Shri Ekambareswarar Temple, Kanchipuram

According to legend, Goddess Parvati performed intense penance to attain Shiva under a mango tree on the banks of the Vegavati river. To test her devotion, Shiva sent fire and a flood of the Ganga, but Parvati protected the Shiva Linga she had fashioned from sand by embracing it, causing Shiva himself to merge into the linga, earning him the name 'Tazhuva Kuzhainthaar' ('He who melted in her embrace'), after which he married her. Because this took place beneath a single ('eka') mango ('amra') tree, Shiva came to be worshipped here as 'Ekambareswarar'.

Kanchipuram is one of the seven moksha-granting cities of Hindu tradition, and Ekambareswarar Temple represents the earth element among the Pancha Bhoota Sthalams, Shiva is worshipped here as the 'Prithvi Lingam'. The temple was originally built by the Pallava kings, later rebuilt by the Cholas, and expanded by the Vijayanagara emperor Krishnadevaraya, who between 1509-29 built the grand 11-storey gopuram, about 194 feet tall, along with the thousand-pillared hall.

The ancient mango tree within the temple complex, said to be about 3,500 years old, is a special draw for devotees, tradition holds that its four branches bear four different varieties of mango. The tree is regarded as marking the very spot where Goddess Parvati performed her penance.

Kanchipuram is also known as the 'City of a Thousand Temples', and alongside Ekambareswarar Temple, the Kamakshi Amman Temple and the Varadharaja Perumal Temple (one of Vishnu's 108 Divya Desams) are also worth visiting, most pilgrims cover these major shrines in a single trip.