BRICS Summit 2026: Ramanathaswamy temple’s grand corridors take centre stage as PM Modi welcomes global leaders

As India hosts the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi under its 2026 chairship, Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed visiting BRICS leaders against a striking backdrop of the Ramanathaswamy Temple in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu.

The image of Modi alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping in the temple’s famed pillared corridor brought one of India’s most significant Shaivite temples into the global spotlight.

The choice of the Ramanathaswamy Temple backdrop also highlighted a major part of India’s cultural and architectural heritage. Located in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, the temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva.

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Significance of Ramanathaswamy Temple 

The temple is traditionally associated with the Ramayana and the worship of Shiva by Lord Rama. According to the religious tradition associated with the temple, Rama worshipped Shiva at Rameswaram before proceeding towards Lanka. The name Ramanathaswamy refers to Shiva as the “Lord of Rama.”

Beyond its religious importance, the temple is an important example of South Indian Dravidian temple architecture, distinguished by its monumental gateways, extensive corridors, sculpted pillars and multiple shrines.

The Tamil Nadu government's Ramanathapuram district website describes the temple as a major historic monument whose construction and expansion took place over several centuries, beginning from the medieval period.

A temple built over centuries

The present Ramanathaswamy Temple is not the work of a single ruler or period. Its architectural development took place over centuries, with contributions from different ruling houses and patrons.

The temple's history is associated with the Pandya period, while later additions and expansions were undertaken under the Nayak and Sethupathi rulers. The Sethupathis of Ramanathapuram played a particularly important role in expanding the temple complex and constructing its monumental corridors.

The temple's present architectural character therefore reflects several phases of South Indian temple-building rather than one continuous construction project.

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The world's longest temple corridor

The feature that makes Ramanathaswamy Temple particularly famous is its enormous network of pillared corridors.

The temple's outer corridor is widely recognised as the longest temple corridor in the world, extending for roughly 1,200 metres. The Ministry of Tourism's Incredible India portal describes the complex as having about 1,212 sculpted pillars along its celebrated corridors.

The temple's Third Corridor is especially notable. According to the Tamil Nadu government's Ramanathapuram district website, it measures about 197 metres from east to west and 133 metres from north to south.

The scale of the corridor creates the temple's characteristic visual effect: seemingly continuous rows of columns extending deep into the complex, with carved details and decorated ceilings forming a highly ordered architectural composition.

1,212 pillars and intricate architecture

The pillars are among the defining elements of Ramanathaswamy Temple. The outer corridor contains approximately 1,212 pillars, each forming part of the massive architectural rhythm of the passageways.

The complex also contains imposing gopurams, mandapams, subsidiary shrines and sculptural elements. The long corridors connect different sections of the temple while simultaneously functioning as major architectural spaces in their own right.

The temple's architecture is particularly significant because the corridors are not simply functional walkways. Their enormous dimensions, repeated columns and sculptural detailing make them one of the most recognisable examples of monumental temple architecture in southern India.

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The 22 sacred wells

Another distinctive feature of Ramanathaswamy Temple is its 22 theerthams, or sacred water sources, within the temple complex. These form an important part of the traditional pilgrimage associated with Rameswaram.

The temple's ritual geography therefore combines the shrine, its corridors and its sacred water sources into a single pilgrimage complex.