One of the most sophisticated and complete cave temples, Ramanuja had three cells. It was excavated in the center of the main Mamallapuram hill, on its eastern scarp.K R Srinivasan (1964), Cave temples of the Pallavas, Archaeology Survey of India, Government of India, pages 175-180 The temple was partially renovated centuries after its construction into a shrine for the Vaishnava scholar, Ramanuja. The later artisans added the six crudely-cut, free-standing pillars in front, probably to extend the mandapa.
