Koneswaram Temple, Sri Lanka
Trincomalee's Koneswaram temple, also known as Thirukonamalai Konesar Temple – The Thousand Pillars and Dakshina-Then Kailasam, is a classical-medieval Hindu temple complex in Trincomalee, a Hindu religious pilgrimage center in Sri Lanka's Eastern Province. The most sacred of Sri Lanka's Pancha Ishwarams, it was constructed on top of Konesar Malai, a peninsula overlooking Trincomalee District, Gokarna Bay, and the Indian Ocean, during the rule of the early Cholas and the Five Dravidians of the Early Pandyan Kingdom. Its Pallava, Chola, Pandyan, and Jaffna designs indicate the Vannimai region's continuous Tamil Saivite influence from the classical period. The major Shiva shrine in the monument is in the form Kona-Eiswara, shortened to Konesar. The temple, which is connected at the mouth of the Mahavilli Ganga River to Shiva's footprint at the river's source, Sivan Oli Padam Malai, symbolizes crowns the flow of the Ganges River from Shiva's head of Mount Kailash to his feet.
The first kovil, built in 205 BC, incorporated fundamental components to construct its basic Dravidian temple plan, including as the thousand-pillared hall – "Aayiram Kaal Mandapam" – and the Jagati, which King Elara Manu Needhi Cholan enlarged. Extensive sculptural bas-relief ornamentation covered a black granite megalith, while its several gold-plated gopuram towers were enlarged in the medieval period, making it the largest building of its time for architecture. It was one of three important Hindu shrines with a gigantic gopuram tower on the promontory, and it stood prominently on the cape's greatest prominence.
The Mahabharata, Ramayana, and Yalpana Vaipava Malai all mention the Mattakallappu Manmiam as a popular bay temple on the island, confirming its hallowed importance for all Hindus. In Saivite respect, the temple is compared to Thillai Chidambaram Temple and Mount Kailash in Kachiyappa Sivachariar's Kanda Puranam. Some experts believe that the worship of the great god Eiswara atop the promontory is the most ancient type of worship still practiced today.
Location: Swami Rock (Kōṇāmalai), Trincomalee, Sri Lanka
