"Seven Pagodas" has served as a nickname for the south Indian city of Mamallapuram, also called Mahabalipuram, since the first European explorers reached it. The phrase "Seven Pagodas" refers to a belief that has circulated in India, Europe, and other parts of the world for over eleven centuries. The group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, including the Shore Temple built in the 8th century under the reign of Narasimhavarman II, stand at the shore of the Bay of Bengal. Legend has it that six other temples once stood with it.