Description
This temple is located in Anbil, a village in the outskirts
of Tiruchirappalli in the South Indian statee of Tamil Nadu.
It is one of the 108 Divyadesam dedicated to Vishnu, who
is worshipped as Pundarikakshan and his wife Lakshmi
as Pankajavalli.
History
The temple was built by Shivi Chakravarthy, king of
Ayodhya in Treta Yuga 15 lakh years ago. A Swastika
shaped temple tank built in 800 AD by Kamban
Araiyan during the reign of Dantivarman is outside the
temple complex. The Vijayanagar and Nayak kings
commissioned paintings on the walls of the shrine of
Pudarikakshan, some of which are still present.
Importance/Significance
As per Hindu legend, the eighteen steps in the temple
represent the eighteen chapters of the Hindu scripture
Bhagwat Gita and the last four steps represent the four
Vedas, the sacred Hindu religious texts. The sound made
in front of some of the big pillars of the temple echoes
around the temple. Some of the ancient Sanskrit books
consider the temple as a uthamakshetram, meaning the
place that gives the best to its devotees
Festivals/Events/Gatherings