Thousand Pillar Temple

History and Architecture of Thousand Pillar Temple.

A magnificent example of architectural excellence during the reign of the great Kakatiya rule is the Thousand Pillar temple. It is a place not only for devotees but for every history lover and architecture lover. A must visit place in the Warangal district of Telangana. This architectural beauty attracts with its structural beauty as well as will leave you fascinated with its historical importance.

This grand temple was built in the 12th century by King Rudra Deva and is dedicated to Lord Shiva. It is named “Sri Rudreshwara Swamy” Temple, it has been built in the style of Chalukyan architecture temples.

As the name itself suggests, this temple boasts many beautifully carved pillars. Temple’s rock-cut elephant sculpture, a massive monolith of Nandi of Lord Shiva’s divine vehicle, complex carvings will leave one mesmerized with its beauty.

This thousand pillar temple is now managed by the Archaeological Survey of India. The temple was renovated by Government of India in the year 2004 and has been declared as a protected monument for tourists and devotees. Another thing that makes the temple even more attractive is its good maintenance and cleanliness.

One of the interesting aspects of the Thousand Pillar Temple is that here the third deity is not Lord Brahma, one of the Trinity. The Lord Surya or Sun God is being worshipped as the third deity of the trinity.

Let us discuss the temples beautifully carved architecture.

This thousand pillar temple is constructed during the period of 1163 AD which was the reign of King Rudradeva ruling this Warangal city. Thousand Pillar Temple is considered to be a triumph of Vishwakarma Sethupathi of the Kakatiya kingdom. This temple follows an architectural style similar to that of Chalukyan temples. This temple is said to be named after King Rudra Deva himself and hence it is called Sri Rudreshwara Swamy Temple.

This temple was built taking the base of Hanamkonda hill and is dedicated to three deities namely Lord Shiva, Lord Vishnu and Lord Surya. There are three different temples, one for each worshipping deity which is called Trikutalayam mean three temples. The temple of Lord Shiva is facing the east direction while the other two temples are facing South and West respectively. The temples of Lord Vishnu and Lord Surya are connected to the main temple of Lord Shiva via a square-shaped mandapam in the middle.

The entire structure of the 1000 Pillar Temple is in a star shape. Exceptionally carved pillars support the structure of the temple while pleasing sculptures add exquisiteness to the walls. Another factor that adds to the beauty of 1000 Pillar Temple is that the well-maintained garden that surrounds the temple. People can also find many small Shiva Lingams in the garden. This Thousand Pillar Temple suffered to ruins by the invasion of the Tughlaq Dynasty but stood still.

In this article, we have discussed the history and architecture of the 1000 pillar temple. This amazing temple marks the best tourist spots in Telangana to be visited and worshipped. Do visit it with your family and friends at your weekends as it is of one to two hours journey from Hyderabad.