Tirtha Atlas

The sacred geography of the Indic world — every site mapped, dated, storied, and cited.

3031 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
Late medieval · Hindu · India

Jalakandeswarar Temple, Vellore

Vellore, Tamil Nadu · 12.9207°, 79.1279°

Shiva (Jalakandeswarar)VijayanagaraVijayanagara
Sacred since
1550 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
1550 (Vijayanagara)
Vijayanagara

History & significance

A Shiva temple inside Vellore Fort at the centre of the city, raised in 1550 by the Vijayanagara chieftain Chinna Bommi Reddi during the reign of Sadasiva Raya. It is noted for a nine-tier gopuram, richly carved stone pillars, monolithic sculpture and heavy wooden gates.

Sthala katha — the traditional account

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.

The lingam is said to have stood self-manifested within a great anthill ringed by standing water, which gave the god his name from jalam, water.

Open in Google Maps ↗Wikipedia ↗View on the atlas map

Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-27 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Vijayanagara