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| Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple | |
|---|---|
நயினாதீவு நாகபூசணி அம்மன் கோயில் | |
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| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Hinduism |
| District | Theevakam, Jaffna |
| Province | Northern |
| Deity | Sri Nagapooshani Amman and Sri Nayinaar Swami |
| Festivals | Mahostavam (Thiruvizha), Navaratri, Shivaratri, Aadi Pooram |
| Governing body | Nainai Nagapooshani Amman Devasthaanams |
| Features |
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| Location | |
| Location | Nainativu |
| Country | Sri Lanka |
  Location in the Northern Province | |
| Geographic coordinates | 9°37′8.6″N 79°46′27.4″E / 9.619056°N 79.774278°E |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Dravidian architecture |
| Creator | Lord Indra |
| Completed | Unknown |
| Inscriptions | Tamil Inscription of Parâkramabâhu I |
| Website | |
| www.nainainagapooshani.com | |
| Part of a series on |
| Sri Lankan Tamils |
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Nainativu Nagapooshani Amman Temple [Tamil: நயினாதீவு நாகபூசணி அம்மன் கோயில், romanized: Nayiṉātīvu Nākapūcaṇi Am'maṉ Kōyil - Meaning: Nainativu (island/city of the temple); Nagapooshani (The Goddess who wears snakes as jewellery); Amman (Goddess)] is an ancient and historic Hindu temple located amidst the Palk Strait on the island of Nainativu, Sri Lanka. It is dedicated to Parvati who is known as Nagapooshani or Bhuvaneswari and her consort, Shiva who is named here as Nayinaar. The temple seems to have been mentioned in the Brahmanda Purana[citation needed]. The temple complex houses four gopurams (gateway towers) ranging from 20–25 feet in height, to the tallest being the eastern Raja Raja Gopuram soaring at 108 feet high. The temple is a significant symbol for the Tamil people, and has been mentioned since antiquity in Tamil literature, such as Manimekalai and Kundalakesi. The present structure was built during 1720 to 1790 after the ancient structure was destroyed by the Portuguese in 1620. The temple attracts around 1000 visitors a day, and approximately 5000 visitors during festivals. The annual 16-day Mahostavam (Thiruvizha) festival celebrated during the Tamil month of Aani (June/July) - attracts over 100,000 pilgrims. There is an estimated 10,000 sculptures in this newly renovated temple.
This temple is also called by this names by many devotees:
நயினை ஸ்ரீ நாகபூசணி அம்பாள் கோயில் - Nayinai Sri Nagapooshani Ambaal Temple
Nayinai is the meaning of Nainativu in short or also the Shiva name, Nayinaar
நயினை (romanized: Nayinai) is written "Nainai" or "Nayinai" in English language. Both versions are correct, but "Nayinai" is more correct as it is representing the ய் sound in Tamil (equivalent to y).