Brihadisvara Temple, Gangaikonda Cholapuram - Replica of Tanjore Big Temple

Devised as the centrepiece of a city built by the Chola king Rajendra I (1014–42) to celebrate his victories, the magnificent Brihadeeswarar temple (Brihadisvara temple) stands in a tiny village of Gangaikondacholapuram in Ariyalur district, 35 km north of Kumbakonam. Rajendra-I, a Chola king of wisdom, went on various war expeditions with his father and gained experience in them. He was instrumental in making the Chola dynasty the most powerful one in the south till Vindhyas. Above all, Cholas were staunch followers of Hinduism and had an unbelievable knowledge in architecture which still stands today as great monuments to their glory, vision and devotion to God. This name ‘Gangaikondacholapuram’ literally means ‘The Chola town which holds the water of river Ganges’ was constructed by the great Chola king Rajendra Chola 1 - the only son of the Chola king Raja Raja Chola 1.

Raja Raja Chola 1 was one of the greatest Chola kings who annexed territories far and wide, a patron of arts & architecture and a philanthropist. This temple is built in a way that almost replicates the Brihadeeswarar temple in Thanjavur, constructed by his father the great Raja Raja Chola 1. According to one legend, Rajendra Chola I built this temple to mark his victory over the Ganges region and the Pala dynasty. Another one says that Rajendra Chola I wanted to portray himself to be greater than his father Raja Raja Chola I, who built the big temple at Thanjavur. He built another temple with the same name and style, however, left it halfway and came to the conclusion that his father's temple was bigger than his.

The temple is found to be built in the early 11th Century. It is situated on an elevated structure along with a courtyard measuring 170 m in height and 98 m in width. The main section of the structure measures 341 feet in height and 100 feet in width with an east-west axis. Like in all other temples, Shiva is represented in the form of a lingam which is 13 feet tall. It has a concave outline unlike Thanjavur temple with eight zones. Studies say that this feature was done intentionally to make it smaller than the Thanjavur shrine, keeping in mind the father-son hereditary aspect and is also considered as the female equivalent of the Big Temple. The lingam in the main sanctum here is considered as the largest one to be found at any temple.

The idol of Nandi is sculpted in such a way that it reflects the sunlight to the sanctum. The Nandi is sculpted in a rare stone variety ‘Chandrakanta’ which helps the area remain cool during summers and warms the area up during the winter season. Nonetheless, this is among the most extraordinary archaeological sites in South India, on par with Thanjavur, and the fact that it is devoid of visitors most of the time gives it a memorably forlorn feel. With the already gained prominence of Thanjavur temple and sharing the same name of the shrines (Brihadeeswarar), this temple is often mistaken as the other name of Thanjavur temple, but actually around 80 km away from Thanjavur. This is one among the UNESCO world heritage sites of Great Living Chola Temples.