The spiritual vibes that make you surrender yourself to the realm of divinity; the blend of emotions one feels at a time as they enter into this sacred shrine of South India – Yes, it’s the Ramanathaswamy Temple in the south state of Tamil Nadu.
The shrine is devoted to the name of Ramanathaswamy. The glittering Golden temple of Ramanathswamy is one of the 12 sacred Jyotirlingas of India and is consecrated as a holy place that one must visit at least once in his lifetime. The temple is usually in the hustle and flows with thousands of venerators visiting the shrine daily and this number rises at the time of festivals.
This beautiful looking temple is settled in the designated Hindu pilgrimage of South India and one of the Char Dhams in India, called Rameswaram. Rameswaram is a consecrated as a holy place for being associated with Lord Rama (a form of Vishnu) and Lord Shiva. This is the reason why the temple attracts both the followers of Shiva called ‘Shaivities’ and the followers of Vishnu called ‘Vaishnavities’.
The structure of the temple is amazing and attracts visitors. The temple architecture reflects the traditional Dravidian style used in ancient times.
INSIDE THE TEMPLE
source: The Hindu
The splendid abode of Ramanathaswamy is spread in a large area of approx 15 acres. The main deity of this temple is Ramanathaswamy i.e Lord Shiva as Ramalingam. Lord Rama installed this lingam. There is another lingam named Vishwalingam, also Hanumanlingam which was brought by Hanuman from Kailash mountains. The temple looks beautiful with the might tower gates (Gopurams) in all four directions and is the best spot to behold the typical South Indian architecture. The temple has the largest hallway and is supported by 4000 pillars.
MYTHOLOGY
People believe that God Rama after killing Ravana in the Ramayan war stepped his first feet in the land of Rameshwaram. To get over the sins of killing a Brahman, he wanted to pay his to Lord Shiva. He asked his subordinate Hanuman to get a Shivalingam from Kailash. In the meanwhile Rama made a small lingam with the sand he collected from the seashores of Rameshwaram. This lingam came to be known as Ramalingam and the one which hanuman brought later is the Vishwalingam, also Hanuman lingam. As per Lord Rama’s wish, the Vishwalingam is worshipped first before proceeding to main Jyotirlingam.
HISTORY
At first, the place was a thatched hut monitored by a saint. The construction of the temple in Rameshwaram started in the 12th century during the Pandya reign and continued till the 16th century. The temple architecture is an illustration of the Dravidian style. The endless corridors, the magnificent towers, tall pillars and the beautiful sculptures in the entire temple were carried out in between this period. And now the temple is famous for its impressive architecture and religious importance all over the world.
Comments are closed.