Rameswaram means 'Lord of Rama'. The worditself is a conjunction of 'Rama' and 'Ishwara' which refers to Rama's worship of Lord Shiva. This temple town has developed entirely around the grand Ramanathaswamy Temple, though fishing communities have probably also lived here for centuries. The temple evolved from a thatched shed to its present majestic, imposing structure due to the generosity of wealthy devotees, the most famous ones being successive generations of Sethupathis, who ruled the area around. The lingams contained in the temple predate the present Ramanthaswamy temple, but no evidence exists of their actual age. Construction of the temple was first begun by the Cholas in the 12th century, with many additions made over the centuries. Existing records show that in the twelfth century, King Parakrama Bahu of Sri Lanka constructed the sanctum sanctorum around the Ramanathaswamy shrine, at a time when the Sinhalas controlled Rameswaram. In the fifteenth century, Udayan Sethupathi, a chieftain from Ramnad had the western stone tower and compound wall built. In the sixteenth century, Tirumalai Sethupathi built a portion of the southern second corridor. Later, Udayan Sethupathi katta Thevar, a feudatory under Viswanatha Naicker of Madurai made some additions including the Nandi Mandapam. Dalavai Sethupathi had a portion of the main eastern Gopuram built a century later and the world famous third corridor was constructed by Muthuramalinga Sethupathi during the eighteenth century. Statues of him and his two ministers are found at the entrance to the third corridor. Late in the nineteenth century, the Alar family of Devikottai completed the imposing eastern tower with its nine tiers. Renovations to the second and third corridors have continued well into the twentieth century. Rameswaram developed into a pilgrimage centre and one of the most important Hindu shrines. In addition, its proximity to Sri Lanka (20 km) and a regular steamer service to Talaimannar, made it an important and bustling transit town. But the steamer service has been closed down for more than a decade, because of the ethnic strife in Sri Lanka. This has returned Rameswaram to its original pace: an unhurried pilgrimage centre.
Culture
A pilgrimage to Rameshwaram is among the important injunctions laid on the Hindu from time immemorial. The great temple of Sri Ramanatha is connected by tradition with Kashi. A pilgrimage to Kashi is not considered complete without a pilgrimage to Rameshwaram. In olden days groups of pilgrims, many of them quite old, walked huge distances to the two temples, taking months and years, and some failing to survive the rigours and dangers of such incredibly long journeys. Men and women knew this cost might be exacted of them, but they repaid it cheerfully. The Rameshwaram pilgrimage has long been a tradition in South India, particularly in Tamil Nadu, and has passed into folklore. Many kings of old prided themselves on having planted columns of victory in Rameshwaram-Krishna III the Rashtrakuta, in the 10th century; the Hoysala, Vishnuvardhana, in the 12th century. Everything in and near Rameshwaram is traditionally connected with incidents in the "Ramayana". The Kashi pilgrimage is considered complete not only after worship in the Sri Ramanatha temple but also after a bath in Dhanushkodi, a tip of the island where the Bay of Bengal, called the "Mahodadhi" in ancient times, joins the Indian Ocean, or Ratnakaram, its beautiful old name "Dhanushkodi", in Tamil the "end of the bow", takes its name from a tradition that Sri Rama, at the request of Vibishana, his friend, destroyed the bridge to Sri Lanka with the end of His bow. Dhanushkodi was affected in a cyclone a few years ago.
Climate & Geogaphical Location
The climate of Madurai is warm throughout, even during the winters. Rameshwaram(Ramnathapuram District ) in Tamilnadu , is a sacred island town ,at the extreme south-eastern limit of the Indian Peninsula.
How to Reach
Rail, road and air connect Rameshwaram. Although it does not have an airport of its own, the nearest airport is at Madurai (173 Km) connecting to cities like Chennai, Bangalore and Tiruchirappalli that have connecting flights to destinations across the nation. By rail, Rameshwaram is the nearest railhead and is well connected to other railway junctions of South India like Madras, Madurai, Coimbatore, Trichy and Tanjavur. There are good motorable roads connecting Rameshwaram with other parts of the state as well as other places in India. Regular bus services from Kodaikkanal to Madurai, Tiruchirappally, Bangalore and Coimbatore are available.
Tourist Places
Ramanathaswamy Temple
A fine example of late Dravidian architecture, the town's most famous monument, is the Ramanathaswamy Temple. Its most renowned feature, is its magnificent corridors lined with massive sculptured pillars, noted for their elaborate design, style and rich carving. Legend has it, that Rama sanctified this place, by worshipping Lord Siva here, after the battle of Srilanka. Construction of the temple began in the 12th century AD, and additions were made to the building over the succeeding centuries ,by various rulers, so that today its gopuram is 53.6 metres high. Only Hindus may enter the inner sanctum. The temple is open from 4 am to 1 pm and 3 to 9 pm. Like Kanyakumari, excessively loud and distorted temple music is blasted out from the temple, from about 4.30 am onwards - just in case you had any ideas about sleeping in. Its torture for anyone, who is not totally deaf, but, as usual, the locals seem to be totally oblivious to it.
Tiruchendur
On the coast, south of Tuticorin, Tiruchendur is an impressive shore temple and is one of the six abodes of Lord Murugan and very popular with pilgrims. You may be able to enter the inner sanctums here and watch the enthusiastic proceedings. Just be careful, if they offer you a gulp of the holy water - Pouring it over hands and rubbing them together joyously, is an acceptable substitute for drinking it!
Others
ADAMS BRIDGE - Adams Bridge, is the name given to the chain of reefs, sandbanks and islets, that almost connects Sri Lanka with India. According to legend, this is the series of stepping-stones used by Hanuman to follow Ravana, in his bid to rescue Sita.
KOTHANDRASWAMY TEMPLE & DHANUSHKODI - This is another famous temple, about three km from the extreme tip of the island. Twelve km from town, this temple was the only structure to survive the 1964 cyclone, which washed the rest of the village away.
THE GANDAMADANA PARVATHAM - The Gandamadana Parvatham, on a hill, 3 kms northwest of town, is a shrine containing Ramas footprints. Devotees generally visit here at sunrise and sunset. For a beach, Dhanushkodi is best closer to town.
The temple remain open from 5 am to 1 pm and from 3 pm to 9 pm. The Elaborate pujas are offered six times daily.
Timings Pujas
5.00 am Palliyarai (Sayanagruha) Deeparadhana
5.10 am Saptika linga Deeparadhana
5.45 am Thiruvananthal Deeparadhana
7.00 am Vila Puja
10.00 am Kaalasanthi Puja
12.00 noon Uchikala Puja
6.00 pm Saayaraksha Puja
8.30 pm Ardhajaama Puja
8.45 pm Palliyarai Puja
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