Meenakshi
Amman Temple
Madurai Meenakshiamman Temple
was built by the King Kulasekara Pandya, but
the entire credit for making the temple as
splendid as it is today goes to the Nayaks. The
Golden Lotus
in Potramaraikulam, the magnificient
Gopurams with
sculptures and the mandapams are
worth to be seen. |
Azhagar
Temple
Lord
Paramaswamy is the deity here, the brother of
Goddess Meenakshi. The
shrine of this deity is opened only once in a
year. The
processional idol is known in the name of
Alagar or Sundararajan. This
idol was made in ancient times and it is pure
gold. In this temple, there are shrines for
Goddess Kalyana Sundaravalli, Goddess Andal,
Sudarshanar and Yoga Narasimha. During
the Chittirai festival, Lord Alagar goes to
Madurai to see
the divine wedding of Meenakshi
with Sundareswarar. Other festivals grandly
celebrated here are Aadi
Perukku and Panguni
Uthiram. |
Thirumalai
Nayakar Palace
The
King Thirumalai
Nayak was the
builder of this wonderful palace. The
Pudumandapam near the Meenakshiamman temple was
also built by him. He also deserves the pride of
digging out the Vandiyur
Teppakkulam. It
is said that the palace was initially four times
vast compared to the present one. The
Swarga
Vilasam exemplifies the skills of
the ancient builders. Everyday, the epic Silappathikaram & the
history of Thirumalai
Nayak are enacted here for the
visitors. |
Gandhi
Museum
It
is of great value to our family if we visit this
museum to know more about the "Father of our Nation"
rather than reading books. The Gandhi Memorial
Museum has
got a Picture Gallery, "The Hall of
Relecs", a Research section and an
open-air theatre. Exhibits
of various handicrafts & Khadi products
are arranged for the visitors. A special
exhibition demonstrates the Freedom Struggle
with more number of illustrations. In the "The
Hall of Relecs" Gandhiji's personal
belongings (originals and replicas) are
preserved. Cultural events are conducted in the
theatre for visitors. |
Vandiyur
Mariamman Temple
This
temple is famous for its Teppakulam(tank) which
has a mandapam at its centre where
Lord Vignesh
resides. This tank receives water from river
Vaigai. The Teppakulam Float Festival is
celebrated on the
Full Moon Day of the Tamil month of Thai which
is a spectacular sight to be seen. On that day,
the deities float in the Teppakulam in brightly
lit up floats & the water seems to be
colorful. |
Thirupparamkundram
Situated
6 kms from Madurai,
Thirupparamkundram is considered as the
first Aarupadai
Veedu of Lord Muruga.
It
is a cave temple. This is the place
where Lord Muruga defeated the demon Surapadman
and the wedding of Deivayani (daughter of
Deivendran) with Lord Muruga took place.
This temple is considered as a holy
one. |
Pazhamudhir
Solai
Among
the six places, the hills of Pazhamudir Cholai
served as the last padai veedu for Lord Subramanya. This
location is formerly known as Solai Malai. Situated
near Madurai, this
place also acts as a pilgrimage spot.
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