Most beautiful temple in India

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Rock fort or Ucchi Pillayar koil, is a combination of two famous 7th century Hindu temples, located atop of a small rock in Trichy, India. Geologically the 83 m high rock is said to be one of the oldest in the world, dating over 3 billion years ago, and mythologically this rock is the place where Lord Ganesh ran from King Vibishana, after establishing the Ranganathaswamy deity in Srirangam.

The smooth rock was first cut by the Pallavas but it was the Nayaks of Madurai who completed both the temples under the Vijayanagara empire. The temple complex is composed of two parts: a Shiva temple (Thayumanaswamy) carved in the middle of the rock and a Pillayar (Ganesh) temple at the top portion of the rock. The Shiva temple is the bigger one, housing a massive stone statue of Shiva in the form of Linga along with a separate sanctum for goddess Parvati. The Ganesh temple is much smaller with an access through steep steps carved on the rock and provides a stunning view of Trichy, Srirangam and the rivers Kaveri and Kollidam.

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Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam

The temple is near Trichy in Tamil Nadu, India is dedicated to Lord Ranganatha, a reclining form of Lord Vishnu. It is the first and foremost among the 108 Divya Desams, the holy abodes of Lord Vishnu. The temple is built on an island in the middle of the River Cauvery. The temple chariot festival is famous during the 21 day Vaikunta Ekadasi when the Vaishnavite text, Tiruvaimozhi is recited before Lord Vishnu. ThiruKalyana festival during Tamil month of Panguni is celebrated with pomp and glory.

The temple occupies an area of 156 acres with a perimeter of 1,116 m making it the largest temple in India and one of the largest religious complexes in the world. In fact, Srirangam temple can be easily termed as the largest functioning Hindu temple in the world (Angkor Wat being the largest non-functioning temple). The temple is enclosed by 7 concentric walls with a total length of over six miles. These walls are enclosed by 21 Gopurams (Towers), the largest of which was completed in 1987 and measures 73 m in height. Among the marvels of the temple is a "hall of 1000 pillars" (actually 953). Non-Hindus can only go up to the sixth wall but not inside the gold topped sanctum sanctorium.

Though the term Kovil is generically used in Tamil to signify any temple, for many Vaishnavas, the term Kovil exclusively refers to this temple, indicating its extreme importance for them. Apart from the main shrine of Ranganathar, the complex also houses shrines of dozens of forms of Lord Vishnu including Sudarshana Chakra, Narasimha, Rama,Hayagreeva, Gopala Krishna, separate shrines for Ranganayaki and dozens of other shrines for the major saints in the Vaishnava tradition, including Ramanuja. On most days, the devotees are treated to Chakra pongal (a type of sweet made with jaggery, pulses and rice), Puliyodarai and thayir sadam (rice with yogurt/curd) prasadam (offering).



How to Reach

Trichy has an international airport about 8 km from the city. Trichy Railway Junction has routes to Madurai, Rameswaram, Erode, Tanjore and Chennai. Currently there are 4 platforms in operation. There is frequent bus services to Srirangam from Trichy (6 km).

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Bhimeswarar Temple at Vishar near Kanchipuram
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Deepaprakasa Perumal Temple at Kanchipuram
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Ellamman Temple at Perumbairkandigai(Tozhuppedu) near Madurantakam
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Etteeswarar Temple at Ayanambakkam near Ambattur
Ezhuththari Natheswarar Temple at Innambar (Tirukkottaiyur) near Kumbakonam