Kapileshwar Temple – A visit to this one of the most ancient temple of Chennai will give you a glimpse of the glorious past of the city. The present form of the temple is the revamped form of the original one which was immersed in the sea. Tamil Nadu saw the rule of several rulers who contributed to its architectural beauty by building great temples and monuments. This temple was constructed by the Pallava in the 8th century.
Located in Mylapore, the arresting architecture of the Kapileshwar temple is of the Dravidian style. The temple is devoted to Lord Shiva. ?Thousands of devotees come to the temple to take blessings. Several sannadhis of several heavenly deities such as Vinayagar, Annamalaiyar, Murugar, Saneeswara, Durgai,Dakshinamurthy, Chandikeswarar are present here. The temple also houses a tank. Also noteworthy are the sixty three idols of Saivite saints. These beautiful idols are flawlessly carved in bronze. These saints devoted their lives in the worship of Lord Shiva. Inside the temple you can see the?? beautiful statues of almost all Hindu Gods.
The legend goes that in order to get married to Lord Shiva, goddess Parvati took the form of a peacock at Mylapore. This legend gave birth to the name Mylapore. Mayil in Tamil language means 'a peacock'.