Madurai is one of the best places to visit in India, also known as ‘the sleepless city of India’ as more than 30% of people here are sleep deprived. The city is also well known as the “Athens of the East”. The city of Madurai is considered to be one of the oldest well-settled cities in India and has been mentioned by the Greek ambassador, Megansthenes and Mauryan Minister, Kautilya who date back to the 3rd century BC. Madhuri is a place of great historical as well as cultural importance and holds some of the oldest temples with great architecture. Blessed with some of the most magnificent temples depicting a combination of Dravidian and Tamil cultures, the city of Madurai also has dense forests with unique flora and fauna that captivate a huge number of tourists to this city.
Madurai has been one of the major learning and pilgrim destinations since the olden ages. The Meenakshi Amman Temple situated in the heart of this city has been a major pilgrim destination for Hindus. Today, the city has become a well known commercial and industrial centre with one of the biggest university campuses. Famous for its weaving mills and the dye industry, Madurai is also notable for handicrafts, bronze items, wooden toys, and brassware.
Madurai has been one of the major learning and pilgrim destinations since the olden ages. The Meenakshi Amman Temple situated in the heart of this city has been a major pilgrim destination for Hindus. Today, the city has become a well known commercial and industrial centre with one of the biggest university campuses. Famous for its weaving mills and the dye industry, Madurai is also notable for handicrafts, bronze items, wooden toys, and brassware. Let us now take a look at some of the most worth visiting destinations in this city.
Worth Visiting Destinations in Madurai
Meenakshi Amman Temple: Also famously known as the Madurai Meenakshi Temple, it is one of the oldest and holy pilgrim destinations dedicated to the Hindu Goddess Meenakshi. This temple complex is considered one of the largest complexes in Tamil Nadu and is divided into several concentric quadrangular enclosures. The temple is protected by masonry walls with four dedicated entrances facing four directions. The other major attraction of this temple is the gopurams (gateway towers) surrounding the temple. There are around ten gopurams magnificently carved with several structures of gods, demons, and animals. The other attractions of this temple are as follows.
Shrines: This temple is dedicated to the shrines of Meenakshi and Sundareswarar. The idol of Sundareswarar is in the form of Shiv Lingam, whereas that of Meenakshi is an emerald-coloured black stone idol. Both the shrines have three protective enclosures with four minor towers. Apart from this, the shrines of both the deities are throned with gold plated towers.
Mukkurni Vinayagar Idol: The Mukkurni Vinayagar is a tall idol of Lord Ganesha, which is carved out of one single stone. This sculpture is located just outside the Sundareswarar shrine. The idol of Mukkurni Vinayagar is said to be found in the 17th Century during the excavation of the Mariamman Temple tank.
Porthamarai Kulam: The Porthamarai Kulam is a huge sacred tank in the temple of Meenakshi Amman. Various mythological stories depict stories about this tank. One of the most famous stories pictures the blessing given by Lord Shiva to this tank. Many other Tamil scriptures also describe several stories about this tank. Some of the major attractions of this tank include the fraction of painting that depicts the marriage of Sundareswarar and Meenakshi attended by Vijayaranga Chokkanatha and Rani Mangammal.
Halls: The hall surrounding the holy shrine of Meenakshi is known as the “Kilikoondu Mandapam”. This hall used to be a parrot cage where hundreds of parrots were trained to utter the name of Meenakshi. Another hall full of pillars carved with Shiva’s appearances is known as the “Kambatadi Mandapam”. The hall of hundred pillars, Puthu Mandapam, Ashta Shakthi Mandapam, Mundali Pillai Mandapam, Viravasabtharaya Mandapam, and Mangayarkarasi Mandapam are the other major attractions of this temple.
Thousand Pillar Hall: This hall has around 985 pillars which are magnificently carved. According to several pieces of evidence found, this was constructed in 1569 by Ariyanatha Mudaliar, whose statue has been installed at the entrance of this cave. Each and every pillar of this cave is awesomely carved and depict some of the other mythological identity. These carved pillars depict the Dravidian culture and some of the prominent figures among this pillar include Ganesha, Karthikeya, Rati, Shiva, and numerous yalis (mythical lion figures).
Festivals: Meenakshi Thirukalyanam is one of the most important festivals conducted in the Madurai Meenakshi Temple. The festival is celebrated in the month of April every year and holds the marriage ceremony of Meenakshi and Lord Shiva. This marriage festival brings a huge number of devotees to Madurai to experience the captivating and enthusiastic marriage ceremony. This festival then organizes several events during this entire month. Some of these events include the chariot festival known as the “Ther Thiruvizhah”, float festival also known as the “Theppa Thiruvizhah”, etc. Apart from the Meenakshi Thirukalyanam, the festivals of “Navratri” and “Shivratri” are celebrated in this temple.
Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal: The Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal is a 17th-century palace and one of the major tourist attractions in the city of Madurai. Built by King Thirumalai Nayak, the palace is an awesome combination of Dravidian and Islamic architecture. It is said that the original palace complex used to be four times that of the building seen today. Both the interior as well as the exterior of this palace is well planned and richly decorated. Today, the palace comprises only of the “Svarga Vilasam”, which is an enclosed court and some of the neighbouring buildings as many adjoining parts of this palace were pulled down during the 18th century.
A huge number of visitors visit this palace every day. On entering the palace, one gets to see a huge courtyard that is surrounded by massive circular pillars. The captivating interiors with an arcade of columns, carved cloisters, foliated brick arches, and triple row columns are really worth watching. The light show conducted in this palace is also worth watching and another major attraction here. Some of the other major attractions in this palace include the King’s courtyard, Queen’s residence, Royal auditorium, Dance hall, Ornamental Throne, Paintings on the roof, and the Domes of the palace.
Vandiyur Mariamman Teppakulam: It is a huge pond located around five kilometres from the Meenakshi Amman Temple. According to the evidence, the soil required while constructing the Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal was taken from this place. The pit thus formed was turned into this magnificent pond. The pond is connected to the Vaigai River through an inventive system of underground channels. Vandiyur Mariamman Teppakulam has around twelve long granite stairs on all four sides of this pond. Right in the centre of this pond lies “Mandapam”, also known as the “Vinayakar Temple”. The major attraction of this place is the celebration of the float festival during the month of January/February.
