"Here
rose the potent city, Meliapor
Named in olden times,
Rich, vast and grand."
 Thus wrote Camoens in 1572, while to the famed astronomer Ptolemy
this 'rich, vast and grand' land was known as Mylarphon. This
thriving port of the mighty Pallava dynasty remains the essence of
Chennai and the city’s values to the Chennaivasis as they close
out one millennium and begin another.
Mylapore, it seems, has always been – and
may continue to be - the religious and cultural epicentre of the
Tamil people. Actually pre-dating the city of Chennai by several
thousand years, Mylai or Mylapore was first built on the Coromandel
shore. The arrival of the Portuguese in the mid-sixteenth century
drastically changed the course of Mylapore's history. Having
envisaged the idea of a colony at the shore, the Portuguese created
Fort San Thome by pushing Mylapore inward, where it has stood since.
The
Kapaleeshwarar temple that stands at Mylapore today is about 300-400
years old, though the temple is said to contain fragments of
inscriptions dating back to 1250 AD. These inscriptions may be
traces of the earlier shore temple that once dominated Mylapore. A
great shore temple dedicated to Shiva stood for many centuries in
the ancient coastal township of Mylapore, until the Portuguese
arrived. In pushing Mylapore away from the shores, the Portuguese,
it is believed, badly damaged this magnificent Shiva temple.
It is
this ancient temple that the relatively newer Kapaleeshwarar temple
replaced, having as its main deities Lord Shiva (or 'Kapaleeshwarar')
and Goddess Karpagambal. Just as the ancient Shiva temple dominated
the seaside town, even today Mylapore continues to be dominated by a
temple, also dedicated to Shiva, as is evident from the area’s
name – Mylapore.
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This literally translated means ‘A Town of
Peacocks’, 'mayil' being the Tamil word for peacock.
Architecturally, the Kapaleeshwarar temple
is a typical representative of the pure Dravidian style: side
entrances, gopurams, courts and a tank built around the central
shrine. The main shrine of the Kapaleeshwarar temple faces west and
is approached through the western gopuram behind the huge tank. This
western gopuram is both older and smaller than the impressive
120-foot eastern gopuram that was built as late as 1906. Both the
gopurams are characteristic of the Dravidian style in that they are
filled with colourful and elaborate sculptures detailing Puranic
tales. At the eastern entrance stands the majestic chariot, drawn by
devotees during the annual Ther Thiruvizha or the ‘car’
festival.
The
tank became a part of the temple premises when the Nawabs of the
Carnatic contributed the land in the 18th century. The
tank, once full of water, was best seen during the Theppam or float
festival every January when lighted lamps would be set afloat on the
waters. This main tank is now dry, as is the other one, the
Chitrakulam.
Today,
commercial establishments – big and small - surround the
rectangular site of the temple complex. Yet still, the temple
jewellers, silk merchants and flower vendors in these bazaars create
strong links to the past, links that are even more strengthened by
the scenes that greet you in the narrow lanes and by lanes that
surround the Kapaleeshwarar temple and the agraharams, where at dawn
young boys learn Sanskrit and chant mantras to this day.
Mylapore
seems like a gentle reminder that some things will never change and some lifestyles will stay
with us forever.
Anupama
Shekar, ark Commercials
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