Tamil Nadu is renowned for its ancient temple architecture, with nearly 33,000 temples–many between 800 and 2,000 years old–scattered across the state. According to the Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department, the state administers 38,615 temples. Most of the largest Hindu temples are located in Tamil Nadu. Studded with intricate architecture, varied sculptures, and rich inscriptions, the temples remain central to the culture and heritage of the Tamil region, with historical records dating back at least 3,000 years.

The state also abounds with numerous temple tanks. The state features 2,359 temple tanks across 1,586 temples. Beyond ancient temples, Tamil Nadu hosts a confluence of architectural styles ranging from colonial-era Indo-Saracenic buildings (pioneered in Madras) to historic churches, mosques and modern 20th-century skyscrapers.

History Throughout the history of Tamil Nadu, a king was considered to be divine by nature and possessed religious significance. The king was 'the representative of God on earth’ and lived in a "koyil", which means the "residence of God". The Modern Tamil word for temple is kovil. Titular worship was also given to kings. Other words for king, like "kō" ("king"), "iṟai" ("emperor"), and "āṇḍavar" ("conqueror") now primarily refer to God. Tholkappiyar, refers to the Three Crowned Kings as the "Three Glorified by Heaven". In the Dravidian-speaking South, the concept of divine kingship led to the assumption of major roles by state and the temple.

Sangam period architecture From 580 BCE to 300 CE, the greatest accomplishments of the kingdoms of the early Chola, Chera and the Pandyan kingdoms included brick shrines to deities Murugan, Shiva, Amman and Vishnu. Several of these have been unearthed near Adichanallur, Kaveripoompuharpattinam and Mahabalipuram, and the construction plans of these sites of worship were shared to some detail in various poems of Sangam literature. One such temple, the Saluvannkuppan Murugan temple, unearthed in 2005, consists of three layers. The lowest layer, consisting of a brick shrine, is one of the oldest of its kind in South India, and is the oldest shrine found dedicated to Murugan. It is one of only two brick shrine pre Pallava Hindu temples to be found in the state, the other being the Veetrirundha Perumal Temple at Veppathur dedicated to Vishnu. The dynasties of early medieval Tamilakkam expanded and erected structural additions to many of these brick shrines. Sculptures of erotic art, nature and deities from the Ranganathaswamy Temple and Kallazhagar temple date from the Sangam period. Many of the temples of this time have been built on either bricks or granite stones, but they did not survive until modern times due to the destruction caused by the invasion of the Delhi Sultanate Empire under the leadership of Malik Kafur.

Several brick structures dating to the Sangam era have been unearthed at places across Tamil Nadu such as Keeladi, Adichanallur and Kodumanal. The findings at these sites indicate that the buildings were built using burnt bricks.

The Srirangam Ranganathaswamy temple is mentioned in various Sanskrit Literatures in various periods like the Ramayana,Valmiki Ramayana, Ayodhya kanda, sarga 6, sloka 1, 2 and 3 Mahabharatha, Padma Purana, Brahmanda Purana and Garuda Puranam. There are mentions even in the Tamil literature of the Sangam era (300 BCE to 300 CESangam literature, Encyclopaedia Britannica), there are mentions in many books like Akanaṉūṟu, Purananuru, Paripāṭal and Silapadikaram. Example:- Silapadikaram (book 11, lines 35–40):

The Srirangam Ranganathaswamy temple was first built by the Chola ruler, Dharmavarma. The Kaveri river flood destroyed the temple vimanam, and later, the early Cholas King Killivalavan rebuilt the temple complex as is present today. Beyond the ancient textual history, archaeological evidence such as inscriptions refer to this temple, and these stone inscriptions are from late 100 BCE to 100 CE. Hence, making it one of the oldest surviving active temple complexes in the world. There are many mandapas which were built near the main Sanctum Sanctorum which dates around 100 CE to 300 CE built by Uraiyur Cholas. There were later additions of structures and inscriptions in the temple which belong to the Chola, Pandya, Hoysala, Marathas and Vijayanagara dynasties who ruled over the region. These inscriptions range in date between the 7th and 17th centuries.

Pallava architecture

The Pallavas ruled from 600 CE to 900 CE and their greatest constructed accomplishments are the single rock temples in Mahabalipuram and their capital Kanchipuram, now located in Tamil Nadu.

Pallava art and architecture represent an early stage of Dravidian art and architecture which blossomed to its fullest extent under the Chola Dynasty. The first stone and mortar temples of South India were constructed during Pallava rule and were based on earlier brick and timber prototypes.

The earliest examples of Pallava constructions are rock-cut temples dating from 610 to 690 CE and structural temples between 690 and 900 CE. A number of rock-cut cave temples bear the inscription of the Pallava king, Mahendravarman I and his successors.Nilakanta Sastri, pp412–413 The greatest accomplishments of the Pallava architecture are the rock-cut Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram at Mahabalipuram, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, including the Sthalasayana Perumal Temple and Shore Temple.Mamallapuram, Encyclopedia Britannica This group includes both excavated pillared halls, with no external roof except the natural rock, and monolithic shrines where the natural rock is entirely cut away and carved to give an external roof. Pallava sculptors later graduated to free-standing structural shrines which inspired Chola temples of a later age. Some of the best examples of Pallava art and architecture are the Vaikunta Perumal Temple at Kanchipuram, the Shore Temple and the Pancha Rathas of Mahabalipuram. Akshara was the greatest sculptor of their time.Nilakanta Sastri, p139Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, Dist. Kanchipuram , Archaeological Survey of India (2014)

Pandyan architecture

After the close of the Sangam age, the first Pandyan empire was established by Kadungon in the 6th century CE by defeating the Kalabhras, The empire ruled from 6th to 10th century CE.

