Jagannath Temple (Puri)

Situated on the eastern coast along the blue waters of the Bay of Bengal, Orissa offers to magnificent temples, sunny beaches, colourful wildlife, traditional tribal culture and a rich heritage. While several temples have vanished or have declined in importance, the great temple of Lord Jagannath at Puri is still a living and vibrant temple. Over the centuries it has attracted kings, conquerers, religious teachers, devotees and pilgrims. In the minds of the millions of Indians, Orissa is the land of Jagannath. This temple of Lord Jagannath at Puri is one of the most sacred pilgrimage spots in India, one of the four abodes (dhamas) of the divine that lie on the four directions of the compass.

The temple of Jagannath Puri is a rekha dwell with curvilinear tower on a pancha ratha plan and was built by Ananta Barma Chodaganga Dev during 12th century A.D. and was completed by Ananga Bhima Dev. This temple is one of the tallest monuments in the country, height is about 214 feet from the ground level. It stands on an elevated platform of stone measuring about 10 acres, which is located in the heart of the down town and presents an imposing sight.. The temple has four gates at the eastern, southern, western northern midpoints of the Meghanad Prachir and are called Lions gate, Horse Gate, Tiger Gate and the Elephant Gate respectively.

Lord Jagannath, the symbol of universal love and is worshiped in the Temple along with Balabhadra, Subhadra, Sudarshan, Madhaba, Sridevi and Bhudevi on the Ratnabedi or the bejewelled platform. The Deities, Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subhadra and Chakra Sudarshan are made of margosa wood.

Maha-prasada is pure vegetarian spiritual food offered to Lord Jagannath. Just by eating this maha-prasada one makes great spiritual advancement. Every day, fifty-six varieties of prasada are offered to Lord Jagannath. The main offering of the day becomes available anywhere from 3 to 5 pm (sometimes later). The offering times are not exact and change day by day.

Meenakshi Temple

The Meenakshi temple complex at Madurai is a city temple. It has eminent and exquisitely carved towers enveloping the temple, dedicated to Goddess Meenakashi in Madurai. Considered as the south gateway, the Meenakshi temple consists of the twin temples of God Shiva and Goddess Meenakshi, each one as high as about nine storeys.

The exact time of temple's origin is not confirmed but the structures that are standing today date mostly from the 12th to the 18th century. The present temple standing today was built in the 17th century A.D. by th Nayak rulers. The temple is superb example of sculpture and magnificent architecture.

The Meenakshi temple has majestic stonewalls and towers rising out of the swarming streets of the city center. The image of Goddess Meenakshi is said to be carved out of a single emerald. This exotic temple was renovated by various kings, adding coiled corridors and larger-than-life sculptures. According to the legend of this temple the marriage of the goddess Meenakshi to Shiva actually took place in Madurai and is still celebrated every summer with great enthusiasm and gaiety.


¤ Special Features of the Temple

The Temple Towers or The Gopurams
The temple has 12 temple towers also known as the Gopurams. The outer towers of the temple work as landmarks of Madurai.

Gopura
The Gopuras or the Pyramidal gates have an enormous height of more than 50m. The entrance to the temple complex is indicated by towering gateways at the four cardinal points, while lesser gopuras lead to the sanctums of the main deities.

Stucco Work
After every 12 years, the figures of deities on the tower are reconditioned, repainted and ritually reconsecrated.

Ashta Shakthi Mandapam
To enter the temple through the eastern gateway, one has to first enter the Asta Shakti Mandapam (Hall). Built by Thirumalai Nayakar's wives Rudrapathi Ammal and Tholimamai. Next to this hall is the Meenakshi Nayaka Mandapa, a spacious columned hall used for shops and stores. This hall has a dedicated lamp-holder with 1,008 lamps, which are lit and decorated on festive occasions. The sculptures on the pillars tell us about some of the miracles of Lord Shiva and also the story of Meenakshi's birth and her life as the princess of Madurai.

