Keerimalai Naguleswaram Temple, Jaffna

Description and is it worth a visit

Keerimalai Naguleswaram temple or Naguleswaram Shiwa Kovil or Thirutambaleswaram Kovil is one of the most famous and revered Hindu temples in northern Sri Lanka. It is located next to the sacred spring of Keerimalai, and they are usually visited jointly.

It is believed that the temple was built in 543-505 BC, and is the oldest in the region. Of course, during its existence, it was repeatedly destroyed, and the last time this happened in 1993, when it was bombed by government armed forces during the Civil War. After that, it was restored, and what you will see today is everything restored. However, not everyone knows that very close to the temple there is an archaeological site on which the ruins of the old Keerimalai Ambalama temple are well preserved, and some of them are impressive in their appearance, and somewhat resemble the famous ruins of Angkor (See Photo). You can visit this archaeological site for free, as well as the temple itself. Inside the temple you can freely inspect everything, but photography is strictly prohibited.