Tirtha Atlas

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

1126 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
High medieval · Hindu · India

Palunkanda Nathar Temple

Thiruvaipadi, Tamil Nadu · 11.0828°, 79.4375°

Shiva (Palunkanda Nathar)Undetermined—Paadal Petra Sthalam
Sacred since
1000 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
dating unrecorded
Undetermined

History & significance

A Shiva temple at Thiruvaipadi near Thiruppanandal, praised by Tirunavukkarasar in the Tevaram and closely tied to the life of Chandeshvara Nayanar, one of the 63 Nayanmars.

Sthala katha — the legend

The cowherd boy Chandesvara raised a shivalinga of sand here and bathed it daily with the milk of his herd, a devotion that won him sainthood.

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Related sites

Brihadisvara Temple
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1003–1010 CE
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mid-12th c. CE
Meenakshi Amman Temple
Madurai · India
current structure largely 16th–17th c.
Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram
Chidambaram · India
core 10th c.; expanded to 13th c.
Ekambareswarar Temple
Kanchipuram · India
Chola core; Vijayanagara gopuram 1509
Ramanathaswamy Temple
Rameswaram · India
12th–18th c. (great corridor 18th c., Sethupathis)

Sources

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