Swaminatha Swamy Temple

The Swaminatha Swamy Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to god Murugan. It is located in Swamimalai, 5 km from Kumbakonam, on the banks of a tributary of river Kaveri in Thanjavur District, 290 km from Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, India. The temple is fourth abode of Murugan among six. The shrine of the presiding deity, Swaminathaswamy is located atop a 60 ft hillock and the shrine of his mother Meenakshi and father Shiva is located downhill. The temple has three gopuram, three precincts and sixty steps and each one is named after the sixty Tamil years. The temple has six daily rituals at various times from 5:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., and three yearly festivals on its calendar. The annual Vaikasi Visagam festival is attended by thousands of devotees from far and near.

As per Hindu legend, Murugan, the son of Shiva, extolled the meaning of the Pranava Mantra to his father at this place and hence attained the name Swaminathaswamy.