Tirtha Atlas

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

1805 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
Late medieval · Hindu · India

Kaliyuga Varadaraja Perumal Temple

Kallankurichi, Ariyalur, Tamil Nadu · 11.1504°, 79.1199°

Vishnu (worshipped as Kambamperumal, a granite pillar)VijayanagaraDravidian
Sacred since
1500 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
c. 16th c. (Vijayanagara)
Vijayanagara

History & significance

A Vishnu temple at Kallankurichi near Ariyalur, roughly five centuries old, unusual in that the presiding deity is not an image but a twelve-foot granite pillar known as Kambamperumal. Its Vijayanagara-period ardha mandapam carries sculpted pillars illustrating Vaishnava narratives.

Sthala katha — the legend

A cowherd named Maangan is said to have found a pregnant cow beside a sacred pillar here and, directed by Vishnu, to have raised a temple around it.

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Related sites

Ekambareswarar Temple
Kanchipuram · India
Chola core; Vijayanagara gopuram 1509
Kapaleeshwarar Temple
Mylapore, Chennai · India
16th c. (original 7th-c. shore shrine lost)
Virupaksha Temple, Hampi
Hampi · India
7th-c. origins; major Vijayanagara expansion
Vittala Temple, Hampi
Hampi · India
15th–16th c.
Sri Venkateswara Temple, Tirumala
Tirumala, Tirupati · India
attested from early centuries CE; enlarged under Pallava, Chola & Vijayanagara patronage
Mallikarjuna Swamy Temple, Srisailam
Srisailam · India
core medieval; walls 15th c. (Reddi/Vijayanagara)

Sources

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