Kallakurichi

Kallakurichi lies in the inland Tamil country south of the Kalrayan Hills. The wooded hills rise above the cultivated plains and have long been home to communities whose chiefs held authority over the uplands. Their jagirdars traced their position to the time of the Vijayanagara emperor Krishnadevaraya. Temples in the surrounding country include the shrine of Arthanareeswarar at Rishivandiyam, where Shiva is worshipped in a form shared with the goddess.