Meenakshi Amman Temple, Madurai
मीनाक्षी अम्मन मंदिर, मदुरै
📍 Madurai, Tamil Nadu
At the heart of Madurai, this temple celebrates Devi as the fish-eyed queen Meenakshi and her consort Sundareswarar. It is a city within walls, crowned by fourteen painted gopurams.
मदुरै के हृदय में मीनाक्षी देवी और सुंदरेश्वर — चौदह रंग-बिरंगे गोपुरों वाला दिव्य नगर।
इतिहास History
Madurai was the Pandya capital, and the shrine is praised in early Tamil literature. After it was plundered in the 14th century, the Nayak rulers rebuilt it on a grand scale in the 16th–17th centuries.
The tallest of its gopurams, the southern tower, rises about 52 m.
कथा The legend
Princess Meenakshi was born from the sacrificial fire of the Pandya king. It was foretold that a sign would vanish when she met her lord, and she conquered the world until, at Kailash, she met Shiva. He came to Madurai as Sundareswarar, and their divine wedding is celebrated every year.
दर्शनीय Don’t miss
- The Hall of a Thousand Pillars
- The Golden Lotus tank (Potramarai Kulam)
- Musical pillars that ring when tapped
- The nightly palliyarai ceremony
उत्सव Festivals
मंदिर दर्शन Temple story
The secrets of Meenakshi Amman, from our YouTube series.
▶ Watch all 18 Temple Stories on YouTubePhoto: MADHURANTHAKAN JAGADEESAN · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons