Thoothukudi / Tuticorin

Our next stop was Thoothukudi or Tuticorin, the port city. It was an easy 3.5 hour drive along the coast from Rameswaram. Decent road. Miles upon miles of salterns along the way. Never realized that the production of salt was such a big industry here.

We stayed at the Regency Tuticorin Hotel belonging to the GRT chain. We have stayed at GRT hotels before and we knew what to expect. Although rated only 3 stars, it is a clean, comfortable hotel with a decent restaurant. Thoothukudi being a busy port city I would have expected some classy business digs but this was the best in town and it served our purpose well. 

It was a good hub to visit Srivaikuntham, Thiruchendur, the historic sites of Panchalankurichchi, Adichanallur and others.

Thirupullani - Athi Jagannatha Perumal Koil

This is an ancient Vishnu temple about 15 minutes (11 Km) from Uthirakosamangai. You can do both together. It is a Divya Desam temple venerated in the Naalayira Prapantham and closely associated with the Ramayanam. Sri Raman spent 3 nights here contemplating the invasion of Lanka resting his head on a pillow of the Dharbai grass. Hence the name of this place. The legends again speak of a coastal temple but it now lies at least 5 km from the shore, suggesting that the sea indeed receded around here. 

Again it is the end result of a thousand years of temple building with a Pandian core. The Cholas, Vijayanagar, Nayakkar and the Sethupathis contributed in their own way. There is some evidence that the Jaffna kings of northern Sri Lanka also contributed to this in the 12th century. Beautiful temple.

Visited August 2019. Base Rameswaram.

Thiru Uthirakosamangai

Here is another amazing temple for those who have stuck with us thus far in this series of posts - you are in for a treat.

72 km or a 90 minute drive west of Rameswaram, over the Pamban bridge, on the mainland of the ancient Sethu country lies this very large and very old temple. Set in a serene rural area, this is indeed a hidden treasure. Some claim that this is the oldest Sivan temple in the south. The site obviously is very old. Surprisingly it is not a Paadal Petra Sthalam. Perhaps the Pathikam was lost. 

Numerous legends abound. The name comes from the legend that Siva disclosed the secret of the universe to Uma at this site. Mandothari worshipped Sivan at this place and married Ravanan here. The 64th Thiruvilayadal - the Valai Veesiya Padalam - when Siva in a fit of anger cursed Parvathi to be born as a fisherman's daughter and Nanthi as a shark, is believed to have happened here. He later appeared as a fisherman, caught the shark and married the fisherman's pretty daughter. Siva gave a private audience of the cosmic dance to Parvathi here before he danced in the Thillai forest. There are many many other stories, too numerous to write here.

The current structure again is an amalgamation of many styles by different builders over time. The Pandian kings built the core and others added on to it. Can see the stamp of the Sethupathi kings too. Lots of fish symbols of the Pandians. The legends mention a coastal temple. The sea seems to have receded several kilometres here. The six foot ancient emerald statue of Nataraja here is very special and is covered in sandalwood paste for most of the year to protect it. At 20 acres it is larger than most other temples.

Come here to be blessed if you are a Saivite. If you are not, still come here to experience the history and the beauty of an ancient temple in a peaceful setting. Please note the difference in style of the inner gopurams (likely Pandian) and the outer gopurams. Different eras. The narrow tall rajagopuram is for the Siva shrine and the squat shorter one is for the Amman shrine.

Visited August 2019. Base Rameswaram

Thiru Uthirakosamangai

Ramanathaswamy Temple - Rameswaram

This is a well known temple but I have included it here as it is one of the most important temples in the region.

This vast temple is well known and one of the most important Shivasthalams in all of India. It is one of the 12 Jyothirlinga Sthalams and one of the four Char Dhams. It is a Paadal Petra Sthalam and has been praised in song by all three of the Moovar - Sampanthar, Naavukkarasar and Suntharar. It is revered both by Saivites and Vaishnavites and is one of the most important pilgrimage sites in India.