Meenakshi Nayakkar Mandapam
Adjacent to the Ashta Shakthi Mandapam, this big hall consists of 110 pillars carrying the figures of a queer animal with a lion's body and an elephant's head called Yalli.

Potramaraikulam (Golden Lotus Tank)
The Potramaraikulam temple tank is an ancient tank where devotees take bath in the holy water. It is believed that the area around this tank was the meeting place of the TamilSangam - the ancient academy of poets. The tank is encircled by a pillared corridor. There are steps that lead down to the tank, enabling worshippers to take bathe in it.

Oonjal Mandapam
The Oonjal (swing) Mandapam and Killikoontu (parrot cage) Mandapam are situated on the western side of the tank. The golden idols of Meenakshi and Sundareswarar are seated on the swing in the Oonjal Madapam every Friday and hymns are sung as the deities swing to and fro. There many parrots in the Kilikoontu Mandapam who have been trained to repeat Goddess Meenakshi's name. The 28 pillars of the Mandapam are the most interesting parts, exhibiting some excellent Sculptures of figures from Hindu mythology.

Swami Sundareswarar Shrine
The Shrine of Lord Sundareswarar (Shiva) the consort of Goddess Meenakshi is to the north of Kilikoontu Mandapam . There's a gigantic idol of Sri Ganesh called Mukkurini Pillaiyar on the way. There's a stump of a Kadamba tree, in the outer pragaram (corridor outside the main shrine), which is said to be a part of the same tree under which Indra worshiped Shiva linga. There's also Kadambathadi Mandapam in the outer corridor and big hall called 'Velli Ambalam'. There's also an idol of Nataraja (Shiva as the Lord of Dance), covered with silver leaves. Thus this hall is named as Velli Ambalam (Silver Hall).

The Thousand Pillar Mandapam
The thousand pillar mandapam is regared as the 'wonder of the palace'. There are around 985 beautifully decorated columns. Each pillar is beautifully sculptured and presents the glory of the Dravidan sculpture. This hall also houses a Temple Art Museum, where you can see icons, photographs, drawings, etc., exhibiting the 1200 years old history. Other than this mandapam there many smaller and bigger mandapams in the temple.

Vasantha Mandapam
Built by Thirumalai Nayakkar, the mandapam is the venue of the Vasanthosavam - the Spring festival, celebrated in Vaikasi (April/May). The pillars present at the mandapam has elaborate sculptures of Lord Shiva, Goddess Meenakshi. There are scenes from their wedding as well as the figures of ten of the Nayak Kings and their consorts. The Vasantha Mandapam is also called Pudhu Mandapam.

Rameshwaram Temple

The Ramanathaswamy TempleThe famous Ramanathaswamy Temple is regarded as one of the most sacred shrines of Hindus in India. It is an honoured pilgrimage destination, which represents the southernmost of the 12 Jyotirlingams of India. It is considered as holy as Banaras. This famous Hindu temple situated on the Rameshwaram island is located off the Sethu coast of Tamil Nadu. The temple is noted for its close association with Ramayana and the legendary victory of Rama over the demon king Ravana.This temple is a pious temple, keeping in mind its association with Lord Rama, a great Hindu legend and its grand structure. This huge temple on the island of Rameswaram can be reached via the Pamban bridge across the sea, it is famous for its long ornate corridors, towers and remarkable 36 Theerthams.

Legend Related To The Temple

According to a legend, Rama worshiped Shiva in the form of a Shiva Lingam, while returning to Ayodhya. This lingam was made of earth by Rama's consort, Sita. It is also said that Hanuman was sent to bring an image of Viswanathar from Banares. Rama thought that Hanuman will be late in returning. Therefore, Rama is said to have offered worship at a pre-chosen auspicious moment to the Shivalingam. This lingam is referred to as Ramalingam. The other Shivlingam brought here by Hanuman from Banaras is known as Viswanathar . This Shivalingam is also called Kasilingam and Hanumalingam. The Viswanathar Shivalingam is worshiped before offering prayers to Ramanathaswamy. It is also believed that Rama worshiped Tilakeswarar at Devipatnam on the route to Sri Lanka.

