EAST TOWER:
SOUTH TOWER:
Madurai Meenakshi Temple, also referred to as Meenakshi Amman or Meenakshi Sundareshwara / Sundareshwarar Temple, is a historic Hindu temple located on the southern bank of the Vaigai River in the temple city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is dedicated to Meenakshi, a form of Parvati, and her consort, Sundareshwara, a form of Lord Shiva. According to one theory, "Meenakshi" is a Sanskrit-language term meaning "fish-eyed", derived from the words mina ("fish") and akshi ("eyes"). According to another theory, the name of the Goddess literally means "rule of the fish", derived from the Tamil words meen (fish) and aatchi (rule).
Meenakshi temple is located in the heart of Madurai city, about a kilometer south of River Vaigai. The city roads radiate from the temple complex and major ring roads form a concentric pattern for the city, a structure that follows the Shilpa Shastra guidelines for a city design. Earliest mention of the temple can be found in the Tamil Sangam literature, with the temple of the Goddess mentioned in the 6th century CE texts.
Though the temple has historic roots, most of the present campus structure was rebuilt after the 14th century CE, further repaired, renovated and expanded in the 17th century by the famous King, Thirumalai Nayak. In early 14th century, the armies of Delhi Sultanate led by Muslim Commander Malik Kafur plundered the temple, looted it of its valuables and destroyed the Madurai temple town along with many other temple towns of South India. The contemporary temple is the result of rebuilding efforts started by the Vijayanagara Empire rulers who rebuilt the core and reopened the temple. In the 16th century, the temple complex was further expanded and fortified by the Nayak ruler Vishwanatha Nayakar and later others. The restored complex now houses 14 gopurams (gateway towers), ranging from 45–50m in height, with the southern gopura tallest at 51.9 metres (170 ft). The complex has numerous sculpted pillared halls such as Ayirakkal (1,000 pillar hall), Kilikoondu-mandapam, Golu-mandapam and Pudu-mandapam. Its shrines are dedicated to Hindu deities and Shaivism scholars, with the vimanas above the garbhagrihas (sanctums) of Meenakshi and Sundaresvara gilded with gold.
The temple complex is spread over 14 acres (5.7 ha). The courtyard is close to a square with each side of about 800 feet, but more accurately a rectangle with one side about 50 feet longer. The complex has numerous shrines and mandapas, of which the most important and largest are the two parallel shrines in the innermost courtyard, one for Meenakshi and other for Sundareshwara. Additionally, the complex has a golden lotus sacred pool for pilgrims to bathe in, a thousand pillar hall, choultry with extensive sculpture, the kalyana mandapa or wedding hall, many small shrines for Hindu deities and for scholars from the sangam (academy) history, buildings which are religious schools and administrative offices, elephant sheds, equipment sheds such as those for holding the chariots used for periodic processions and some gardens. The temple is embedded inside a commercial hub and traditional markets.
The temple is a major pilgrimage destination within the Shaivism tradition, dedicated to Meenakshi Devi and Shiva. However, the temple includes Vishnu in many narratives, sculptures and rituals as he is considered to be Meenakshi's brother. This has made this temple and Madurai as the "southern Mathura",one included in Vaishnava texts. The Meenakshi temple also includes Lakshmi, flute playing Krishna, Rukmini, Brahma, Saraswati, other Vedic and Puranic deities, as well as artwork showing narratives from major Hindu texts. The large temple complex is the most prominent landmark in Madurai and attracts tens of thousands visitors a day. The temple attracts over a million pilgrims and visitors during the annual 10-day Meenakshi Tirukalyanam festival, celebrated with much festivities and a ratha (chariot) procession during the Tamil month of Chittirai (overlaps with April–May in Georgian calendar, Chaitra in North India).
Rest of the article is continued after the two videos furnished below…
Royal Vahanas of Goddess Meenakshi and Lord Sundareshwara:
‘Pradakshina’ of Meenakshi Amman Temple, Madurai, with ‘Meenakshi Suprabatham’ background:
Goddess Meenakshi is the principal deity of the temple, unlike most Shiva temples in South India where Shiva is the principal deity. According to a legend found in the Tamil text Tiruvilaiyatarpuranam, king Malayadwaja Pandya and his wife Kanchanamalai performed a yajna seeking a son for succession. Instead, a daughter is born who is already 3 years old and has three breasts. Shiva intervenes and says that the parents should treat her like a son, and when she meets her husband, she will lose the third breast. They follow the advice. The girl grows up, the king crowns her as the successor and when she meets Shiva, his words come true, she takes her true form of Meenakshi. According to Harman, this may reflect the matrilineal traditions in South India and the regional belief that "penultimate [spiritual] powers rest with the women", gods listen to their spouse, and that the fate of kingdoms rests with the women. According to Susan Bayly, the reverence for Meenakshi is a part of the Hindu goddess tradition that integrates with the Dravidian Hindu society where the "woman is the lynchpin of the system" of social relationships.
The marriage of Meenakshi and Shiva was the biggest event, with all Gods, Goddesses and living beings gathered. Vishnu – the center of Vaishnavism tradition of Hinduism, is the brother of Meenakshi. Vishnu gives her away to Shiva at the wedding. Following the tradition, every evening, before closing the temple, a ritual procession led by drummers and a brass ensemble carries the image of Sundareswarar to Meenakshi's bedroom, and every morning she is brought back to the sanctum. The wedding is celebrated annually as Chithirai Thiruvizha in Madurai, a festival tradition believed to have started with King Thirumalai Nayakar.
The town of Madurai is ancient and one mentioned in Sangam era texts. These are dated to be from the 1st to 4th century CE. Some early Tamil texts call Madurai as Koodal, and these portray it as a capital and a temple town where every street radiated from the temple. Goddess Meenakshi is described as the divine ruler, who along with Shiva was the primary deities that the southern Tamil kingdoms such as the Pandyan dynasty revered. The early texts imply that a temple existed in Madurai by the mid 6th century. In medieval literature and inscriptions, it is sometimes referred to as Kadambavanam (lit. "forest of Kadamba") or Velliambalam (lit. "silver hall" where Shiva danced). It was described to be the sangam of scholars, or a place where scholars meet. It is mentioned in the Tamil text Tiruvilayadalpuranam and the Sanskrit text Halasya Mahatmya.
Early Tamil texts mention the temple and its primary deity by various epithets and names. Thirugnanasambandar, the famous Hindu saint of Saiva philosophy, for example, mentioned this temple in the 7th century and described the deity as Aalavai Iraivan. The origin of the temple is mentioned in these early Tamil texts, some in the regional Puranam genre of literature. All of these places the temple in ancient times and include a warrior goddess, but the details vary significantly and are inconsistent with each other. Some link to it deities they call Alavai Iraivan and Alavai Annal, or alternatively Angayar Kanni Ammai. Some link its legend to other deities such as Indra who proclaims the primacy of the goddess, while some describe Hindu gods appearing before ancient kings or saints urging wealthy merchants to build this temple in the honor of a goddess. One legend describes a childless king and queen performing yajna for a son, they get a daughter who inherits the kingdom, conquers the earth, meets Shiva ultimately, marries him, continues to rule from Madurai, and the temple memorializes those times. Instead of such inconsistent un-historical mythologies, scholars have attempted to determine the history of the temple from inscriptions found in and outside Madurai, as well as comparing the records relating to South Indian dynasties. These largely post-date the 12th century.
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