Tirtha Atlas

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Early medieval · Hindu · India

Narasingam Yoga Narasimha Perumal Temple

Narasingam, Madurai district, Tamil Nadu · 9.9668°, 78.1889°

Vishnu as Yoga Narasimha PerumalPandyaDravidian rock-cut
Sacred since
770 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
begun 770 CE (Pandya)
Pandya

History & significance

A cave temple cut into the Yanaimalai hill 8 km from Madurai, begun in 770 CE by Maran Kari, minister to the Pandya king, and finished by his brother Maran Eyinan; the six-foot Yoga Narasimha is carved from the living rock. Inscriptions record later endowments by Srivallabha Pandya and Sundara Pandya, and there is a separate stone shrine for the goddess Narasingavalli.

Sthala katha — the legend

The Sthala Purana says sage Romasa did penance here for a child and asked to see the Narasimha avatar; the form proved so fierce that Prahlada and Mahalakshmi had to calm it, leaving the seated Yoga Narasimha worshipped today.

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Sources

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