Rameswaram & Madurai Divya Desham Yatra

Ramanathaswamy Temple

The Holy abode of the Hindu God, Shri Ram (addressed so with all respect & humility) is a virtual paradise for the devout. No Hindu’s journey is complete without a pilgrimage to both Varanasi and Rameswaram for the culmination of his quest for salvation and is hallowed by the epic ‘Ramayana’. Folklore mentions about God Ram’s presence in this land, after his 14-year exile.

Local legend has it that Shri Ram was helped back into Rameswaram and into India by his brother Lakshman and Hanuman along with his band of thousands of monkeys, after finally emerging victorious against the demon – Ravana. They helped build a bridge with rocks from the sea and shores to cross the ‘Sethu canal’ and reach Lanka. Lord Rama is also believed to have sanctified this place by worshipping and glorifying Lord Shiva and hence marks the confluence of Shaivism and Vaishnavism and is thus revered by both Shaivites and Vaishnavites alike and thus there is a strong belief that bathing in the 22 ‘Theerthams’ or natural springs is a step forward in enlightenment. Therefore, Rameswaram has rightly been declared as one of the National Pilgrim Centres in the count.

The Ramanathaswamy temple by itself is a delight for every tourist. With its magnificent, imposing structure, long corridors, aesthetically carved pillars, the temple is adorned with a towering 38-metre ‘Gopuram’. The temple itself was built by rulers since the 12th century with Sethupathy Maravar beginning the construction of the grand Ramanathaswamy temple that boasts of the ‘Third Corridor’, completed by his successor, Maravar – the longest one in Asia with a 197-metre span from East to West and a 133-metre span from South to North, the third largest in the world! It is said that Swamy Vivekananda offered prayers at this temple in 1897. It is also one of the twelve Jyothirlinga temples, where Shiva is worshipped in the form of a Jyotirlingam.

Arulmigu Meenakshi Sundaraswarar Temple, Madurai

Meenakshi Temple, also referred to as Meenakshi Amman or Meenakshi Sundareshwara Temple, is a historic Hindu temple located on the southern bank of the Vaigai River in the temple city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India.The presiding deities are Meenakshi, a form of Parvati, and her consort, Sundareshwar, a form of Shiva. The temple is at the center of the ancient temple city of Madurai mentioned in the Tamil Sangam literature, with the goddess temple mentioned in 6th century CE texts.

The restored complex now houses 14 gopurams (gateway towers), ranging from 4550m in height, with the southern gopura tallest at 51.9 metres (170 ft). The complex has numerous sculpted pillared halls such as Ayirakkal (Thousand pillared hall), Kilikoondu-mandapam, Golu-mandapam and Pudu-mandapam.The temple attracts over a million pilgrims and visitors during the annual 10-day Meenakshi Tirukalyanam festival, celebrated with much festivities, fervour and a ratha (chariot) procession during the Tamil month of Chittirai (overlaps with April-May in Georgian calendar, Chaitra in North India). The Temple has been adjudged best Swachh Iconic Place in India as on October 1, 2017 under Prime Minister of India's Flagship Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

First have a look on various minor quadrangular complexes, 14 gopurams or towers or on out of which the tallest one, the southern tower, which stretches nearly 170 feet (52 meters) high. The temple which has five entrances, covers an area of 847 feet (254.1 meters) long and 792 feet (237.6 meters) wide in the North - South direction, the circumference of the Aadi Veedhi which is the path within the great walls is 830 feet (249 meters) on the east west and , measuring 730 feet (219 meters) from North - South direction.

It is believed that one who sprinkles the waters of the pond of Golden Lotus on Amavasya (new moon) day, the first day of the month, days of eclipse and other auspicious days and worship the Lord, they will be blessed with all their aspirations for success. The temple has four Rajagopurams or majestic towers, there are five towers on top of the sanctum sanctorum of the Lord, three on top of the sanctum sanctorum of the Goddess and two golden towers or vimanas, all which have been exquisitely designed and sculptured.

Only Hindus can go into the inner sanctums to worship the deity of Goddess Meenakshi and Lord Sundareswarar. There is access for everyone to worship the deities without any payment and special entrance tickets are also available for those who wishes to have the darshan quickly. The cost of special entrance is Rs.50/- for a single shrine either goddess Meenakshi or lord Sundaresara and Rs.100/- for both the shrines.

Namakkal Anjaneyar Temple

Namakkal Anjaneyar temple is located in Namakkal, a town in Namakkal district. It is dedicated to the Hindu god Hanuman. It is constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture. The legend of the temple is associated with Narasimha, an avatar of Hindu god Vishnu appearing for Hanuman and Lakshmi. The image of Anjaneyar is 18 ft (5.5 m) tall, making it one of the tallest images of Hanuman in India. The Agamam is followed by “Sri Vaikhanasam”.

The temple has a pillared hall leading to the sanctum. The temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu.

Koodal Azhagar Temple in Madurai

There are mentions of Koodal Alagar in Brahmanda Purana in its seven chapters. It is also said that the great King Prithu, Malaydioaja had worshipped Sri Koodal Alagar. As a result of which, Lord blessed them with opulence along with attainment of moksha.

According to a legend, Vishnuchitha who is considered to the foremost among the twelve Alwars, mystical saints, who used to praise lord Vishnu presence in temple in their poems. Vishnuchitha was known for quoting from vedic texts and his arguments on the sovereignty of Lord Narayana. Once he was invited to Madurai at the Pandya King court where he established the greatness of lord throughout his convincing arguments, after which a miracle happened which even made the King celebrate his divine victory. During the victory procession which was led by the King himself and many vedic saints, Sri Koodal Alagar appeared and blessed Vishnuchitha, who then sung Thirupallandu in the Lord’s praise and offered Mangalasasanam. Even today, Thirupallandu is chanted in the temples.

This temple was initially built during Pandya reign, while the pillars and shrine were developed later during Vijayanagar dynasty and the rule of Madurai Nayak kings.

The history of this temple can be traced back to Sangam Period. One can find mention of Koodal Azhagar Koil in Paripadal and Silappadikaram. Many poets from Sangam period have praised the presiding deity of this temple with the name of Thuvarikoman and Koodal Alagar.

Inscriptions in the temple describe the huge amount of gifts and donations this shrine used to receive for various constructions during various rules. For instance, during Madurai Nayaks rue in 16th century Dwajasthambam madap was built. Some parts of the temple were renovated even during 1920 and now it is under the maintenance of Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu.

During Pandyan regime also, Avani Onam festival dedicated to Lord Koodal Alagar used to be celebrated for a span of seven days. There are many other mentions of the Lord and the temple associated with this temple in ancient poems of Sangam period during 3rd Century in works such as Madurai Kanchi by Mangudi Marudan, Kaliththokai, Paripāṭal and Silappatikaram.