page_title: Vedapureeswarar Temple, Puducherry
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Vedapureeswarar Temple, Puducherry / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Vedapureeswarar Temple, Pondicherry
context_page_description: Vedapureeswarar Temple in Puducherry, in the South Indian union territory of Puducherry, is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, the temple was demolished by the French troops in 1748. Shiva is worshipped as Vedapureeswarar and his consort Parvathi as Tiripurasundari.
  A granite wall surrounds the temple, enclosing all its shrines. The temple has a five-tiered rajagopuram, the gateway tower. A Dewan named Dewan Kandappa Mudaliar expanded the temple with the help of public contributions in 1788.
  The temple is open from 6 am - 12:30 pm and 4:30 - 8:00 pm on all days. Four daily rituals and many yearly festivals are held at the temple, of which the Brahmotsavam festival during the Tamil month of Vaikasi, Annabishekam during Aipassi and Sivarathri during Masi being the most prominent. The temple is maintained and administered by the Department of Hindu religious institutions and Wakf of the Government of Puducherry.
context_section_description: Puducherry or Pondicherry was originally called Podouke(This was mentioned in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea.). This old port town Podouke( Now it is called Arikamedu) is 4 km from the present Puducherry.  As per investigation by Vimala Begley, this port city Podouke was at the peak between from the 2nd century BCE to the 8th century CE. This port city enjoyed extensive trade relations with Imperial Rome. François Martin the first Governor General of French India founded the modern Pondicherry, the future capital of French India in 1674. The Varadaraja temple housed the images of the Vedapureeswarar Temple during the destruction by the French troops during 1748. It is believed that the temple was totally destructed by the invading French troops and earlier by Muslim invaders. Dewan Kandappa Mudaliar, with the help of public contributions, reconstructed the temple in 1788. The details of the demolition has been recorded in the diary of a chronicler of a period named Ananda Rangam Pillai. The presiding deity in the temple is believed to have been migrated from the Samba Easwaran street to the temple during the later part of the 19th century. The temple is maintained and administered by Sri Vedapureeswarar Sri Varadaraja Perumal Devastanam under the Department of Hindu religious institutions and Wakf of the Government of Puducherry.
caption: Image of the temple tank
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