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The region was once dense with Thillai trees, hence the name of the place Thillai.  These trees are not presently seen in the place.  However, they are in the backwater area in Pichavaram, east of Chidambaram. 

Presiding deity Tirumoola Nathar is a swayambumurthi. Yet, Lord Nataraja is the ruling deity. Of the panchabhoodha sthalas (places) Chidambaram belongs to Akasha.

This is a very big temple covering an area of 51 acres. Of the five celebrated dancing centers of Lord Nataraja, Chidambaram temple is Chittrambalam.

Lord Shiva is in three forms in Chidambaram, as visible idol form, formless as Akasha or space and form and formless as a Spatika Linga.

Chidambara Rahasyam – secret:  There is small entrance near Lord Sabanayaka in the Chit Saba.  The screen is removed and an arati is offered.  There is nothing in a form inside.  But there hangs a golden Vilwa garland without a Murthi.  The secret is that Lord is here as Akasha which has no beginning or an end.  This can be understood only by experience. 

Chit + Ambaram= Chidambaram.  Chit means wisdom.  Ambaram means broad open space not measurable.  “We have nothing with us” is the lesson from this philosophy.

All the four Saivite saints, Gnanasambandar, Tirunavukkarasar, Sundarar and Manickavasagar had praised Lord Nataraja in their moving devotional hymns Thevaram and Tiruvasagam.

The reputation of Chidambaram is still greater, because it is here that the hymns of great Saivite Saints were discovered.  They sang thousands of hymns in many Shiva Sthals they visited.  Where were they for the use of the devotees?  

Tirunarayur Nambiandar Nambi and king Tirumurai Kanda Chozhan fell at the feet of Lord Polla Pillayar – Vinayaka to guide them in the matter.  With the blessings of Lord Vinayaka, they came to know that all these great spiritual literatures with the signatures of the respective authors are hidden in this temple.  

They rushed to Chidambaram and worshipped the authors with respectful festivals.  They found the palm leaves covered by anthill and mostly consumed by insects.  Yet they picked up the available full leaves and saved them.  

All these invaluable spiritual literatures would have been totally lost but for the painstaking and devout labor of Nambiandar Nambigal and Tirumurai Kanda Chozhan.

Chidambaram Lord Nataraja probably is the first social reformer.  Nandanar, a dalit farm worker was a staunch Shiva devotee.  He desired to have the darshan of Lord but could not secure a holiday from his upper caste boss who said that as a low born he was not entitled for the privilege. 

Nandanar did not lose hope.  Naalai Pohalam – Let me go tomorrow – was his hope.  After many tomorrows, he finally reached Chidambaram but could not enter the temple due to his community. 

He tried to have the glimpse of Lord, but Nandhi, the bull vehicle of Lord Shiva, blocked the view.  Lord asked Nandhi to move and enabled Nandanar to have his darshan.  Nandanar attained salvation here and merged with Lord to the shock and surprise of the upper class.

It is said that the four Saivite Saints entered the temple through the four entrances of the temple, Manickavasagar through the east, Gnanasambandar from south, Appar from west and Sundarar from the north.

Appar-Tirunavukkarasar did his Angapradakshina in the car strees (Ratha Veedhi) of Chidambaram. Saint Manickavasagar cured the dumb daughter of the Buddhist king of Lanka with the blessings of Lord in the temple. 

There are five Sabhas in the temple – Chittrambalam, Ponnambalam, Perambalam, Niruddha Sabha and Rajatha Sabha.  

The shrines of Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu are so structured that the devotee can have twin darshan from one spot in the temple.  This is a temple where Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra bless the devotees together. 

The presiding deity is Adhimoola Nathar in the Linga form.  Sages Patanjali and Vyakrapada wished that people of this earth too should have the chance to view and enjoy the great dance of Lord Shiva performed at Mount Kailash. 

They came to earth and sat in penance on Adhimoolanathar for the purpose.  Responding to their selfless penance for the common people, Lord Shiva along with Tri Sahasra Muniswaras – 3000 sages came to this place and granted His dance darshan in Thai month (January-February) on Poosam Star day at 12.00 a.m.  These 3000 Muniswaras then came to known as Thillai Moovayiravar. 

Lord Brahma organized a yajna and invited the 3000 Muniswaras to join in the pujas.  They simply replied that no great soulful gain could be achieved  by attending the yagna than the darshan of Nataraja at Thillai Chidambaram.  

 Lord advised them to go and attend the yagna and promised to appear there at the end of the yagna.  That form of His appearance in the Brahma Loka is praised as Rathna Sabapathy. 

This idol is under the Nataraja idol.  Every day, between 10.00 a.m and 11.00 a.m. Arati is shown to Lord Rathna Sabapathi.

There is a similarity in the design of the Nataraja shrine and the human body, it is said.  The 21,600 golden tiles engraved with the Na Ma Shi Va Ya mantra represent the number of times one breathes each day.

 The 72,000 nails used in the Ponnambalam represent the number of nerves of the human body.  The 9 entrances represent the nine conveniences in the body activating our movements.  

Five steps to Ponnambalam represent the five letters of Na Ma Shi Va Ya Mantra.  Wooden supports numbering 64 represent 64 arts, 96 windows the 96 philosophies, the pillars the 4 Vedas, 6 Sastras, and Panchaboodas.

