Question

Which of the cities is known as the city of seven pagodas?
(A) Mahabalipuram
(B) Thiruvananthapuram
(C) Kanchipuram
(D) Madurai

Answer 1

Hint: This city is named after the king of the Pallava Dynasty ‘Narasimhavarman I. Most of the Hindu monuments which are present in this city are registered under UNESCO and have been proclaimed as the ‘World Heritage Site' by UNESCO. The city is located on the coast of Coromandel.

Complete answer:
Mahabalipuram is known as the city of seven pagodas because the city is having seven temples at one place standing at the shore of Bay of Bengal. The city of Mahabalipuram is also known as Mamallapuram which means the ‘City of Great Power'. It is located in Tamil Naidu between the Great Salt of Lake and Bay of Bengal. There are many well-known monuments in Mahabalipuram some of which are Shore Temple, Krishna Butter Rock, The Old Lighthouse, Pancha Rathas. All these monuments made Mahabalipuram a very famous tourist attraction. It is said that there were six other temples present near the Shore Temple. Ages before, Lord Indra felt jealous of the city and he tried to sink them during the storm leaving only the Shore Temple above the water. The other tourist attraction is Krishna Butter Rock, it is said that despite its negligible contact with the ground it is standing as it is without shaking a bit. Mahabalipuram is considered as one of the holy cities of India.
So, the correct answer is Option A.

Note: Mahabalipuram is famous for the monuments, statues and sculptures built from very ancient times. At the time of British Rule, it was the most used port city from the point of trade. The Shore Temple which is the most famous temple took over 200 years in construction.