The History of The Temple

It is said that the ancient shrine was placed in a thatched hut until the 12th century. Parakrama Bahu of Sri Lanka built the first ever masonry structure here. The Setupathy rulers of Ramanathapuram completed the rest of the temple. Some of the temple vimaanams are similar to the Vimaanams of the Pallava period. Much more was added to the temple between the 12th and the 16th centuries. The long corridor (3rd prakaram) dates back only to the 18th century. The Gandhamadhana Parvatam (hill) offers a panoramic view of the temple. Travancore, Ramanathapuram, Mysore and Pudukkottai kingdoms provided royal patronage to this famous Hindu temple.

The Temple Architecture

The temple is sprawled over an area of 15 acres. It has huge gopurams, monolithic walls and a stupendous Nandi. There is a 4000 feet long pillar corridor with over 4000 pillars, considered the longest in the world. A unique feature about this corridor is that the rock used here is not found on the native island, it was brought in from elsewhere in Tamilnadu across the sea. The eastern Rajagopuram has a height of 126 feet and has nine levels whereas the western Rajagopuram is not as tall as the eastern one. The huge image of Nandi is about 18 feet tall and 22 feet in length.

The Gandamadana Parvatham

This hill on the Rameshwaram island, has a small shrine, consisting of imprints of Lord Rama's feet, which is worshiped here. A worth visiting site.

Theertham(Water Springs)

There almost 36 Theerthams here out of which 22 are in the temple. The water of these Theerthams are said to be therapeutic. A bath in these is regarded significant. The Agni Theertham refers to the ocean while the Koti theertham is located within the temple itself.

Festivals

The famous temple festivals of Hindus are celebrated here include two annual Bhrammotsavams, celebrated in the Tamil months of Aadi and Maasi. Another festival is celebrated to celebrate Rama's worship in the month of Aani (June15 - July15).

Brihadeshvara temple gopuram, Thanjavur

Inner Gopura Brihadeshvara temple, Thanjavur

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The temple is approached from the East via two gopuras. Unlike the later practice in Southern India, these gopuras are smaller than the shrine tower. The inner, and to my mind more impressive (although smaller), of the two gopuras is shown here. Its entranceway is flanked by two very large dvarapalas; the carvings below represent various Shaiva legends.

The lower part of these gopuras is made of stone, while the roof which rests upon it is made of brick in order to reduce its weight; this innovation was adopted for the increasingly larger gopuras which followed in Southern India.

Brihadeshvara Temple

Brihadeshvara Temple

Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu

Thanjavur (British Tanjore) is located at the head of the Kaveri river delta, where it dominates the heartland of Tamil Nadu. The favored capital of the Cholas (10th - 12th century), Nayakas (16th century), and Marathas (17th - 18th century), Thanjavur contains over 90 temples.

Brihadeshvara, also called Rajarajeshvara after its founder (Rajaraja I, 985 - 1012), was built from 1003 to 1010. It is the greatest of Chola temples, and was one of the largest structures in the world at the time. Its thirteen-storied tower (all temple towers in India have an odd number of storeys) is about 66m (200ft) tall. The temple is dedicated to the worship of Shiva.

The Sun Temple at Konarak, Orissa

The grandest and best known of all Sun temples in India is the Konark temple in Orissa. Thiskhaju2.jpg (81478 bytes) dates back to the 13th century and it represent the highest point in Orissan temple architecture. Konark is situated 20 miles to the north east of Puri. The word Konark means corner sun.

The black pagoda at Konarak is a grand and magnificient temple in the form of the suns charriot drawn by seven horses marking the 7 days of the week. The 24 huge wheels, magnificiently carved and decorated, mark the hours of the day. This temple was envisioned by the Ganga ruler Narasimha Deva and it was not fully completed. The main idol of the Sun God on which the suns rays fall in the morning is said to have been removed by some Portuguese navigators. The temple now comprises only of the sabhamandap and the natamandir. The main temple crumbled down many years ago.

