Recently we embarked on a family tour to Madurai to visit some of the ancient temples in and around that place.
We, travelled by our own car.
A Few words before starting the journey.
So lets start our Tour :
Day-1
We started our Journey from Chennai by 6 am.
We had two halts, one at Manoj Bhavan, Mamandoor, for breakfast and another at a wayside teashop.
We reached our Lodge by 2 pm and had Lunch at a local restaurant, Gowri-Krishna. (Very average stuff).
After refreshing we took an auto to Meenakshi Temple.
The temple opens at 3.30 pm in the afternoon.
We took Rs 100/- special Darshan tickets and entered the temple.
Surprisingly the crowd was much less at that point of time.
We had a wonderful darshan of Goddess Meenakshi and Lord Sundareswara, within one hour.
The queue moved in an orderly fashion, and there was no shoving/pulling.
We then went around the temple for another one hour, visiting various Sannadhis.
For an early dinner at a restaurant called ‘Suvai’ (https://maps.app.goo.gl/A9a8ap6HDdiAGzhR7).
This is very near to the Meenakshi Amman Temple situated on the first floor.
This restaurant is operated by Chennai Mission Trust and the Rotary Club, and most of its employees are specially-abled people.
The Manager informed that the Winners Bakery and Writers Café, situated on the ground floor of the same building, are under the same trust.
Any profit from the operation goes to the welfare of these specially-abled people.
With the hectic travel and the blissful Darshan, we hit the bed quite early.
Day-2
We started by 5.30 am today, towards Tirupparankundram, the first abode of Lord Muruga, where he married his consort Deivanai.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/GdvZ9WqRAB2Q5dAy7
It is a very ancient rock-cut temple.
The main shrine is a humongous slab of rock that has cells to house the sanctums of Subramanya, Durga, Vinayakar, Shiva, and Vishnu.
All the Murthies, are carved on the wall of the parankundram rock.
There was heavy rush of Ayyappa Devotees.
So, we went through the Special Darshan Queue paying Rs 100/- each.
We had to wait for 30 minutes in the line, and had a good Darshan of Goddess Durga, Muruga with Deivanai and Ganesha, all consecrated in a single Garba Griha.
From there we proceeded to Thiruvedagam, about 23 Kms from Tirupparankundram.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Muph5EYZTzSneDCm7
Thirvedagam is a beautiful Shiva Temple situated amidst lush greenery on the banks of Vaigai River.
The Lord, a ‘Svayambu-Murthy’ is called ‘Thiru-Edaga-Nathar’, and Ambal is known as ‘Elavaar-Kuzhali-Ammai’. .
It is here that the Saint Thirugnasambandar composed the Namasivaya-Pathigam in a palm-leaf (Edu), and set it float in the Vaigai River, to win the arguments with the Jain Scholars, and establish Saivism on a firm footing.
The entire route is a beautiful stretch of lush green trees and plants.
After completing the Darshan at these two temples we returned to our room for lunch and rest.
Evening we started for the Sixth Abode of Lord Muruga, Pazhamudircholai, which we reached around 4.30 pm.
maps.app.goo.gl
The temple is situated on a small hillock called Azhagar Malai about 2 kms from the Kallazhagar-Temple.
Here, Lord Subrahmanya is flanked by his two consorts, Valli and Deivayanai.
There is a separate Shrine for the Holy ‘Vel’.
A short distance from this temple, on the hill, is the ‘Noopara Gangai’, a small water-fall.
After a very good darshan of the Lord and came down to the the Kallazhagar Temple.
This is a very old Vaishnavite Shrine dedicated to Lord Vishnu.
The Lord is called as Sundara Raja Perumal and His consort ‘Kalyana Sundaravalli Thayar’, has a separate Shrine nearby.
This is a huge temple with Karuppanasamy guarding the temple at its gate.
After offering our worship to Him, we went inside the temple.
It is a very ancient temple, but maintained very well.
We took the Special Entrance ticket and had the Darshan in 30 minutes.
Lord Kallazhagar stood majestically flanked by his two consorts, Sridevi and Bhudevi on both sides.
After a peaceful Darshan, we returned to our hotel, after dinner.
Day-3
Morning, we started by 6 am on our way to Thirumoghur Kalamega Perumal Temple.
maps.app.goo.gl
This temple is around 22 Kms from Madurai.
It is one of the 108 Divya Desams, and is maintained very well.
It is said that this Perumal led Saint Nammazhwar to Vaikunta.
The priests patiently explained the significance of the temple and its rituals.
The shrine of Chakkarathaalwar, with sixteen arms carrying sixteen weapons, and mantra inscribed on the idol, is another speciality of this temple.
This is one of the most popular Prarthana-Sthalams for everyone in that area.
From there we proceeded to Thiruvaathavur, birth place of Saint Manikkavachagar.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/3SgBHFpt5BUEhXTH8
It is a very ancient Shiva Temple, and the Lord, a Svayambu Lingam’. is called as ‘Thiru Marai Nathar’, and Ambal is called ‘Thirumarai Nayagi’.
It is said, that in this place, the Lord blessedto Manikkavachagr hear the music of his anklets (Silambu)
The temple is clean though it needs a thorough renovation.
