A temple visit is a reminder of the sacredness of time and the importance of spending it in meaningful ways. In the temple, we seek solace from the chaos of the inner world and find inner peace. Tamil Nadu has more temples than any other state in India. It is said Tamil Nadu is home to more than 400,000 Hindu temples and is aptly called " The land of temples". These temples are shining examples of our cultural heritage with the finest architectural creations that take you back to the Dravidian, Chola, and Pallava dynasties. Most of these temples were built in Medieval times. On our first day in Madurai, after Meenakshi amma darshan we visited Balaji temple and Kartikeya Swamy shrine which was a one-hour drive from Madurai city. These two temples are situated on the hills. We enjoyed the lovely evening pleasant drive, to our surprise Madurai weather was cool and windy due to rain. It was no less than Bengaluru weather, which was a blessing in disguise.
After having a soulful darshan we reached Madurai and had dinner in the famous outlet called " Sree Sabarees", who serve the yummy dosas, Idly, Vada. We all relished the food and went to sleep early since we had a 2 hour of journey the next morning. Our second day tour was to one of the most sacred temples. Tiruchirappalli is an ancient city in India's southern Tamil Nadu state. The Kaveri and Kollidam rivers flow around Srirangam Island. The Ranganatha Swamy is the main deity worshipped largely in this city. The temple and its artwork are subjecte to numerous different Tamil legends in regional Puranic texts. Srinranga Mahathmiyam, for example, is one of the compilations of the temple mythology about its origins. According to it, Brahma was performing austerities during the Samudra Manthana (churning of the cosmic ocea) , and Sriranagam Vimanam emerged as a result. It remained in Satyaloka for ages and was brought to Ayodhya by king Ikshvaku. After Rama, an avatar of Vishnu had killed the evil demon Ravana, he gave it to King Vibhishana who wanted to be with Rama. When Vibhishana passed through Trichy en route to Sri Lanka where he had become the king, the Srirangam Vimanam would not move from the island. So, he gave it to a local kind Dharmavarma, if the king consecrated the Vimanam to face the south cardinal direction eternally, blessing him and Lanka. Hence, it is that the diety (in a reclining posture) faces South, his body aligned to the east - west axis.
The temple complex includes over 50 shrines. These are dedicated to Vishnu, Lakshmi as well as Vaishnava scholars and poets. The shrine to Vishnu displays him in his various avataras, as well as his iconography. For example, Sri Ranganathaswamy temple shrines include those of Chakkaratalvar, Narasimha, Rama, Hayagriva, and Gopala Krishna. It was the 3rd day of Navratri, and expecting the crowd we took special darshan. Being a devotee of Lord Vishnu, I was thrilled and eager to get the darshan. At my home and my mom's house one can hear the hymes chanting from Vishnu Sahasranama morning and evening time. My mom regularly chants these scared hymes of Lord Vishnu religiously. Upon reaching inside the temple suddenly my mom's leg started hurting her so badly that she was barely able to walk. We along with my dad and R were almost inside the line, mom and sis got stuck outside the line way to darshan. Mom was in great pain. We were very worried, seeing her in that condition, and were apprehensive thinking how she will get the darshan. But the Lord has his plans. Within a minute a guard came along with a police security who is in charge of the temple authorities took mom and sis from the special entry, and they both directly entered the main sanctum within minutes in front of us.We were in shock and were equally happy in joy, seeing this beyond belief happening. My mom walked and took the darshan of Lord Ranganatha Swamy and was in a teary eye with heart full of gratitude. This clearly shows the presence of God to his devotees who do his service without any expectations in return. Whenever God calls us for a task, he will equip us and enable us to complete that task.
I was in great hurry to get the darshan of the lord. Finally, we all reached the main sanctum and people chanted Govinda - Govinda. The main shirne of lord Ranganatha is in the innermost courtyard. The sanctum has a golden vimana (crown tower over the sanctum sanctorum). It is shaped like a Tamil Omkara (Om symbol), shows anthropomorphic Paravasudeva on its gable, has an etching of Ramanuja as well on it, and is plated with gold. Inside, a 6- metre (20ft) edifice of Rangantha reclining on Adisesha, the coiled serpent, can be seen. My heart was at the race the moment I saw the lord . There was no boundary for my happiness and I was outbursted with tears and emotion. Took a while for me to settle down. It happens when one's life journey is filled with almighty's blessing. When one focuses on being a blessing, God makes sure that you are always blessed in abundance. Indeed, it was a blessed darshan. We all took the prasad and started walking towards the exit, watching the beautifully carved pillars with detailed art.
India is rich in art and architecture, which is seen in the temples of India. Architecture is a visual art and the building speaks for itself. It is belived that this temple is the most illustrious Vaishnava temples in South India, rich in legend and history. Beyond the ancient textual history, archaeological evidence such as inscriptions refer to this temple, and these stone inscriptions are from late 100 BCE to 100 CE. Hence, making it one of the oldest surviving active temple complexes in South India.
After having a blissful darshan we all started towards the famous - Jambukeswararar Temple in Trichy. Jambukeswararar temple dedicated to Lord Shiva is located in Thiruvanaikaval in Trichy district and is one of the Pancha Bhoota ( 5 element temple). This temple is dedicated to the water element - Jambu Lingam. It is said to have been built by the early Cholas around 1800 years ago. It is one of the major 5 Shiva temples that represent five great elements. The temple represents the element "neer" which is water. True to its powers, the underground water stream at the sanctum of the temple is always filled with water, irrespective of any season. Underneath the Linga form of Shiva, a spring comes and is a divine gift of the God. In the temple one can witness Monolithic stone pillars and stone chains and12 zodiac signs which are beautifully carved.
A legend says this temple is endowed with 5 praharams. (corridor) As lord Shiva himself built the 5th praharam, appearing in the form of a spider, it is knownas " Thiruneettan Thirumathil". It is here lord Shiva blessed a spider and elephant to attain moksha. I feel so proud of the ancient and mythological stories of our temples, devotees are blessed both in this birth and next birth. One who worships Goddess Ahilandeswari will be blessed good education and intelligence, marriage, and wishes for a child to be fulfilled. By coming around the fifth divine wall known as "Thiruneettan Thirumathil" one's wish will be fulfilled. By this, we covered one of the Pancha Bhoota temples - dedicated to water element.
On our way back to Madurai, with a heart full of gratitude and blessing, watching the bright blue sky and open fields, those long open roads, I was enjoying the journey and felt so content and happy. I believe in creating happiness rather than looking for it through other means. Because very little is needed to make a happy life. A warm hug, elders blessings, a child's love towards his mother, loving family, and grace follow you.
To be continued......
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