ANTIQUITY AND DEITIES

The antiquity of each temple may have to be decided based on legend or history. According to a survey conducted by the Census Department, Government of India, there are 382 temples in the district. The Department identified 08 temples of the district as very ancient having more than two thousand years of age.  125 temples were constructed between 1st and 19th Century AD. 249 temples have been constructed during 20th Century AD.
The deities of the district are mainly Goddess Bhadrakali or Bhagavathy, Lord Vishnu, Lord Siva, Lord Ganapathy, Lord Subramanya, Lord Sastha etc based on various kalpa or sankalpa (concept). The hill tribes of the district have peculiar religious rites and practices. They worship deities of their own such as Malayandavar, Muniyandiswamy, Karuppaswamy etc. Number of temples based on various sankalpa is given below: