The City of 1000 Temples, Kanchipuram is one of the oldest cities in
South India, and known for its ancient Hindu temples and silk sarees.
The city contains several big temples like the Varadharaja Perumal
Temple for Lord Vishnu and the Ekambaranatha Temple which is one of the
five forms of abodes of Lord Siva.
The Brihadishwara Temple, located in Thanjavur, India, was built by the
Chola king Rajaraja I in the 11th century. The world’s first complete
granite temple, Brihadishwara is a brilliant example of the Dravidian
style of temple architecture. The temple tower is 66 meters (216 feet) high making it one of the tallest temples in the world.
The village of Khajuraho is one of the most popular tourist destinations
in India. It’s numerous Hindu and Jain temples are famous for their
erotic sculpture. The temples were built over a span of 200 years, from
950 to 1150. A few of the temples are dedicated to the Jain pantheon and
the rest to Hindu deities, to Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, and various
Devi forms.
Although officially part of the Angkor Wat complex, Banteay Srei lies 25
km (15 miles) north-east of the main group of temples, enough to list
it separately here. The Hindu temple was completed in 967 AD and is
built largely of red sandstone, a medium that lends itself to the
elaborate decorative wall carvings which are still clearly visible
today. Banteay Srei is the only major temple at Angkor not built for a
king, instead it was constructed by one of king Rajendravarman’s
counselors, Yajnyavahara.
Dedicated to Lord Ranganatha (a reclining form of Lord Vishnu), the Sri
Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam, India is an important shrine that
receives millions of visitors and pilgrims every year. With an area of
156 acres (6,31,000 m²), the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple is one of the
largest religious complexes in the world. The oldest structure of the
temple dates back to the 10th century
The Virupaksha Temple in the city of Hampi in India started out as a
small shrine and grew into a large complex under the Vijayanagara
rulers. It is believed that this temple has been functioning
uninterruptedly ever since the small shrine was built in the 7th century
AD which makes it one of the oldest functioning Hindu temples in India.
The largest entrance tower of the temple is 50 meters high
Prambanan is the largest and most beautiful Hindu temple complex in Indonesia. Located about 18 km east of Yogyakarta, it is somewhat overshadowed by the even more awe-inspiring Borobudur situated just next door. The two sites are quite different in style though, with Prambanan being a collection of tall and pointed Hindu temples, instead of the single large Buddhist stupa of Borobudur.
Prambanan has three main temples dedicated to Vishnu, Brahma, and Shiva and was built around 850AD by the Mataram Kingdom, rulers of central Java.
The Meenakshi Amman Temple is one of the most important Indian Hindu temples, located in the holy city of Madurai. The temple is dedicated to Sundareswar (form of Lord Shiva) and Meenakshi (form of Goddess Parvati). The complex houses 14 magnificent towers including two golden Gopurams for the main deities, that are elaborately sculptured and painted.
The temple is a significant symbol for the Tamil people, and has been mentioned for the last couple of millennia, though the present structure was built in the early 17th century.
Angkor is a vast temple complex in Cambodia featuring the magnificent
remains of several capitals of the Khmer Empire, from the 9th to the
15th century AD. These include the famous Angkor Wat temple, the world’s
largest single religious monument, and the Bayon temple (at Angkor
Thom) with its multitude of massive stone faces. During it’s long
history Angkor went through many changes in religion converting between
Hinduism to Buddhism several times
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