Madurai Meenakshi Temple Address Phone Number

What is Madurai Meenakshi Temple?

The Meenakshi Temple in Madurai is an ancient and historic Hindu Temple which was built between 1623 and 1655 CE. Located on the Bank of Vaigai river, this temple is dedicated to Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva. This temple has also been once nominated for the Seven Wonders of the World. It was found by Indra while he was on a pilgrimage. It is believed that some of the elements of the temples were destroyed by Muslim invader Mailk Kafur, but the temple still retains its beauty. This temple has magnificent architecture, with four entrances facing four directions. Even the City of Madurai was redesigned in accordance with with the temple. At the entrance of the tower there are several Gateway towers which are multi-storey, pyramidal in shape with many ancient figures beautifully sculptured on it. The shrines of Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva is gold plated. In the temple there is another shrine of Lord Ganesha which has been carved out of a single stone. Surrounding the temple tank there is a sacred tank called The Golden Lotus in which no marine animals are found. The Astha Shakti Mandapam or The Hall of Eight Goddesses is the first hall in the entrance of the Meenakshi Temple. On the pillars of this hall the eight forms of Goddess Shakti are carved out. In another section of the temple there is a Hall of Thousand Pillars which symbolises Nayak Power. There are around fifty priests in the temple belonging to the Brahmin sub-caste who perform the rituals of the temple on a Daily basis and they reside in the temple itself. These priests follow the Vedas strictly while performing the rituals. One of the major festivals celebrated here is Meenakshi Thirukalyanam which signifies a south indian female dominated marriage. The Meenakshi Temple is also closely associated with Tamil language and has been promoting Tamil literature, culture, music and art.

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