Koneswaram Temple, also called the Temple of Thousand Pillars, is located in the Eastern province of Sri Lanka. It was built during the ancient period on top of Konesar Malai. The Thousand Pillar Hall is called Aayiram Kaal Mandapam. The temple’s architecture is in Dravidian style. It is regarded as the greatest building of its age for its architecture, elaborate sculptures and bas relief. The Sinhalese king Gajabahu II, who ruled Polonnaruwa from 1131 to 1153 CE, is the main benefactor of the temple.
Importantly, Koneswaram has many strong historical associations. The shrine has also been described in the Vayu Puran. The Dakshina Kailasa Puranam mentions it as Dakshina Kailasam (Mount Kailash of the South). The 8th–10th century Kanda Puranam (a Puranic Tamil literature epic and translation of the Skanda Puranam), authored by Kanchiappa Shivchariar of Kanchipuram, describes Koneswaram shrine as one of the three foremost Shiva abodes in the world along with Chidambaram temple of Tamil Nadu and Mount Kailash of Tibet. An inscriptional record, containing a praiseful poem of Raja Raja Chola I, was discovered in the 1970s within the premises of the Koneswaram temple. Rajaraja I was a Chola emperor who reigned from 985 CE to 1014 CE. He is the one who commissioned the construction of the Rajarajeshwara Temple in the Chola capital of Thanjavur. Koneswaram lies on a straight diagonal path connected to Ketheeswaram Jaffna temple and Ramanathaswamy Temple, Rameswaram. This pilgrimage path of 225 km is often traversed by foot according to Hindu custom. The complex also lies on exactly the same longitude as Mount Kailash. The Lingam of Ramanathaswamy (Shiva), was established and worshipped by Shri Rama, before he crossed the bridge to the island of Sri Lanka. The temple complex houses shrines of several deities. Koneswaram is the easternmost shrine of the five ancient Iswarams of Shiva on the island, the others being Keerimalai, Mannar, Chilaw and Tevan Thurai. The transition of the original temple to the present one is not traceable. However, it can be taken as a project of research. The strategic location and architecture of the temple makes it one of the most significant temples not only of Sri Lanka but that of the entire Bharatvarsh.
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