Tirtha Atlas

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

1126 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
Early medieval · Hindu · India

Neelamegha Perumal Temple

நீலமேகப்பெருமாள் கோவில், திருக்கண்ணபுரம்

Thirukannapuram, Tamil Nadu · 10.8686°, 79.7042°

Neelamegha / Sowriraja Perumal (Vishnu)CholaDravidianDivya Desam
Sacred since
850 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
Chola era; Nayak additions
Chola

History & significance

The Divya Desam of Thirukannapuram in Nagapattinam district, second only to Srirangam in the number of Alvar hymns addressed to its presiding deity.

Sthala katha — the legend

When a hair was found in a garland offered by the priest Rangabhatta, Vishnu is said to have appeared wearing a wig - sowri - to shield his devotee from blame, earning the name Sowriraja.

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Related sites

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c. 1035 CE
Airavatesvara Temple
Darasuram, Kumbakonam · India
mid-12th c. CE
Ranganathaswamy Temple
Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli · India
built up 10th–17th c.; Rajagopuram 1987
Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram
Chidambaram · India
core 10th c.; expanded to 13th c.
Arunachaleswarar Temple
Tiruvannamalai · India
9th-c. Chola core; 16th-c. gopurams

Sources

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