The origins are shrouded in the mists of time. When Lord Rama returned after retrieving Sita, he wanted to thank Lord Siva for his blessings and to seek forgiveness for killing Ravana, the great Siva bhakthan. Hanuman went to Kailash to bring a lingam for Rama to worship but was delayed. Sita became impatient and fashioned a lingam out of sand on the Rameswaram sea shore and it solidified. When Hanuman returned with his lingam he threw a tantrum. Both lingams are in the sanctum - Ramalingam ( Sita's creation) and Hanuman's Visvalingam. It is traditional to worship Hanuman's lingam first by Lord Rama's decree. It is believed that Hanuman's tail made a mark on the main lingam when he was angry and it is still there. 

Many dynasties have contributed to building this temple. Originally built in the 10th century by Pandian kings, it has contributions from Chola, Sri Lankan (the great king Parakramabahu), Jaffna Kings (Singai Ariyan), Vijayanagar and Nayakkan. But the greatest contributions have been by the Sethupathy kings of Ramanathapuram in the early 18th century. What we see today is the culmination of a thousand years of temple building. It is large ( 15 acres in area) and boasts the longest temple corridor and many gopurams.

The only problem with the famous temples is that thousands of people converge here from all over India and the world on a daily basis. The sites lack the infrastructure to handle these crowds which leads to congestion and a somewhat messy environment. Add to it the tight but necessary security, it is difficult to fully appreciate this temple. No cell phones were allowed inside the premises and I do not have enough pictures to show you. If you go - go in the late afternoon when it is less crowded.

Road to Rameswaram

After leaving Madurai our next stop was Rameswaram, the pilgrimage site on Pamban island. The drive was a smooth and pleasant 3 hours along the brand new NH87 four-laned highway. With the network of NH highways, traveling by motor vehicle has become a breeze in these parts. We stayed at the Hyatt - comfortable, clean and modern hotel belonging to the international chain. A few years ago there were not many nice options for quality accommodation, but this is rapidly changing.

Rameswaram is home to the famous Ramanathaswamy Sivan temple. We will dedicate another post to it.

The island has many interesting sites and a storied past. At Dhanushkodi, the very tip of the island you can see the ruins of the ghost town of Dhanushkodi devastated and abandoned by the cyclone of December 1964 that took many lives in Northern Sri Lanka and Rameswaram. The ferry to Mannar used to leave from here. 

The island has many sites intimately connected to the Ramayanam.

The Pamban bridge to the island is one the longest sea bridges in India. 

As you enter the island you will also encounter the memorial to APJ Abdul Kalam, scientist, statesman and former president of India. This newly built modern monument is well designed and worth a visit.

Gandhi Museum Madurai

Before we leave Madurai and explore another set of temples, I thought I will highlight this historical building. Called the Thamukkam Palace, it was built in 1670 in the early Indo-Saracenic style as a palace for the Nayakkan royal family. The powerful and able Nayakan queen Rani Mangammal, lived here whenever she was in Madurai. It served as the British administrative headquarters during colonial times. Today, it houses the Gandhi Memorial Museum which is a nice exhibit of the Mahatma's life. Wonder how many people know that the young and dapper lawyer returning from South Africa shed his Western clothes for the Khadhar garment that he wore afterwards, right here in Madurai. The museum houses a part of the blood-stained garment that he wore on the day of his death. Admission is free.

Visited August 2019.

Thiruchuli Thirumeninathar or Bhoominathar temple

Ready for another jewel of a temple? This large temple to Siva is situated 45 kms to the southeast of Madurai. Solidly built granite temple with wide prakarams, it is a nice quiet temple to experience without the crowds you will encounter in more well known temples. It is a Paadal Petra Sthalam - 12th of the 14 in the Pandian country. Suntharar composed the Pathikam in the 8th century. As usual it has been added on to by many dynasties but has a very solid Pandian foundation as evident by the many fish symbols on the ceilings of the inner prakarams. It has a seven tier rajagopuram, likely of Nayakkan or later origin but not very tall. Pay attention to the inner walls built of granite blocks without mortar or other binders that have withstood the test of time for a thousand years. Its is a Katrali or granite temple. I loved this temple and will highly recommend it to anyone. It is only about an hour's drive from Madurai

Visited August 2019 Base Madurai