One of the most enduring images of India is the shockingly colorful, soaring towers of Hindu temples. These carved, pyramidal towers are called gopurams and twelve of them rise above the urbal sprawl of Madurai marking the Sri Meenakshi Temple. This archetypal example of Dravidian or South Indian temple design, art and architecture is one of the most sacred temples in Tamil Nadu. Building of the Sri Meenakshi Temple started in the 12th century under the reign of Chadayavarman Sundara Pandyan, continued until the 18th century and underwent a complete restoration in the 1960's.
This temple is a barrage on the senses beginning with the riotously colored and carved Hindu deities of the mighty gopurams. These towers are between 45-50 meters high and leave you awestruck standing glued to your spot with head tilted back and mouth hanging wide open. Around the main entrances swirl a mass of humanity making offerings, jostling for food, waiting to enter the inner sanctum, praying, taking pictures, laughing and talking, selling their wares - as you stand glued to your spot with your mouth hanging wide open. The best place to sit, relax and just witness the frenetic activity of the Sri Meenakshi Temple is along the steps of the Potramarai Kulam (Golden Lotus Tank). According to tradition, Indra, the God of War, bathed in this tank to purify himself of sin and worshipped Lord Shiva, the Destroyer and the Creator, with golden lotus flowers picked from the tank. Sitting on these steps, we were able to see a Hindu wedding taking place along the Tank's covered walkways. As you wander around the cavernous hallways lined with mythical creatures and resplendent Hindu deities, you begin to smell the pungent odor of ghee (butter used in offerings) mixed with incense, flowers and the ancient smell of centuries old stone. The Puthu Mandapam at the east entrance is lined with vendors selling anything with a Hindu god on it - stickers, masks, clocks, books, posters, jewelry, statues and more. Tailors, bent over their old Singers which seem to be as old as the temple itself, fill the air with the quick click-click of their ancient machines.
The Sri Meenaksi Temple was our first really immense experience at a large, popular and highly sacred South Indian Hindu temple. What amazed us was the sheer size of the temple grounds and the amount of activity that goes on in an operating temple. It felt good to be a part of that activity for the day and to witness such a bustling and vibrant display of religious life.
