Kanchipuram: Encyclopedia - Kanchipuram

Kanchipuram

Kanchipuram, Kanchi, or Kancheepuram (also sometimes Conjeevaram) is the name of a temple town and the headquarters of Kanchipuram district in Tamil Nadu, India. In ancient times it is called as kachi and kachiampathi.

Kanchipuram] is located on the Palar River, and known for its temples and silk sarees. There are several big temples, notably Ekambaranatha Temple which is one of the five form of abodes of Lord Siva, (it is the earth abode here, other abodes include Chidambaram(Sky), Kalahasthi (air), Thiruvanika (water) and Thiruvannamalai (fire)), Kamakshi Amman Temple, Varadharaja Perumal Temple, Kumara Kottam, Kachapeshwarar Temple, Kailasanathar Temple and many more. Kanchipuram is also famous for its silk sarees, which are woven manually and considered as a finest quality in India.

Kanchipuram - History

Kanchipuram is one of the oldest cities in South India, and was a city of learning for both Tamil and Sanskrit, and was allegedly visited by Hsuan Tsang. It was during the reign of Pallava dynasty, from the 4th to the 9th centuries that Kanchipuram attained its limelight. The city served as the Pallava capital, and many of the known temples were built during their reign. The Chinese martial art of Shaolin, and the Zen school of thought, both went to China and Japan from Kanchipuram. Both these great contributions were taken to the far east by the third son of a Pallava king, who would later be known as Bodhidharma.

The king of Kanchi, Mahendravarman-I was a great scholar and musician, a man of great intelligence and also a great playwright. Yuan Chwang, the great Chinese traveler, visited the city in the 7th century and said that this city was 6 miles in circumference and that its people were famous for bravery and piety as well as for their love of justice and veneration for learning. He further recorded that Buddha had visited the place. As regards learning, Kanchi stood second in glory only to Banaras.The history of Kanchi can be traced back to several centuries before the advent of the Christian era. The place finds its name in Patanjali's Mahabhashya written in the second century B.C. Manimekalai, the famous Tamil classic, and Perumpanattu Padai, a great Tamil poetical work, vividly describe the city as it was at the beginning of the Christian era.Pathupattu, one of the sangam literatures reads that the king Thondaiman Ilandirayan ruled this town around 2500 years ago

From the 3rd to the 9th century A.D. Kanchi was the capital of the Pallavas who ruled over the territory extending from the river Krishna in the north to the river Kaveri in the south. The Pallavas fortified the city with ramparts, moats, etc., with wide and well laid out roads and fine temples. They were a great maritime power with contacts with far-off China, Siam, Fiji, etc., through their chief Port Mamallapuram, the modern Mahabalipuram. The Cholas ruled this town from 10th century to 13th century. Kings of Vijayanagara dynasty ruled from 14th century to 17th century. The temple tower, 192 feet height in Ekamabaranadhar temple and 100-pillar mandabam (building) in Varadaraja Perumal temple in this town are famous for the architectural techniques of Vijayanagara Dynasty. The British Viceroy Robert cleave, who is responsible for the British Ruling in India had exclaimed the architectural techniques of Varadharaja perumal temple and presented a fabulous jewelry to this temple. Kanchi was a major seat of Tamil learning as well as an important place of pilgrimage for Buddhists, Jains and Hindus.Once the seat of learning and religious fervour started its climb down from the mughal ionvasions followed by three centuries of colonial rule under the british.

Kanchipuram is also the seat of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam established by the holy Saint Shankaracharya and this tradition continues to date. The Living God Kanchi Mahaswami preached and propogated peace from here.

Kanchipuram - The Kanchi matha

Kanchipuram is also the seat of the Kanchi matha, an influential religious institution.

Kanchipuram - Kanchi Silk Sarees

Today, apart from its temples, this small town is also known for its thriving handloom industry. Kancheepuram town is also known as Silk City since the main profession of the people living in and around is weaving silk sarees,more than 5,000 families are engaged in this industry. The silk weavers of Kanchi settled more than 400 years ago and have given it an enviable reputation as the producer of the best silk sarees in the country. Woven from pure mulberry silk and have an enviable reputation for texture, lustre, durability and finish. The sarees in dazzling colours are available in every imaginable design and variety, which can make the job of selection quite challenging.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Kanchipuram", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki