!! Travel to Rameshwaram !!

Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu, is one of the most significant pilgrimage destinations in India especially for the Hindus (whether Shaivites or Vaihnavites). The reason behind Vishnu and Shiva worshippers flocking to Rameshwaram, in order to absolve their sins and gain mokshya, is hidden within the pages of Ramayana. It was here that Ram, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, sought to absolve his sin after liberating Ravana of his sins by offering prayers and thanks to Lord Shiva.

Rameshwaram is located on an island in the Gulf of Mannar to the east of the Southern Peninsula, India. It is well connected to the mainland Tamil Nadu by rail and Indira Gandhi Bridge. The island of Rameshwaram is built around mythology; each destination has a story to tell. Get to know more about the tales behind the temples on your travel to Rameshwaram.

Pilgrimage destinations to visit on your travel to Rameshwaram :

Ramanathaswamy Temple - The temple is renowned world over for its stunning Dravidian architecture in the form of four awe-inspiring corridors that house pillars intricately carved to the finest details, and the 22 theerthams (tanks) within the temple complex. The tanks at Rameshwaram, India, like any other tank within a temple or on a holy place, are believed to have curative powers. You too can indulge in folklore by taking a bath and drinking the water of these tanks on your travel to Rameshwaram.

The tanks or theerthams as they are popularly known as too have a tale behind their existence. Their number (22 in all) is supposed to correspond to the number of arrows in Ram's quiver. Ram, according to Ramayan, used the arrows to generate water on the island.

Kothandaraswamy Temple - A temple that survived the lashes of cyclone that hit the town in 1964, it is a standing testament to the belief of the countless worshippers. According to the legend, Ram offered his prayers to Lord Shiva at the spot where the temple stands now.

Adam's Bridge - It is a chain of coral reefs and sandbanks with intermittent islets that take on a religious significance as they almost connect India (Rameshwaram Island) to Sri Lanka, the kingdom of Ravan. It is believed in accordance with Ramayan that it was here that Ram, along with his Hanuman Sena, built a bridge of stepping stones to rescue Sita from the grips of Ravan.

Gandamadana Parvatham - Visited mostly during sunrise and sunset, this point, northwest of Rameshwaram, is a holy place for the pilgrims that travel to Rameshwaram by virtue of the footprints of Lord Ram contained within the premises of the shrine.