Madurai is an ancient city located on the Vaigai River in Tamil Nadu. Some of the top tourist attractions in Madurai include the Meenakshi Amman Temple, a historic Hindu temple dedicated to goddess Parvati; the Thirumalai Nayak Palace, a 17th century palace built in the Dravidian architectural style; and the Gandhi Memorial Museum which contains artifacts and photographs relating to Mahatma Gandhi's life. Other popular sights are the Koodal Azhagar Temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, the Vandiyur Mariamman Teppakulam pond and the Azhagarkovil village known for its Kallazh

1. TOURIST SPOTS IN
madurai
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2. Madurai is the third largest city by population in Tamil Nadu, Located on the
banks of River Vaigai, Madurai has been a major settlement for two
millennia and is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world.
Madurai was the longest continuous capital city until British rule in India
and was the first major settlement in central and southern Asia. It is called as
Thoonga Nagaram that means a City that never sleeps. Madurai is closely
associated with the Tamil language, and the third Tamil Sangam, a major
congregation of Tamil scholars said to have been held in the city.

3. MEENAKSHI AMMANTEMPLE
Meenakshi Amman Temple is a historic Hindu temple located on the
southern bank of the Vaigai River. It is dedicated to Parvati, known as
Meenakshi, and her consort Shiva here named Sundareswarar. The
temple forms the heart and lifeline of the 2,500-year-old city of
Madurai and is a significant symbol for the Tamil people, though most
of the present structure was built between 1623 and 1655. It is said that
the temple was originally built in the 6th century BC by survivors of
the Kumari Kandam.

5. Thirumalai nayak place
Thirumalai Nayak Palace is a 17th-century palace erected in 1636 AD by King
Thirumalai Nayak, a king of Madurai’s Nayaka dynasty who ruled Madurai from
1623–59. This Palace is a classic fusion of Dravidian and Rajput styles. The
building, which can be seen today, was the main Palace, in which the king lived.
The original Palace Complex was four times bigger than the present structure. In
its heyday, Thirumalai Nayak Palace at Madurai was considered to be one of the
wonders of the South.

7. Gandhi Memorial Museum established in 1959, is a memorial museum for
Gandhi Known as Gandhi Museum; it is now one of the five Gandhi
Sanghralayas (Gandhi Museums) in the country. It includes a part of the blood-
stained garment worn by Gandhi when he was assassinated by Nathuram
Godse. Located in a quiet place, this memorial of Gandhi contains a “Visual
Biography of Bapuji” containing photos, paintings, sculptures, manuscripts,
quotations and selected copies of his letters and renderings. This section
contains 124 rare photographs depicting various phases of Gandhi from his
childhood days until being taken to the crematorium.

9. Koodal azhagar temple
Koodal Azhagar Temple in Madurai, Is Dedicated To god Vishnu. It is
one of the 108 Divyadesam dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshiped as
Koodal Azhagar and his consort Lakshmi as Maragathavalli. A granite
wall surrounds the temple, enclosing all its shrines. The temple has a
five-tiered raja gopuram, the gateway tower. The temple is originally
believed to be built by the Pandyas, with later additions by the
Vijayanagar and Madurai Nayak kings who commissioned pillared
halls and major shrines of the temple during the 16th century.

11. Vandiyur mariamman teppakulam
Vandiyur Mariamman Teppakulam is the pond located near about 2 km
from the Meenakshi Amman Temple. The pond is connected to Vaigai
River through an ingenious system of underground Channels. It has a total
of 12 long stairs (steps) made of granite on all four sides. The temple, as
well as the stairs, was built by the King Thirumalai Nayak. In the center of
the tank, there is a Mandapam called Maiya Mandapam (Central
Mandapam) with Vinayakar temple and garden.

13. Azhagarkovil
Alagar Kovil is a village in Madurai district. The history and living of the
village are centered around Kallazhagar Temple. Constructed in the
Dravidian style of architecture, Kallazhagar temple covers an area of about
2 acres (0.81 hectares) and has a five-tiered gopuram (gateway tower). The
temple in enclosed in a rectangular enclosure with huge granite walls. The
central shrine houses the image of the presiding deity, Uragamellayan
Perumal in reclining posture on a snake bed similar to that of Srirangam
Ranganathaswamy temple. The images of Sridevi and Bhudevi are also
housed in the sanctum. There two life-size images of Narasimha.

15. athisayam
Athisayam the ultimate in family fun, is several acres Water
Amusement Park located in Madurai. Athisayam has grown over
the last five years to become the largest in the area (Athisayam
was born on 2000). The Waterpark has sports rides for
everyone from the thrill seeker in you to the more relaxed family
attractions.

17. Thiruparankundrammurugan temple
Thirupparankundram Murugan Temple is one of the Six Abodes of
Murugan, the temple is built in rock-cut architecture and believed to have
been built by the Pandyas during the 6th century. The temple is located 8
kilometers from Madurai. In the main shrine, apart from Muruga, deities of
Shiva, Vishnu, Vinayaka and Durga are housed. The temple follows Shivaite
tradition of worship. Six daily rituals and three yearly festivals are held at
the temple, of which the Kantha Sashti festival during the Tamil month of
Aippasi (October – November) being the most prominent.

19. THANK YOU
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