Madurai
pilgrimage
centers
Amarnath
Amritsar
Ayodhya
Badrinath
Bodha
Gaya
jyothirlingas
kanyakumari
Khajuraho
konark temple
Madurai
Mathura
Pandharpur
Pashupatinath
Puri Jagannath
Rameswaram
Rishikesh
Sarnath
Satya sai baba
Shani Shingnapur
Srikalahasti
Shri
Lakshmi GoldenTemple
Tirupathi
Vaishno Devi
SadGurus
Akkalkot
Maharaj
Shripad
SriVallabh
Dwadasa
jyotirlingas
Somanath
Shrishailam
Omkareshwar
Vaidyanath
Maha
Kaleshwar
Kashi
vishwanath
Bhimashankar
kedarnath
Nageshwer
Trimbakeshwar
Grishneshwar
Shakti
peethas
Sightseeing
Agra
Ajanta caves
Delhi
Ellora caves
Goa
Jaipur
Kashmir
Manasarovar
Foreign Trips
The ancient southern Indian city of Madurai that has earned the
sobriquet, 'Athens of the East', is a place of great historical
importance. Said to be the oldest city in South India, Madurai
stands on the banks of the sacred river Vaigai, eternalized in Lord
Shiva's exploits in the 'Halasya Purana'.
Madurai's fame rests almost entirely on the famous temples
dedicated to goddess Meenakshi and Lord
Sundareswar.
History of the Meenakshi
Temples
The shrine of Meenakshi at Madurai, popularly known as the
Meenakshi Temple, was built during the reign of Chadayavarman
Sundara Pandyan in the 12th century. The imposing 9-storey tower
was built between the 13th and 16th century. During the 200-year
reign of Nayakka rulers, many Mandapams (covered structure with
pillars) were constructed in the temple premises, like the Hall of
Thousand Pillars, Puthu Mandapam, Ashta Sakthi Mnadapam, Vandiyoor
Theppakulam, and Nayakkar Mahal. The temple, as it stands today,
was built between 12th and 18th century.
The
Majestic Entrance:
Many majestic towers (gopurams), small and big, beckon one and
all
to
this historic temple. As it is a common practice to worship Devi
Meenakshi first and then Lord Sundareswarar, devotees enter the
temple through the Ashta Sakthi Mandapam on the eastern street,
named after the figures of eight
sakthis
represented
on the pillars on two sides. At this Mandapam, one can see the
vivid scriptural representation of Devi Meenakshi's wedding with
Ganesha and Subramanya on either side.
The Temple Complex:
Crossing
over, one comes to the extensive Meenakshi Naickar Mandapam, named
after the builder. This Mandapam has five aisles separated by six
rows of stone pillars on which are carved holy sculptures. At the
western end of the Mandapam is the massive Thiruvatchi containing
1008 brass oil lamps. Adjacent to the Mandapam is the holy golden
lotus tank. Legend has it that Indra bathed in this tank to rinse
out his sins and worshiped Lord Shiva with the golden lotus from
this tank.
Expansive
corridors surround this holy tank and on the pillars of the
northern corridor the figures of 24 poets of the third 'Tamil
Sangam' are etched. On the walls of the northern and eastern
corridors exquisite painting depicting scenes from 'Puranas'
(ancient scriptures) can be seen. The verses of Tirukkural are
inscribed on marbles slabs on the southern
corridor.
The Meenakshi Shrine :
A
three-storied 'gopuram' stands at the entrance of the shrine and on
the outer sanctum, the golden flagstaff, Thirumalai Nayakar
Mandapam, brass images of Dwarapalakas, and shrines of Vinayaka can
be seen. The Maha Mandapam or the inner sanctum can be reached
through the doors in Arukal Peedam where the shrines of Ayravatha
Vinayakar, Muthukumarar, and the celestial bedroom is extant. In
the shrine, Devi Meenakshi is depicted as the fish-eyed goddess who
stands with a parrot and bouquet, emanating love and
grace.
The Sundareswar Shrine:
Dwarapalakas,
which are twelve feet in height, stand guard at the entrance to the
swamy shrine. On entering one can see the 'arukal peedam' (pedestal
with six pillars) and two brass covered Dwarapalakas. There are
shrines dedicated to Sarawathi 63 Nayanmars, Utsavamoorthi, Kasi
Viswanathar, Bikshadanar, Siddhar and Durgai. On the northern
corridor is the holy Kadamba tree and the Yagna shala (large fire
altar).
The Shiva Shrine:
In
the next sanctum is the shrine of Lord Nataraja where the Lord is
worshiped in the dancing pose with his right foot raised. Adjacent
to it is the sanctum of Sundareswarar, which is supported by 64
boothaganas (ghostly hosts), 8 elephants and 32 lions. The
Sivalinga, which bears the names of deities such as Chokkanathar
and Karpurachockar, inspires deep
devotion.
The Hall of Thousand Pillars:
This
hall is a testimony to the excellence of Dravidian architecture.
The hall has 985 pillars and is so arranged that from every angle
they appear to be in a straight line. At the entrance is the
equestrian statue of Ariyanatha Mudaliar who built this consortium
of art and architecture. The 'chakram' (wheel of time) engraved on
the ceiling denoting the 60 Tamil years is truly spellbinding. The
images of Manmatha, Rathi, Arjuna, Mohini, and the Lady with a
flute are nonetheless awe-inspiring. There is a unique exhibition
of rare artifacts and idols in this
hall.
The Famous Musical Pillars &
Mandapams:
The
Musical Pillars are near the northern tower, and there are five
musical pillars each consisting of 22 smaller pillars - carved out
of a single stone - that produce musical notes when
tapped.
There
are numerous other Mandapams, small and big, in this temple, like
the Kambathadi, Unjal and Kilikoottu Mandapams - all of which can
marvelous specimens of Dravidian art and
architecture.
The
enormous temple complex is dedicated to Shiva, known here as
Sundareshvara and his consort Parvati or Meenakshi. The original
temple was built by Kulasekara Pandya, but the entire credit for
making the temple as splendid as it is today goes to the Nayaks.
The Nayaks ruled Madurai from the 16th to the 18th century and left
a majestic imprint of their rule in the Meenakshi - Sundareswarar
Temple.
The temple complex is within a high-walled enclosure, at the core
of which are the two sanctums for meenakshi and Sundareshwara,
surrounded by a number of smaller shrines and grand pillared halls.
Especially impressive are the 12 gopuras. Their soaring towers rise
from solid granite bases, and are covered with stucco figures of
dieties, mythical animals and monsters painted in vivid
colours.
Temple
Towers
There are 12 temple towers(Gopurams). The outer towers are the
landmarks of Madurai. They are:
East Tower (Nine Storeys). Height 161'3". This Gopura has 1011
sudhai figures.
South Tower (Nine Storeys). Height 170'6". This Tower has 1511
sudhai figures.
West Tower (Nine Storeys). Height 163'3". This Tower has 1124
sudhai figures.
North Tower (Nine Storeys). Height 160'6". This Tower has lesser
figures of sudhai than other outer towers.
Gopuram
Pyramidal gates(gopuras) rise to a height of more than 50m. These
towering gateways indicate the entrance to the temple complex at
the four cardinal points, while lesser gopuras lead to the sanctums
of the main dieties.
1 2
Next>>
Site designed and Maintained by Harish