Rameshwaram temple

The temple and the island of Rameswaram have acquired this name because, Lord Rama worshipped Lord Shiva, the God of Gods here on return from Sri Lanka. According to legend, after killing Ravana Lord Rama returned with his consort Goddess Seetha to India first stepping on the shores of Rameswaram. To expiate the "dosha" of killing a brahmin, Lord Rama wanted to offer worship to Lord Shiva. Since there was no shrine in the island had despatched Sri Hauman to Kailash to bring an idol of Lord Shiva.

Thiruaannamalai, Arunachaleswarar Temple

Shiva is known by devotees as Annamalayar or Arunachaleswarar. And this is believed to be the largest temple in the world dedicated to Shiva. The history of this Annamalayar temple dates back to thousand years. Mention has been made in the Thevaram and Thiruvasagam, both great works in Tamil.

Bramha took the form of a swan and flew to see the crown of Siva. Unable to see the crown, Bramha saw a thazhambu flower which had decked Siva's crown falling down. He asked the flower as to the distance of Siva's crown whereby the flower replied that he had been falling for forty thousand years. Bramha, realizing that he would not be able to reach the crown asked the flower to act as a false witness.  

The thazhambu flower acting as a false witness declared that Brahma had seen the crown. Siva became angry at the deception and cursed that Bramha should have no temple on earth and that the thazhambu flower should not be used while praying to Lord Siva. The place where Lord Siva stood as a column of fire to eliminate the ego is Thiruaannamalai

Sree Ramar Padam, Rameswaram

Sri Ramar Padam temple, residing on a hillock in Pamban Island is incidentally the highest point on the island too. The temple houses the footprints of Lord Rama. This is the location where Hanuman allegedly met Lord Rama and conveyed his sighting of Sita at Ashokavanam in Sri Lanka.From the top of this hillock, the entire island of Rameshwaram is visible.

Nellaiappar Temple, Thirunalveli

The temple of Swami Nellaiappar and Sri Kanthimathi Ambal is situated in the heart of the city. The river Tamirabharani referred to by poets as "Porunai" flows round the town. In the distant past the town was a bamboo forest; hence it was known in those days as "venuvanam". One of the famous temples in Tamil Nadu steeped in tradition and history and also known for its musical pillars and other brilliant sculptural splendours, this is one of the largest temples in South India. Siva is said to have been worshipped by Agastya in a bamboo grove and by Rama after having killed Mareecha some nine miles away at Manoor. There is also a shrine to Vishnu near the sanctum, signifying the belief that Nellai Govindan (Vishnu) visited Tirunelveli to officiate the divine marriage of Shiva and Kantimathi. A little to the south of Swami Nellaiappar Gopuram stands the Gopuram of Sri Kanthimathi Ambal temple. It was here, where composer Sri Muthuswami Dikshithar composed the carnatic song 'Sri Kanthimatheem' in Hemavathi ragam.

Suchindrum Temple, Kanyakumari

The place got the name of Suchindrum from the Sthala Purana. Hindu mythological legend has it that king of devas, Indra got relieved of a curse at the place of the main linga in the temple. The term "Suchi" in Suchindrum is believed to have derived from the Sanskrit meaning that stands for "purify". Accordingly, Lord Indra is supposed to visit the temple for performing "Ardhajama Pooja", or worship, at midnight every day.

There is an Anjaneya, (or Hanuman), statue which stands at 22 feet (6.7 m) and is carved of a single granite block. It is one of the tallest statues of its type in India. It is also of historical interest that this statue was buried in the temple in 1740, fearing an attack by theTipu Sultan and was subsequently forgotten. It was rediscovered in 1930, and subsequently restored for viewing by the then Devaswom Board Commissioner Rajya Seva Praveena Sri M.K. Neelankantha Iyer of Kottarathu Mathom, Moncompu.[4]There is also a Nandi statue, made of mortar and lime, which is 13 feet (4.0 m) tall and 21 feet (6.4 m) long, it is one of the biggest Nandi statues in India.The religious significance of the temple stems from the fact that the main statue of linga represent Siva (Sthanu), Vishnu (maal) and Brahma (Ayan), (as well as giving the temple its name).

