Chidambaram: A Travel Guide to the Home of Nataraja

Chidambaram is one of the most revered temple towns in Tamil Nadu, built almost entirely around a single vast shrine, the Thillai Nataraja Temple. Here Shiva is worshipped in his form as Nataraja, the cosmic dancer, whose rhythmic dance is said to represent the eternal cycle of creation, preservation and destruction. The temple is one of the five Pancha Bhoota Sthalams, the group of Shiva temples across South India each associated with one of the five elements, and Chidambaram represents akasha, space and ether, the most abstract and intangible of them all. That idea, of worshipping something that cannot be seen or touched, sits at the heart of the town and gives rise to the famous Chidambaram Rahasya, the secret of Chidambaram, and the concept of the Aakasha lingam, a form of Shiva with no physical image at all.

For visitors interested in temple architecture, classical dance or the layered history of Tamil Nadu, Chidambaram rewards a slow, unhurried visit. It also works well as a stop on a longer trip taking in the Cuddalore coast and Pondicherry.

This temple is one of the Pancha Bhoota Sthalam, the five Shiva temples of the elements. See our Pancha Bhoota Sthalam guide for the full circuit and what each element temple represents.

A small town built around a great temple

Chidambaram’s older name was Thillai, taken from the thillai mangrove trees that once grew thickly across this part of the coast, some of which still survive around Pichavaram nearby. The town sits in Cuddalore district, close to Tamil Nadu’s eastern coastline, and today it is probably as well known for Annamalai University, one of the larger universities in the state, as it is for its temple, at least among students. The temple remains the town’s centre of gravity in every sense. Streets, markets and daily life are arranged around its four gateways, and Chidambaram itself is compact enough to explore comfortably on foot once you are near the temple precinct.

The Thillai Nataraja Temple

The temple complex is enormous, a walled city within the town, with four towering gopurams facing the cardinal directions. Each gopuram is carved with the 108 karanas, the fundamental poses of Bharatanatyam as codified in the Natya Shastra, which is one of the reasons Chidambaram holds such significance for Indian classical dance. Few other temples anywhere link architecture and dance so directly and so visibly.

At the heart of the complex is the Chit Sabha, also called the Kanaka Sabha or Ponnambalam, the hall with the famous gold plated roof where the bronze image of Nataraja is enshrined. Close beside it, and this is the detail most visitors remember, is an empty space behind a curtain, representing the formless Aakasha lingam. This is the Chidambara Rahasyam, the idea that the deepest form of the divine here has no shape at all, only space. It is a striking piece of philosophy to encounter inside a temple otherwise full of intricate carving and ornament.

The temple also houses a shrine to Govindaraja Perumal, a form of Vishnu, within the same complex, which is unusual for what is fundamentally a Shiva temple and reflects Chidambaram’s long history of accommodating both Shaivite and Vaishnavite worship. Elsewhere in the complex you will find the Sivaganga tank, used for ritual bathing, and the Raja Sabha, the thousand pillared hall, an atmospheric space that hints at the scale the temple once operated at during festivals and royal patronage.

The temple is traditionally maintained by the Dikshitars, a community of Shaivite priests who have looked after Nataraja worship here for centuries and who follow their own customs of dress and ritual within the complex. Visitors will notice their distinctive appearance and should be respectful of the fact that this is a living temple with an active priestly community, not simply a monument.

Natyanjali, when the temple becomes a stage

Because Chidambaram is so tied to the idea of Shiva as the lord of dance, it is fitting that the temple hosts the Natyanjali festival, usually held around Maha Shivaratri in February or March. Bharatanatyam dancers travel from across India to perform in front of Nataraja over several days, a tradition that treats dance itself as an offering. For anyone with an interest in classical dance, timing a visit around Natyanjali turns an already special temple visit into something considerably more memorable, with performances taking place against the backdrop of the temple’s own gopurams.