Rock cut and structural temples are significant part of pandyan architecture. The Vimana and mandapa are some of the features of the early Pandyan temples. Groups of small temples are seen at Tiruchirappalli district of Tamil Nadu. The Shiva temples have a Nandi bull sculpture in front of the maha mandapa. In the later stages of Pandyas rule, finely sculptured idols, gopurams on the vimanas were developed. Gopurams are the rectangular entrance and portals of the temples. Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai, Kallalagar temple in Alagar Koyil and Srivilliputhur Andal Temple in Srivilliputhur were built during the reign of the Pandyas.

Kallalagar temple

Kallalagar Temple (Kallazhagar Temple) is a Hindu temple dedicated to Vishnu in Alagar Koyil, a village in Madurai district. Constructed in the Dravidian style, the temple is glorified in the Naalayira Divya Prabandham, the early medieval Tamil canon of the Alvar saints from the 6th–9th centuries CE. It is one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshiped as Kallalagar, and his consort Lakshmi as Thirumagal. This temple is called as Thirumaliruncholai in Sangam literatures and Naalayira Divya Prabandham sung by Tamil Alvar saints. A granite wall surrounds the temple, enclosing all its shrines. The temple has a seven-tiered rajagopuram. The temple is surrounded by a large fort, part of which is dilapidated.

The famous Vaishnava works in Tamil, belonging to the early 4th to 6th centuries point that to this temple as a Vishnu temple. The Sangam age belonging to (500 BCE to 300 CE), points out to this temple as a Vishnu temple. Paripāṭal and Silapadikaram mention this temple in most poetic terms.

Srivilliputhur Andal Temple

The Srivilliputhur Andal Temple in Srivilliputhur, a town in the Virudhunagar district, located from Madurai, is dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu. Constructed in the Dravidian style, the temple is glorified in the Nalayira Divya Prabandham, the early medieval Tamil canon of the Alvar saints from the 6th–9th centuries CE. It is one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshipped as Vatapatrasayi and his consort Lakshmi as Andal. It is believed to be the birthplace of two of the Alvars, namely Periyalvar and his foster-daughter, Andal.Rajarajan, R.K.K. (2013) Historical sequence of the Vaiṣṇava Divyadeśas. Sacred venues of Viṣṇism. Acta Orientalia, Societates Orientales Danica Fennica Norvegia Svecia, vol. 74, pp. 37-90. ISSN 0001-6438. https://www.academia.edu/12405403/Historical_sequence_of_the_Vai%E1%B9%A3%E1%B9%87ava_Divyade%C5%9Bas._Sacred_venues_of_Vi%E1%B9%A3%E1%B9%87ism Rajarajan, R.K.K. (2012) Antiquity of the Vaiṣṇava divyakśētras in Pāṇḍinādu. Acta Orientalia, Societates Orientales Danica Fennica Norvegia Svecia, Vol. 73, pp. 59-104. https://www.academia.edu/7529429/Antiquity_of_the_divyak%E1%B9%A3etras_in_P%C4%81%E1%B9%87%E1%B8%8Din%C4%81%E1%B8%8Du The history of Srivilliputhur centres around the Srivilliputhur Andal Temple, dedicated to Andal. It is argued that the temple of Vatapatrasayi is present from the 5th century, but there are epigraphic records are available only from the 9th century CE. The view that the Andal temple was built during the 14th century is highly debated.Anantharaman, Ambujam (2006). Temples of South India. East West Books (Madras). pp. 177–181. ISBN 978-81-88661-42-8. The temple has inscriptions from Chola, Pandya and Vijayanagar Nayakkar Kings, spanning across various centuries from the 10th to 16th centuries. As per some accounts, the original structure was constructed by Tribuvana Chakravarthy Konerinmai Kondan Kulasekaran and the Andal temple and Rajagopura was built by Barathi Rayar of Vijayanagar king.Rao, A.V.Shankaranarayana (2012). Temples of Tamil Nadu. Vasan Publications. pp. 195–99. ISBN 978-81-8468-112-3.

Kalugumalai temples of Pandyas

The temples in Kalugumalai, are located on a rocky hill in the Thoothukudi district. Kalugumalai houses the 8th century Jain Beds, Vettuvan Koil and Kalugasalamoorthy Temple, a Murugan temple at the foothills. The rock-cut temples, sculptures and the carvings are exemplary of early Pandyan architecture. The Jain beds are dedicated to the Jain and Hindu religious figures. Constructed in rock cut style, the unfinished temple was built during the reign of Pandyan king Parantaka Nedunjadaiya (768–800 CE).

There are approximately 150 niches in the bed, that includes images of Gomateshwara, Parshvanatha and other Tirthankaras of the Jainism.

The carvings in the Vettuvan Koil show the top portion of the temple, with an unfinished bottom. The sculptures and the carvings are indicative of Pandyan art during the period. The granite rock looks like a blooming lotus, with hills surrounding it on three sides. The vimana (ceiling over the sanctum) has niches of Parsavadevatas, the attendant deities of Shiva, like ganas, Dakshinamurthy depicted playing a mridanga, Siva with his consort Uma, dancers, various niches of Nandi (the sacred bull of Shiva) and animals like monkeys and lions. Historian Sivaramamurti believes that this is the only place where Dakshinamurthy is depicted playing the Mridanga (a percussion instrument), while in all other places, he is depicted playing Veena. Epigrapher like V. Vedachalam believes that there is a spontaneity in the sculptures indicating of natural human movements like in the Shiva and Uma sculpture where they seem to be talking like common folks.