About Tamilnadu
Tamilians
learn to appreciate culture, from a very young age, and have a deep interest
in music, dance and literature. Classical dancing in the form of Bharatnatyam,
has its origin in the temples of the South East, and continues to be followed
with a lot of fervour and dedication in Tamil Nadu. Carnatic music is another
art form, that has flourished over the ages, producing artists of great repute.
Festivals are a daily feature in this region. Navaratri or Dussehra (September/October),
Diwali (October/ November), Karthika (November/December) and Pongal (January)
are the major occasions, celebrated with great enthusiasm. A unique festival
of Carnatic music, the Thyagaraja festival, is held annually in January at Thiruvariyar,
the birth place of famous singer poet Thyagaraja, where one can witness the
amazing spectacle of mass performance, in total harmony and rhythm.
Tamil Nadu, the heart of the Dravidian culture and tradition, has for time immemorial,
been a pioneer of peace and knowledge, and the visual legacy of the culture
of the state, is among the most satisfying spectacles in India. Sharing boundaries
with the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Kerala, Tamil Nadu has an
unbroken coast line, edging the Bay of Bengal. Densely forested uplands which
abound in wildlife, intensively cultivated farmlands interspersed with rocky
wastes, mountain chains of the Western Ghats, which give way to fertile coastal
plains and plateaus form the geographical features of Tamil Nadu.
The
places of tourist interest in the state are Chennai, the beautiful capital city;
Mamallapuram, the beach resort; Kanchipuram, the land of 1000 temples; Madurai,
famous for the Meenakshi temple; Rameswaram, Tiruchirapalli and Thanjavur, the
temple trio; the charming hill resorts of Yercaud, Ootacamund and Kodaikanal
and Kanyakumari, the southern tip of India, renowned for its sunrise and sunset.
GODS AND TEMPLES
The Tamils have always been a God-fearing people and are ardent worshippers
of Siva, Vishnu, their consorts Parvati and Lakshmi, Vinayaka, Subramanya (also
known as Muruga). And each of these gods take on different names at different
temples depending on the legend of the temple. For example, at Rameswaram, Ramanathaswamy,
which means 'He who was worshipped by Rama' and at Chidambaram He is called
Nataraja or the 'Cosmic Dancer'. In simple terms, for the sake of identification
it is enough to know that whenever 'Eswaran' is the suffix in the name of the
presiding deity, the temple is dedicated to Lord Siva. The South has very few
temples where Siva is depicted as anything other than a lingam. A few notable
exceptions are the temple of the Cosmic Dancer at Chidambaram and the Ardhanareeswarar
temple at Tiruchengodu. Siva is also worshipped as the five elements i.e. as
Sky or Space in
Chidambaram,
Water in Tiruvanaikkaval, Fire in Tiruvannamalai, Earth in Kanchipuram and Air
in Sri Kalahasti (Andhra Pradesh). In Tamil Nadu, Vishnu is worshipped as Vishnu
himself rather than as one of his incarnations, though there are some temples
dedicated to Rama and Krishna both of whom are incarnations of the Lord. He
is known by various names such as Varadaraja Perumal in Kanchi, Kallalagar in
Madurai and Ranganathaswamy at Srirangam.
Of the consorts, there are several temples dedicated to Parvati where there
are also shrines to Lord Siva. The most prominent of these of course is the
twin temple dedicated to Meenakshi and Sundareswarar at Madurai, and the Kamakshi
temple at Kanchi. Apart from this, the goddess is also worshipped as Kali Amman
or Durga.
Vinayaka or Pillayar is perhaps the most worshipped of the gods and is also
called Vigneswara or Ganapati or Ganesa. He is the elephant-headed elder son
of Siva and Parvati and is extremely benign in appearance. During any festival
or celebration, worship of this God is given precedence over others. The largest
Pillayar temple is at Pillayarpatti near Karaikkudi. Vinayaka's younger brother
Subramanya is the Lord of the mountains and his six abodes of Aarupadaiveedu
- Tiruttani, Swamimalai, Palani, Thiruparankunram, Pazhamudircholai and Tiruchchendur.
Two terms that one often comes across in reference to the temples in Tamil Nadu
are Saivism and Vaishnavism. As the words imply, Saivites are followers of Lord
Siva while Vaishnavites are followers of Lord Vishnu. Not all that long ago,
the men of the two sects could be identified by the distinct religious marks
on their forehead. The Saivites wore three horizontal strokes of the vibhoothi
or sacred ash while their Vaishnavite counterparts wore a long 'U' shaped decoration
in white with a vertical stroke of vermillion stretching between the eye brows.
These marks are no longer in use as catholicity, now marks the Hindu faith.
There
are more than 30,000 temples in Tamil Nadu, which has given the state the distinctive
title of 'A Land of Temples'. Built by various dynasties these temples bear
a superficial resemblance to each other in that they share the same physical
features - the gopuram or the imposing tower over the entrance, from all four
directions the vimanam which is the tower over the sanctum and the spacious
halls and corridors. The temple was also much more than a place of worship.
It was a place for social gathering, for education, for celebration - not just
of the king's victories in battles but also of local functions and ceremonies
such as marriages. The temple was also used as a store house of sorts for emergencies
and, many a temple also maintained hospitals. The temple was a place where art,
in all its forms i.e. music, dance, drama and handicrafts received encouragement
and flourished.
But, above all, the temple was a place of worship. And what was of utmost importance
is the beautiful sculptures that adorned them. Every temple has architectural
beauty of its own, peculiar to the presiding deity. You will not miss the Universal.
INDUSTRIES
Tamil Nadu has a tropical climate with no wild swing between summer and winter
temperatures. April and May are the hottest months with the mercury often soaring
above the 40 degree Celsius mark. Coastal regions also get uncomfortably warm
and humid during these months but the nights are usually cool, thanks to the
sea breeze that sets in during the afternoon.
The eastern and southern coastal boundaries of Tamil Nadu are washed by the
waves of the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean respectively. With an area of
130,058 sq. km and a population of over 55 million, Tamil Nadu is the eleventh
largest populous State in India, occupying third place in the Industrial map
of India.
A mild winter falls between November and February when the climate is pleasantly
cool unless you wish to visit the hill stations, in which case you will need
woollens.
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