Pichavaram, boating through the mangroves

A short drive from Chidambaram, near the village of Killai, lies Pichavaram, one of the largest mangrove forests in the world. It is, for many visitors, as big a draw as the temple itself. Small rowing boats take you out through narrow water channels that thread between dense mangrove stands, the canopy closing in overhead in places and opening onto wider stretches of backwater elsewhere. It is quiet, green and completely different in mood from the temple town, with plenty of birdlife along the way for anyone patient enough to look. The best light and the most comfortable boating conditions tend to be in the cooler months, and it is worth heading out earlier in the day rather than at the height of midday heat. Pichavaram alone is a good reason to build an extra half day into a Chidambaram itinerary.

Beyond Chidambaram

There is more to explore within a short distance if time allows. Gangaikonda Cholapuram, built by the Chola king Rajendra I to rival the great temple at Thanjavur, lies within reach and is worthwhile for anyone interested in Chola temple architecture. Closer to town, the Thillai Kali temple honours a fierce form of the goddess and has its own strong local following, tied by legend to the same mythology as the Nataraja temple. A little further north, the temple towns of Sirkazhi and Vaitheeswaran Koil offer more of the same dense, ancient temple culture that this stretch of the Cauvery delta and coastal Tamil Nadu is known for.

Many travellers also combine Chidambaram with a stop in Pondicherry, the former French colonial town on the coast a little further north, which makes a good contrast, French Quarter streets and seafront cafes after temple towns and mangroves.

Food and where to stay

Chidambaram’s food scene is simple and largely vegetarian, in keeping with its identity as a temple town. Small eateries around the temple serve the usual South Indian staples, idli, dosa, sambar and thali meals on banana leaf, all straightforward and reliably good rather than fancy. A strong filter coffee afterwards is more or less mandatory. Do not expect an extensive restaurant scene here, this is a place for functional, honest food rather than dining as entertainment.

Accommodation follows the same pattern. There are budget lodges within easy walking distance of the temple and a handful of somewhat more comfortable mid range hotels in town, but nothing especially upmarket. Rooms are generally simple and functional. Many visitors treat Chidambaram as a day trip or a single overnight stop and base themselves in Pondicherry instead, which has a far wider range of hotels and guesthouses, particularly in and around the French Quarter.

Best time to visit

October to March is the most comfortable stretch, with cooler temperatures that make both temple visits and Pichavaram boating far more pleasant. This period also takes in two of the temple’s biggest occasions, Arudra Darshan in December or January, when the Nataraja bronze is taken out in procession and which is one of the most important festivals in the temple calendar, and Natyanjali around Maha Shivaratri in February or March. Summer months are hot and best avoided for extended walking around the temple. The monsoon brings welcome greenery to Pichavaram and the mangroves look their best, but it is worth checking boating conditions beforehand since heavy rain can affect the backwater routes.

Getting to Chidambaram

Chidambaram sits roughly 230 to 250 km south of Chennai, a journey of around five to five and a half hours by road depending on traffic and route. The town has its own railway station on the main line running down the coast, making rail a comfortable option too. It lies about 60 to 70 km south of Pondicherry, close enough to combine both in one trip along the coastal route through Cuddalore. The nearest airports are the small airport at Puducherry, with limited connections, or the larger airports at Tiruchirappalli and Chennai. For a full breakdown of routes, timings and how to plan the journey, see this guide to Chennai to Chidambaram.

A few practical tips

• Dress modestly, and be aware that men may be asked to remove their shirt or upper garment before entering the inner sanctum, in keeping with temple tradition. Footwear must be removed before entering the complex.
• The temple typically closes for a few hours around midday and reopens in the evening, so plan your visit around morning or evening hours rather than assuming it is open all day.
• Photography is restricted in parts of the temple, particularly around the sanctum, so check before taking pictures.
• If you plan to go boating at Pichavaram, try to arrive earlier in the day when conditions are calmer and it is less busy.
• Carry water, especially if visiting outside the cooler months, and move at the unhurried pace the temple and the town seem to expect.
• Remember this is an active place of worship looked after by the Dikshitar community, and behave accordingly around rituals and processions.

Chidambaram is not a place that reveals itself in a rushed hour or two. It rewards travellers drawn to temple architecture, to the idea of Nataraja and the deep connection between this temple and classical Indian dance, and to the strange, powerful idea of a shrine built around empty space. Pair it with a morning among the mangroves at Pichavaram and an easy run up the coast towards Pondicherry, and it becomes one of the more rewarding stops on a Tamil Nadu temple trail.