Sri Chakra installed by Acharya Adi Sankara is in the sannidhi of Ambica. The Arthajama puja in the temple has its own significance when it is believed that all other Gods assemble here for worship.

Great Saivite poet Sekkizhar released His magnum Opus Periapuranam in this temple.  Saint Arunagiriar had praised Lord Muruga of this temple in his Tirupugazh hymns.

Sage Vasishta, revered as the leader of Rishis had a relative Madyandinar by name.  He had a son named Maadyandinar (the first name is short in sound, the next longer – spelling differs).  Sage Vasishta advised that the boy should worship the Swayambulinga in Thillai Vanam forests for gaining complete spiritual wisdom. 

Son Maadyandinar reached this place.  He was sad that he lost his puja time in picking up flowers after sunrise and these flowers were not pure as the honey in the same are taken away by the bees. 

He appealed to Lord Shiva saying that he was unable to pick the flowers in darkness due to lack of light and the flowers become unfit if picked after sunrise.

Lord granted him hands and legs like that of a tiger to climb the tree and a bright vision to the eyes functioning well even in utter darkness. 

 Lord also said that he would be known henceforth as Vyakrapada as had the legs of a tiger.  Vyakrapada was too happy with the boon and name and continued his worship in Thillai.

The temple is known as the foremost of all temples to Saivites and has influenced worship, architecture, sculpture, and performance art for over two millennium. 

There have been several renovations and offerings to Chidambaram by the Pallava, Chola, Pandiya, Chera, and Vijayanagar royals in the ancient and pre-medieval periods. The temple as it stands now is mainly of the 12th and 13th centuries, with later additions in a similar style.

Chidambaram is the birthplace of the sculpture and bronze image representation of Lord Shiva as the cosmic dancer, a Tamilian concept and motif in Chola art that has since become notable as a symbol of Hinduism. 

The story of Chidambaram begins with Lord Shiva strolling into the Thillai Vanam (vanam meaning forest and thillai trees). In the Thillai forests resided a group of sages or 'rishis’  who believed in the supremacy of magic and that God can be controlled by rituals and mantras or magical words.

 Lord Shiva strolled in the forest with resplendent beauty and brilliance, assuming the form of Bhikshatana, a simple mendicant seeking alms. He was followed by His consort, Vishnu as Mohini. 

The sages and their wives were enchanted by the brilliance and the beauty of The handsome mendicant and His consort. On seeing their womenfolk enchanted, the rishis got enraged and invoked scores of snakes by performing magical rituals. 

Lord Shiva lifted the snakes and donned them as ornaments on His matted locks, neck, and waist. Further enraged, the sages invoked a fierce tiger, whose skin was used by Lord Shiva as a shawl around His waist and then followed by a fierce elephant, which was devoured and ripped to death by Lord Shiva (Gajasamharamurthy).

The rishis gathered all their spiritual strength and invoked a powerful demon Muyalakan - a symbol of complete arrogance and ignorance. Lord Shiva wore a gentle smile, stepped on the demon's back, immobilized him and performed the Ánanda Tandava (the dance of eternal bliss), and disclosed His true form. The sages surrendered, realizing that Lord Shiva is the truth and He is beyond magic and rituals.

The shrine is the only Shiva temple to have its main deity represented in this anthropomorphic form, as the supreme being who performs all cosmic activities.

Three of the five Panchaboothasthala temples, those at Kalahasti, Kanchipuram and Chidambaram all stand on a straight line exactly at 79 degrees 41 minutes East longitude - truly an engineering, astrological and geographical wonder. 

Of the other two temples, Tiruvanaikkaval is located at around 3 degrees to the south and exactly 1 degree to the west of the northern tip of this divine axis, while Tiruvannamalai is around midway (1.5 degrees to the south and 0.5 degrees to the west).

The temple has nine gateways, and four of these have gateway towers or gopurams each with 7 stories facing the East, South, West, and North. The South gopuram called the Sokkaseeyan Thirunilai Ezhugopuram was constructed by a Pandya king identified from the presence of the dynasty's fish emblem sculpted on the ceiling. 

The Pandyas sculpted two fishes facing each other when they completed gopurams (and left it with one fish, in case it was incomplete).

The earliest and smallest of the four is West gopuram constructed around 1150 and there are no reliable evidence on the construction.

The North Gopuram was initiated around 1300 A.D. with the brick portion constructed by the Vijayanagara king Krishnadevaraya (1509-1530 A.D.).

 the east Gopuram was claimed to have been constructed by the Pallava King Koperunsingan II (1243-1279 A.D.). The eastern gopuram is renowned for its complete enumeration of 108 poses of Indian classical dance – Bharatanatyam, detailed in small rectangular panels along the passage that leads to the gateway.

The Govindaraja shrine is dedicated to Vishnu and is one of the 108 holy temples of Lord Vishnu (Divya Desam S. No. 40).  Kulasekara Alwar mentions this temple as Tillai Chitrakutam and equates Chitrakuta of Ramayana fame with this shrine.

Govindarajar  was supposed to have performed the role of a judge to decide who was a better dancer – Lord Shiva or Goddess Parvathi.