Scenes inside Munneeswaram Sivan Kovil, Chilaw, Sri Lanka.

Scenes inside the Munneeswaram Sivan Kovil, Chilaw, Sri Lanka.

Sights inside Muneeswaram Sivan Temple, Chilaw, Sri Lanka.

'Munneeswaram' temple, Chilaw, Sri Lanka.

Gilded chariot ('Ther').

Burning incense for a 'Yaga'.

The carnatic band.

A tree outside the temple.

The legend goes that there were five 'Easwarams' dedicated to the worship of 'Easwaran'- Lord Shiva, the supreme diety in the Hindu Pantheon, in ancient Sri Lanka. These 'Easwarams' were situated in Chilaw ( Munneeswaram), Mannar (Thiukketheewaram), Keerimalai (Naguleswaram), Trincomalee (Koneswaram) and one at the present Devinuwara -  Dondra. King Ravana of legendary fame was a devotee of Lord Shiva. Munneswaram by its name - 'Munthina' T earliest - identifies itself as the earliest of these Easwarams. One of the Brahmin priests officiating there claimed that he was the 16th in a generation of priests.This Shiva temple draws large crowds from the Sinhalese and Tamil populations of present Sri Lanka.

Video:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQYhst9tO2k

On the road from Kochchikade to Chilaw, Sri Lanka.