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Rameswaram temple also called the Ramanathaswamy Temple is a famous Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple is among the sacred Hindu Char Dhams (four divine sites) and also a national pilgrim center of India. Rameswaram is a little island, situated in Gulf of Mannar close to Srilanka, in Tamilnadu. The temple is situated on Rameswaram Island, off the Sethu coast.
The temple is furthermore amongst the twelve Jyothirlinga temples, where Lord Shiva is idolized one of the Jyotirlingam (in English: pillar of light). It is a general belief that if one visits Rameswaram and prays to Lord Shiva then he/she will be relieved of his/her sin.
A Brief History:
The temple and so the island of Rameswaram had got this name because Lord Rama idolized Lord Shiva here when he returned from Sri Lanka. According to legends, after killing Ravana, Lord Rama came along with his consort god Sita in his country. His first steps were on the shores of Rameswaram. To correct the “dosha” or sin of killing a Brahmin, Lord Rama desired to worship to Lord Shiva.
Since there was no shrine at intervals the island had dispatched Sri Hanuman to Kailash to bring associate idol of Lord Shiva. Anticipating Hunuman’s delay in return, Rama had adored a shiva lingam fashioned out by Sita.
The temple has got royal patronage from several kingdoms such as Ramanathpuram, Travancore, Mysore and Pudukkottai.
Architecture:
The temple is one among the twelve Jyotirlinga shrines, where Shiva is adored in the sort of a Jyotirlinga which means “pillar of light”. It’s conjointly one among the 275 Paadal Petra Sthalam temples and is canonized in hymns by the 3 of the foremost revered Appar, Nayanar saints, Sundarar and Tirugnana Sambandar. The temple’s current structure was designed throughout the twelfth century by Pandya phratry.
The temple spreads over an area of 15 acres, has huge walls, lofty gopurams, and a enormous Nandi.
Things of attraction in and around Rameswaram Temple:
Corridors of the Temple:-
The temple has the longest passageway among all Hindu temples in Asian nation. The breadth of those columnar corridors varies from seventeen to twenty one feet with a height of twenty five feet. Every pillar is carved in Nayak vogue as in Madurai Meenakshi Temple.
Third Corridor of the temple is World Famous.
It’s Outer Wing – East-West side – 690 feet, North-South side – 435 feet.
It’s Inner wing – East-West side – 649 feet, North-South side – 395 feet
Total number of pillars present in the temple corridor is 1212 and height of Corridor is 22 feet 7 ½ inch.
The Temple Tank:
There are 64 Tīrthas or Theerthams (holy water bodies) in and around Rameswaram. As per the Hindu Purana, 24 of them are significant. Of the 24, 14 are in forms of wells and tanks and they are within the boundaries of the temple. Bathing in these tanks is considered as holy and it may be a major fact of the journey to Rameswaram.
Within the temple there are 22 Theertham. The foremost Theertham of all is the Agni Theertham, the sea ( i.e. the Bay of Bengal). It is 200 m away from the temple. It is believed that here Lord Rama worshiped Lord Shiva to wash away his sin.
Dhanushkodi:
The southernmost tip of the island is Dhanushkodi, which houses the Kothandaramaswamy Templededicated to Lord Rama. Dhanushkodi was washed away during the 1964 cyclone, but the temple alone remained intact. It is 18 km away from the Centre of the city and may be reached by road.
A popular belief is that, Dhanushkodi is the place where Vibishana, a brother of Ravana resigned before Rama in the epic Ramayana. Sea gulls, Flamingos and a variety of birds migrate to this Island during winter at Danushkodi.
Pamban Railway bridge:
This railway bridge joins the Rameswaram Island with the mainland. With is length of 2.3 km it is the 2ndlongest bridge in India. The bridge can also be raised to let small ships and vessels to pass under the bridge.
Gandamadana Parvatham:
It is a small hill and the highest point in the Rameswaram Island. It is believed that the footprint of Lord Rama’s feet on a chakra is there. From this point the entire island of Rameswaram is visible.
Residence of Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam:
Our ex-president Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam is from this beautiful island. His residence has become a place of concern and attracts many visitors.
Olaikuda beach:
The Olaikuda beach is surrounded by coral reefs and is a widespread area for adventurous sport like Scuba Diving. It is just 1 km away from the principle temple.
Worship time:
Each day six worship services are carried out. The first worship starts at 5 am. Every Friday special worship services are carried out.
The temple remains open to devotees from 5 am to 9 pm (except from 1 pm to 3 pm).
Details of the puja Timings:
Timings: Puja Name
- 00AM : Palliarai Deepa Arathana
- 10AM : Padigalinga Deepa Arathana
- 45AM : Thiruvanathal Deepa Arathana
- 00AM : Vila Puja
- 00AM : Kalasanthi Puja
- 00PM : Uchikala Puja
- 00PM : Sayaratcha Puja
- 30PM : Arthajama Puja
- 45PM : Palliarai Puja
Accommodation services close to the temple:
Near the temple you can find some really good clean hotels at a nominal rate. Among them 10 best hotels are listed below:
- Hotel Temple Towers.
- Daiwik Hotels.
- Hotel MCM Towers.
- Hotel Vinayaga.
- Hotel Brindavan Residency.
- Hotel Royal Park
- Hotel Queen Palace.
- Hotel Hare Rama Hare Krishna.
- TTDC Tamil Nadu Hotel.
- Hotel Shanmuga Paradise.
You can book the hotels from this link given below:
Location from nearby important places:
By Flight:
Rameswaram don’t have any Airport. The nearest Airport to Rameswaram is Madurai. It’s about 149 km away from the temple. From the airport you can board private cars or you can also avail bus services from the bus stand.
By Train:
Rameswaram has a widespread railway network, connecting it to all major places in India like Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, etc. You can easily get regular train from here to travel major cities.
By Road:
Rameswaram is very well connected to different places because of its broad network of roads. You can reach Rameswaram from most of the major cities in just a day’s time. Regular bus service are available from Chennai, Kanyakumari, Karaikudi, Madurai, Ramanathapuram and several other cities and towns of Tamil Nadu and its neighboring state. The Pamban Road Bridge connects the island of Rameswaram with the mainland. The bridge was inaugurated in 1988.
“The Temple is among the Char Dhams and is considered a very sacred place. So, You must visit this temple once in your lifetime.”
Source : http://www.hindutav.com/rameswaram-temple-one-of-the-chaar-dhams/
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