Mandagapattu Tirumurti Temple is aHindu temple situated in the village of Mandagapattu in theViluppuram district ofTamil Nadu,India. Hewn from rock by thePallava rulerMahendravarman I in honour of the trinity Brahma-Shiva-Vishnu, the rock-cut cave temple is the oldest stone shrine discovered and dated in Tamil Nadu.[1][2] The temple is notable for the earliest known rock-cutSanskrit inscription written inGrantha script. It is attributed to the Pallava kingMahendravarman I (600–630 CE).[3]
The inscription reads:
Transliteration intoDevanagari:
Translation:
First of its series of caves excavated during the Mahendravarman I. In his inscriptions he styles himself asvichitra chitta (''curious minded"), calls this temple as Lakshitayatna ("The temple of Lakshita") dedicated to the Trimurthi or Trinity. These inscriptions are found in Pallavaram and Tiruchirappalli cave-temples.[4]
The temple is dedicated to the Trininty (Brahma, Isvara/Shiva, Vishnu), which is significant to note because most of other caves either are dedicated to Vishnu or Shiva. The temple is also calledayatana and it is truly made out of rock cut without using Bricks, Wood, Metal or Mortar of any kind.
The cave was carved on the northern face of the large rock overlooking theirrigation tank to the west of the Mandagapattu village. The facade is cut well deep from the face of the rock, measuring 4feet in bottom and 2feet in the top. There are 2 pillars and 2pilasters on their northern and inner faces having aspect of almost full pillars, so eventually it does look like 4 pillars in total. Beyond these pilasters on either side of the facades there are two recesses for thedwara-palas (which matter of fact are not symmetrical), and each of these two recesses has another pilaster demarcated intosadurams and kattus of uniform tetragonal section. Now these pillars are massive square types with octagonalkattu which divides them into cubes orsadurams above and below. The lowersaduram is slightly higher due to its height from the base (oma).[5]
Source:[6]
Right behind the facade, is themandapa separated from the inner mandapaardha-mandapa behind by a row of pillars and pilasters. The floor of the front ormukha-mandapa is slightly lower level than that of theardha-mandapa. The rock cut are carefully crafted such that the pillars of the innermandapa and the ones in the facades are of equal shape and dimension, except the height of the lowersaduram of the facade, due to slightly raised floor on which these pillars stand upon.
Over each of the two rows of the pillars and pilasters there is a principle beam cut also called asuttira, that over the inner rows slightly thicker than that of the outer row. At either end, cut over the side walls, are two cross beam which, curiously do not go over these principal longittudinal beams or even under them but are one the same level with them. Over the beams is cut avajana, projecting beyond the width of the beam. The ceiling is plain and free of any design or art works.
12°6′27.8″N79°27′23.9″E / 12.107722°N 79.456639°E /12.107722; 79.456639