It is said that by worshipping in this temple, people get relief from Rheumatism.
On our way back we decided to visit the locally famous Pandi-Muneesarar Temple.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/fpdnbNwPHDhPxLxh7
This is the family deity for many people in Madurai, and a Prarthana-Sthalam for many.
The Central Deity is Lord Muneeswaran, and the huge image is in a sitting position.
This temple, is on the main road (bye-Pass) and has three entrances.
Several shops, selling Pooja items, flowers etc., are lined up on the way.
Then we returned to our room by 11 am and after freshening up, we started to the last of itinerary, Madurai-Koodal-Azhagar-Temple.
We reached the temple around 12 noon, and it was almost empty, except for the priests.
This is one of very beautiful temples in Madurai,
Lord Koodal Azhagar Perumal, is the main deity, and is seen with his consort, ‘Maduravalli-Thaayaar’.
Saint Periazhwar composed his famous ‘Thiru-Pallandu’ in this temple.
This is one of the two temples (The other is Thiru-Koshtiyur),where the Sanctum is below an ‘Ashtaanga-Vimanam’.
There is provision to climb to the terrace to have a look at the Suryanarayana and Ranganatha clay images there.
You can also have a bird’s eye view of the surroundings from the top.
With this our Temple-Run at Madurai came to an end.
The weather also changed and it started drizzling.
In the evening, we went for a short shopping trip to East Masi Veethi and Amman Sannathi Street.
Appalams, Vadam, Garlik, Ginger etc. are available at discounted rates.
Day-4
We packed our luggage and started back by 6 am, to Chennai.
We halted at Sreee Sangeethas on the Trichy Bye-Pass, and it was just okay.
By 12 noon we reached A2B Restaurant at Kattangalathur for lunch.
Finally, we reached Home by 3 pm.
A Short Sweet pilgrimage tour was successfully completed.
We, travelled by our own car.
A Few words before starting the journey.
- Madurai District abounds in several ancient temples.
- So, plan your well in advance, and decide on the temples you would like to visit.
- Madurai is too crowded, roads too narrow and the traffic is chaotic throughout the year, with very little parking space.
- So, within Madurai city, engage an auto or a taxi to visit all the important places.
- Avoid travelling to Madurai during weekends and Festival seasons and most importantly during the Sabarimala season
- (We chose this month, as that was the only time everyone in our family was able to steal some leave).
- There are plenty of hotels, but we found that in most places, the food was quite spicy.
- Book your staying place in advance and ensure that it has a Veg restaurant attached to it. Otherwise, you will find all restaurants crowded during such seasons.
- The hotel where we stayed (Hotel Venkateswara, Andalpuram, near Madura College), was a decent stay-pace with good car parking and good service.
- But it only had a non-veg dining restaurant, which we found later, to our dismay.
- Best time for Darshan at Meenakshi Temple is between 5-6 am or between 3.30-4.40 pm.
So lets start our Tour :
Day-1
We started our Journey from Chennai by 6 am.
We had two halts, one at Manoj Bhavan, Mamandoor, for breakfast and another at a wayside teashop.
We reached our Lodge by 2 pm and had Lunch at a local restaurant, Gowri-Krishna. (Very average stuff).
After refreshing we took an auto to Meenakshi Temple.
The temple opens at 3.30 pm in the afternoon.
We took Rs 100/- special Darshan tickets and entered the temple.
Surprisingly the crowd was much less at that point of time.
We had a wonderful darshan of Goddess Meenakshi and Lord Sundareswara, within one hour.
The queue moved in an orderly fashion, and there was no shoving/pulling.
We then went around the temple for another one hour, visiting various Sannadhis.
For an early dinner at a restaurant called ‘Suvai’ (https://maps.app.goo.gl/A9a8ap6HDdiAGzhR7).
This is very near to the Meenakshi Amman Temple situated on the first floor.
This restaurant is operated by Chennai Mission Trust and the Rotary Club, and most of its employees are specially-abled people.
The Manager informed that the Winners Bakery and Writers Café, situated on the ground floor of the same building, are under the same trust.
Any profit from the operation goes to the welfare of these specially-abled people.
With the hectic travel and the blissful Darshan, we hit the bed quite early.
Day-2
We started by 5.30 am today, towards Tirupparankundram, the first abode of Lord Muruga, where he married his consort Deivanai.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/GdvZ9WqRAB2Q5dAy7
It is a very ancient rock-cut temple.
The main shrine is a humongous slab of rock that has cells to house the sanctums of Subramanya, Durga, Vinayakar, Shiva, and Vishnu.
All the Murthies, are carved on the wall of the parankundram rock.
There was heavy rush of Ayyappa Devotees.
So, we went through the Special Darshan Queue paying Rs 100/- each.
We had to wait for 30 minutes in the line, and had a good Darshan of Goddess Durga, Muruga with Deivanai and Ganesha, all consecrated in a single Garba Griha.
From there we proceeded to Thiruvedagam, about 23 Kms from Tirupparankundram.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Muph5EYZTzSneDCm7
Thirvedagam is a beautiful Shiva Temple situated amidst lush greenery on the banks of Vaigai River.
