Thursday, October 20, 2011

Rameshwaram - The Varanasi of South India

No visit to Varanasi - the holy Hindu destination - is deemed complete without a pilgrimage tour to Rameshwaram in south India. And now with Deepawali so near, it's just the right time to elaborate about the significance of Rameshwaram and its association with Lord Rama.

Rameshwaram is the place where Lord Rama performed a thanksgiving ceremony for Lord Shiva post his victory over Ravana - the king of Lanka. Moreover, he also prayed to Lord Shiva to pardon him for the killing of Ravana here before finally returning to Ayodhya (the day we celebrate as Diwali).

Hence, Rameshwaram became a holy Hindu destination. However, the temple we see today was built later on.  Initially, there was only a thatched shed that was taken care of by a hermit. Over the period of time, the rulers of the region constructed the grand temple that we see today.

Rameshwaram is actually an island that spreads over and area of 61.8 square kilometers. Its shape like a conch gives it a more religious feel. The main temple here is the Ramanatha Swamy Temple that is a masterpiece of the Dravidian architecture. Within the temple complex, there are 22 wells and interestingly, the taste of the water of each well varies from each other.

Other pilgrimage attraction of Rameshwaram includes Agnitheertham, Gandamadana Parvatham, Dhanushkodi and Erwadi. Want to know more about the places to visit in Rameshwaram? Check out this link places to visit in Rameshwaram

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