Lord Krishna temple, Guruvayoor

About the temple

Guruvayur appan or Lord Krishna is the presiding deity of this very popular temple in South India. It is also known as booloka vaikundam implying heaven on earth. Narayaneeyam was composed at this temple by Melpathur Naryana Battathiri.

The devotee offer anything from flowers to tulabharam where the devotee donates sugar, rice, bananas and a lot other things equal to his weight. Devotees also perform annaprasanam here which refers to feeding a baby for the first time.

Praying at this temple is said to cure the body ailments of the devotees. A visit to the temple is considered to be complete only by visiting the mammiyur mahadevan temple that is about ½ km away. Those devotees who are unable to visit that temple pray from a particular corner in the guruvayurappan temple.

The main entrance to the temple is on the east side and the temple is open from 3 in the morning to 1 in the afternoon and again from 4 to 9 in the night.

The temple management manages an elephant sanctuary known as punnathur kotta 3 kms from the temple. Here there are about 55 elephants of the temple. There is also an ancient Shiva and Bhagvathy temple here.



How to reach

Guruvayur is just 29 kms from Thrissur in Kerala. Thrissur is connected with other important cities in India by train. Regular buses both private as well as Kerala state govt buses ply between Thrissur and Guruvayur.

Nearest station: Guruvayur, Trissur
Nearest Airport: Kochi (80 kms) and Calicut (100 kms)

International flights also operate from these two airports.

Sannadhis

Guruvayoor appan (Krishna)
Ganesha
Ayyappa
Edathedathy kavil bhagavathy

Pushkarni

The temple pond is called Rudratheertham.

Vadabhatrasaai Perumal Koil, Srivilliputtur

About the temple
Sri Andal was found here in tulsi shrubs and Periyalwar was taking care of her. Periyalwar was dedicating flower garlands to Lord Rangammanar here. Once he happened to see Sri Andal wearing those garlands first before offering the lord and was very angry on this. He made a fresh garland for the lord and offered them. However, Lord Rangammanar didn’t accept them and said he would wear only those garlands which were first worn by Sri Andal. Thus, Sri Andal is also known as “Soodi Kudutha Sudar Kodi” or “Soodi Kudutha Nachiyaar”. Sri Andal was married to Lord Ranganatha of Srirangam here.


There are two floors in the Srivadabhadra saayi temple with Laxmi Narasimha, 12 alwars and dasavatharam in the ground floor and Lord Vadabhadra saayi in the upper floor.

How to reach

The temple is close to Virudhnagar in Tamilnadu. Although Srivilliputtur station (on the Virudhnagar-Tenkasi route) is the nearest railway station to the temple, Madurai is well connected with other cities and so more accessible.

Nearest railhead: Madurai
Nearest Airport: Madurai

Sannadhis

Lord Vadabhatra saai
Lord Rangammanar (in kalyana thirukolam) with Sri Andal and Garudalwar
Laxmi Narayanan
Vijayalaxmi Thayar
Chakratalwar (holding 16 weapons) (Yoga Narasimhar at rear)
Namalwar
Ramanujacharya
Periyalwar
Laxmi Narasimhar
Varaha Perumal
Senai Muthalwar

Specialty of the temple

Sri villiputtur is the avathara sthalam of Sri Andal and Periyalwar.

Garudalwar is present here along with thayar near the lord which is unique in Vaishnava temples as normally garudalwar sannadhi is opposite the main sannadhi.

There is a nandhavanam where Sri Andal is said to have been found by Periyalwar.

The main gopuram is the second biggest in Asia, next only to Srirangam.

Pushkarni and Vimanam

The temple pond is known as Thirumukkulam and the vimanam is known as Samsana Vimanam.

Search terms

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