The Lord, a ‘Svayambu-Murthy’ is called ‘Thiru-Edaga-Nathar’, and Ambal is known as ‘Elavaar-Kuzhali-Ammai’. .
It is here that the Saint Thirugnasambandar composed the Namasivaya-Pathigam in a palm-leaf (Edu), and set it float in the Vaigai River, to win the arguments with the Jain Scholars, and establish Saivism on a firm footing.
The entire route is a beautiful stretch of lush green trees and plants.
After completing the Darshan at these two temples we returned to our room for lunch and rest.
Evening we started for the Sixth Abode of Lord Muruga, Pazhamudircholai, which we reached around 4.30 pm.
Arulmigu Solaimalai Murugan Temple, Pazhamudircholai · 36VF+P87, Alagar Koil Rd, Alagar Hills R.F, Tamil Nadu 625301, India
★★★★★ · Hindu temple
maps.app.goo.gl
The temple is situated on a small hillock called Azhagar Malai about 2 kms from the Kallazhagar-Temple.
Here, Lord Subrahmanya is flanked by his two consorts, Valli and Deivayanai.
There is a separate Shrine for the Holy ‘Vel’.
A short distance from this temple, on the hill, is the ‘Noopara Gangai’, a small water-fall.
After a very good darshan of the Lord and came down to the the Kallazhagar Temple.
This is a very old Vaishnavite Shrine dedicated to Lord Vishnu.
The Lord is called as Sundara Raja Perumal and His consort ‘Kalyana Sundaravalli Thayar’, has a separate Shrine nearby.
This is a huge temple with Karuppanasamy guarding the temple at its gate.
After offering our worship to Him, we went inside the temple.
It is a very ancient temple, but maintained very well.
We took the Special Entrance ticket and had the Darshan in 30 minutes.
Lord Kallazhagar stood majestically flanked by his two consorts, Sridevi and Bhudevi on both sides.
After a peaceful Darshan, we returned to our hotel, after dinner.
Day-3
Morning, we started by 6 am on our way to Thirumoghur Kalamega Perumal Temple.
Thirumogoor Shri Kalameghaperumal Temple - Madurai · X624+8R9, Thiruvathavur Rd, Tirumohur, Tamil Nadu 625107, India
★★★★★ · Hindu temple
maps.app.goo.gl
This temple is around 22 Kms from Madurai.
It is one of the 108 Divya Desams, and is maintained very well.
It is said that this Perumal led Saint Nammazhwar to Vaikunta.
The priests patiently explained the significance of the temple and its rituals.
The shrine of Chakkarathaalwar, with sixteen arms carrying sixteen weapons, and mantra inscribed on the idol, is another speciality of this temple.
This is one of the most popular Prarthana-Sthalams for everyone in that area.
From there we proceeded to Thiruvaathavur, birth place of Saint Manikkavachagar.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/3SgBHFpt5BUEhXTH8
It is a very ancient Shiva Temple, and the Lord, a Svayambu Lingam’. is called as ‘Thiru Marai Nathar’, and Ambal is called ‘Thirumarai Nayagi’.
It is said, that in this place, the Lord blessedto Manikkavachagr hear the music of his anklets (Silambu)
The temple is clean though it needs a thorough renovation.
It is said that by worshipping in this temple, people get relief from Rheumatism.
On our way back we decided to visit the locally famous Pandi-Muneesarar Temple.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/fpdnbNwPHDhPxLxh7
This is the family deity for many people in Madurai, and a Prarthana-Sthalam for many.
The Central Deity is Lord Muneeswaran, and the huge image is in a sitting position.
This temple, is on the main road (bye-Pass) and has three entrances.
Several shops, selling Pooja items, flowers etc., are lined up on the way.
Then we returned to our room by 11 am and after freshening up, we started to the last of itinerary, Madurai-Koodal-Azhagar-Temple.
We reached the temple around 12 noon, and it was almost empty, except for the priests.
This is one of very beautiful temples in Madurai,
Lord Koodal Azhagar Perumal, is the main deity, and is seen with his consort, ‘Maduravalli-Thaayaar’.
Saint Periazhwar composed his famous ‘Thiru-Pallandu’ in this temple.
This is one of the two temples (The other is Thiru-Koshtiyur),where the Sanctum is below an ‘Ashtaanga-Vimanam’.
There is provision to climb to the terrace to have a look at the Suryanarayana and Ranganatha clay images there.
You can also have a bird’s eye view of the surroundings from the top.
With this our Temple-Run at Madurai came to an end.
The weather also changed and it started drizzling.
In the evening, we went for a short shopping trip to East Masi Veethi and Amman Sannathi Street.
Appalams, Vadam, Garlik, Ginger etc. are available at discounted rates.
Day-4
We packed our luggage and started back by 6 am, to Chennai.
We halted at Sreee Sangeethas on the Trichy Bye-Pass, and it was just okay.
By 12 noon we reached A2B Restaurant at Kattangalathur for lunch.
Finally, we reached Home by 3 pm.
A Short Sweet pilgrimage tour was successfully completed.