The representation of the three central gods of Hinduism in one linga makes it unique in India. Anthropologically it may have stemmed from the fact that the main temple at Padmanabhapuram was Vaishnavite, and the Nanjil Pillais and other communities in Nagarcoil were primarily Shaivaites, because of the influences from Chola, Chera and Pandya kingdoms. One of the unique aspects of the temple is the presence of the gods across the length and breadth of the Hindu pantheon, from Rama and Krishna to Amman and kandan.

The different Hindu sects from Vaishnavism, Shaivism, to more localised Tamil sects like amman, kandan are represented in the different idols of the temple.The 10 day Car Festival celebrated in this temple during between December and January every year attracts crowds of thousands of people. Another festival known as Teppam is celebrated during between April and May every year. The Sanskrit workSucindrastalamahatmya gives a full fledged legendary account of the origin and development of this temple.

Vaitheeswaran Koil

Vaitheeswaran Temple or Pullirukkuvelur (Tamil:வைதீஸ்வரன் கோவில்) [1] is a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Shiva located in Tamil Nadu, India. Shiva is worshipped as Vaitheeswaran or the "God of healing" and it is believed that prayers to Vaitheeswaran can cure diseases. It is one of the nine Navagraha (nine planets) temples associated with the planet Mars (Angaraka). The village is also known for palm leaf astrology called Naadiastrology in Tamil. It is located 7 kilometers from Sirkazhi, 235 kilometers from Chennai, 27 km from Chidambaram, 110 km from Thanjavur and 16 km from Mayiladuthurai.The holy waters of the Siddhamirtham tank within the temple complex contains nectar, and a holy dip is believed to cure all diseases.[1][2]The temple is revered by the Tevaram hymns of 7th-century Saiva nayanars - Tamil saint poets and is also classified as a Paadal Petra Sthalam (temple revered by the nayanars).

The temple has a 5-tier gopuram (temple tower) and large precincts. The central shrine is that of Vaitheeswaran present as lingam in the inner most sanctum. The first precinct around the sanctum has the metal image of Subramanya, worhsipped here as Muthukumara Swamy. The other metal images in the sanctum are of Nataraja, Somaskanda, Angaraka and stone sculptures of Durga, Dakshinamoorthy, Surya (Sun god), Jatayu, Vedas, Sampati.[4] The shrine of Thaiyalnayaki who stands with the medicinal oil to cure the diseases of the devotees is present in the second precinct facing south. The large precinct also has a small shrine to Dhanvantari and shrine of Angaraka in stone sculpture. The southern gateway from this precint leads to the temple tank and directly faces the Thaiyalnayaki shrine. The Sthala Vriksha (temple tree) is margosa (Azadirachta indica) which possesses medicinal properties.[4] It is located in the eastern gateway of the temple. The eastern gateway also has the shrine of Adi (original) temple that has a smaller replica of the main shrines. There is a fine metal image of Gangavisarjanar inside the temple.[4]

Arulmigu Avinashilingeshwar Thirukoil, Avinashi

This temple is located at on Erode road, Avinashi 40 kms from Coimbatore. This temple was built by 'Sundara Pandiya' in the 15th century. The Sthalapuranam states that two boys were taking bath in a tank when a crocodile swallowed one. Three years later a 'Thread ceremony' was performed to the boy who survived. Though their family was happy on the occassion, there was grief in the family of the boy who was swallowed by the crocodile. On his way to meet 'Cheramaan Peruman', Sundaramoorthy Nayanar happened to pass by Avinashi and heard the tale. Moved by this, Sundaramoorthy Nayanar composed and sang for 'Lord Shiva' to resurrect the dead child. His prayers were answered and water started flowing into the empty tank and crocodile emerged from it with a grown boy of 8 years.

The car festival is the most exciting of the festivals in this temple. This temple's car is one of the biggest in South India and is noted for its fine wooden carvings.