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Maduraiis known as Athens of the East, Madurai is a place of great historical and cultural importance. It is the oldest city in Tamil Nadu and Madurai lies on the banks of the River Vaigai. Madurai is one of the liveliest cities in South India it was originally known as Kadambavanam or the "forest of Kadamba" or the Nauclea kadamba.
Legend says that Lord Shiva appeared in the dream on the king, Kulasekhara Pandya. The king was amazed to see drops of nectar or madhu falling down of earth from Lord Shiva's matted hair. The "madhu" was so sweet that the place where it fell came to be known as Madhurapuri, which in course of time became "Madurai."
Tamil and Greek documents record its existence from the 4th century B.C. Being in the heart of Tamil Nadu, Madurai has fostered an essentially Dravidian and Tamil culture. Famous for its cultural and scholarly pursuits, the city had an academy consisting of critics, poets and savants highly esteemed both by kings and commoners. It was in Madurai that three successful conferences of Tamil scholars called sangams flourished under benevolent royal support.
Madurai is famous for housing one of the five traditional dance halls where Lord Siva, in his form as the Silver Hall or the Velli Ambalam. It is situated within the Meenakshi Temple.
Madurai was the capital of the dynasty. The Meenakshi-Sundareswarar Shrine is its central glory. The Muslims invaded Madurai in the 14th Century. Later it came under the rule of the Nayaks, and the rule of Thirumalai Nayak, who is remembered as the maker of modern Madurai, was an eventful one.
Madurai was known to be the centre of learning and pilgrimage for centuries. Today, Madurai is a modern commercial and industrial city, with a vast University campus and is renowned for its weaving mills and dyeing industry. The chungadi cotton sarees are the speciality of this city with its colourful tie and dye motifs. Handicrafts, brassware, bronze items and the famous wooden toys of Madurai are some of the notable artifacts. Madurai is 450 kms from Chennai.
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Sri Meenakshi-Sundareswarar Temple Synonymous with Madurai is the Meenakshi Sundareswarar twin-temple. It is the pivot around which the city has evolved. The Meenakshi Temple complex is literally a city on its own. It is one of the largest of its kind in India and undoubtedly one of the oldest too. The temple grew bigger with the contributions of each dynasty and victorious monarchs, into an enormous complex extending over an area of 65000 sq. meters.
Lord Siva in his incarnation as Sundareswarar and his spouse Meenakshi, are enshrined in this twin temple. She is called Meenakshi because it is believed that her eyes are shaped like that of a fish. The name is made up of two words - meen for fish and askshi for the eye. There are four massive gateways enclosing these two shrines. Visitors are fascinated by the many paintings and sculptures that adorn this temple.
A striking feature of the temple is the astonishing structure known as Ayiramkaal mandapam or the Hall of a thousand pillars in the outermost corridor. The hall has 985 pillars and each pillar features high, ornate, bold sculptures that look life- like. Viewed from any angle these pillars appear to be in a straight line it is an architectural masterpiece indeed. In the outermost corridors are situated the matchless musical pillars carved out of stone. When tapped, each pillar produces a different musical note and the hall resonates with the sound of this note. |
