகொண்ட சோழீசுவரர் கோயில்
Gangaikonda Cholapuram, Tamil Nadu · 11.2061°, 79.4482°
Built by Rajendra I to celebrate his victorious march to the Ganga, in a new capital whose name means 'the town of the Chola who took the Ganga'. Slightly smaller but more delicately sculpted than his father's Thanjavur temple; the capital around it has vanished, leaving the shrine alone in fields.
What follows is the temple’s own traditional account, transmitted through liturgy and local memory. It is recorded here as tradition, not as attested history.
Rajendra is said to have made defeated kings carry Ganga water south to fill the 'liquid pillar of victory', the Cholaganga tank.
Tamil Nadu Tourism gives the nearest railhead as Kutralam junction, about 30 km from the temple, and the nearest bus stand as Ariyalur, roughly 45 km away. The closest airport is Chennai International, some 290 km distant, so the last leg is by road in every case.
coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-26 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Chola
Answers only from cited records
Opening the line…