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The
ruling princes
of Narayanavanam made additions by building the spacious garbhagriha, in
addition to sculptural adornments made to several parts. Next comes Tondaman
Chakravarti, ruling from Tondamanadu, a few kilometers off the present temple.
He contributed to the further expansion by digging a grand broad tank for the
benefit of citizens and visiting pilgrims. Celebrated Pallavas entering the area
of expansion, built many mini-shrines and fortified the fort walls, adoring them
with mahadwaras surmounting tall towers. Their beautification of several parts
in and out of the main mandir still peeps into the eyes of the pilgrims and
drives home the truth that offering Kainkarya to the temple tantamount to
worshipping of the lord. Does not awakening of the aesthetic sense, end in
enkindling spiritual instincts? The superb sculpture beautifying the portals of
the garbhagriha illustrates this point. The Gali gopuram lying a little further
the Bichchala gopuram, was undertaken to heighten the low lying area of the
river Swarnamukhi then flowing very close to the temple, which construction
consummated in the expansion of the town.
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