Temple of India: Mahabalipuram

Mamallapuram, also known as Seven Pagodas or Mahabalipuram (old name), is a town in Chengalpattu district in the southeastern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.t is on the coastline 58 kilometres (36 mi) south of the city of Chennai. An ancient historic town and a bustling seaport in the 1st millennium CE, now a beachside tourism center with a group of Hindu monuments declared as UNESCO world heritage site, it is one of the most visited towns in South India.

Mamallapuram was one of two major port cities by the 7th century within the Pallava kingdom. Along with economic prosperity, it became a center of a group of battle monuments carved out of rock. These are dated to the 7th and 8th centuries: rathas (temples in the form of chariots), mandapas (cave sanctuaries), giant open-air rock reliefs such as the famous Descent of the Ganges, and the Shore Temple dedicated to Shiva, Durga, Vishnu, Krishna and others.

The site has 40 ancient monuments and Hindu temples, including Descent of the Ganges or Arjuna's Penance – one of the largest open-air rock relief in the world. 

The site includes several categories of monuments: ratha temples with an architecture of monolith processional chariots built between 630 and 668 CE; the mandapa viharas with halls and stone roofs with

narratives from the Mahabharata, Shaktism and Vaishnavism; rock reliefs particularly bas-reliefs of Shaivism, Shaktism and Vaishnavism; stone cut temples particularly those dedicated to Shiva that also reverentially display Vishnu and others, built between 695 and 722 CE; and, archaeological excavations with inscriptions some dated to 6th century and earlier. The cave temples and monolithic temples were built during the Pallava Period. The site is managed by the Archaeological Survey of India.

Some important structures include:

• Thirukadalmallai, the temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu. It was also built by Pallava King in order to safeguard the sculptures from the ocean.
• Descent of the Ganges or Arjuna's Penance – a giant open-air rock relief
• Varaha Cave Temple – a small rock-cut temple dating back to the 7th century.
• The Shore Temple – a structural temple along the Bay of Bengal with the entrance from the western side away from the sea. Recent excavations have revealed new structures here.
• Pancha Rathas (Five Chariots) – five monolithic pyramidal structures named after the Pandavas (Arjuna, Bhima, Yudhishtra, Nakula and Sahadeva) and Draupadi. An interesting aspect of the rathas is that, despite their sizes they are not assembled – each of these is carved from one single large piece of stone. The longest of these rathas is the Bhima ratha with a length of nearly 12.8 m and the tallest one is Yudhishtra ratha.
• Light House, built in 1894.