Shri Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple (also known as Arulmigu Meenakshi Amman Temple) is a historical Hindu Temple site, located in the Temple-City of Madurai , Tamil Nadu, India. The current main temple complex (The Three Storied Gopura at the Entrance and Central Portion of the Goddess Meenakshi Shrine) was built by Pandayan Emperor Sadayavarman Kulasekaran I (1190 AD – 1205 AD) The Temple is situated on the Southern Bank of the Vaigai River and is dedicated to Goddess Meenakshi (a form of Goddess Parvati) and Sundareshwarar (a form of Shiva). The Goddess-Temple is mentioned in the Tamil Sangam Literature Texts and is one of the 275 Temples of Shiva (Paadal Petra Sthalams) that are revered in the Tamil Saiva Nayanars of 6-9th AD. The Shri Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple is a revered pilgrimage site within the Shaivism tradition of Hindu Religion and dedicated to Meenakshi Devi and Lord Shiva. Unlike most other Shiva Temples of South-India, Devi Meenakshi is the Main Deity of the Temple. The Heritage Town of Madurai has been mentioned in the ancient Sangam era texts from 1st - 4th Century CE. The town of Madurai has been described in the earlier texts as a Capital and a Temple Town where the every street was illuminated from the Temple Complex. Goddess Meenakshi is described as the Divine Ruler and were heavily revered by the Southern Tamil Kingdoms like the Pandya Dynasty. These early texts suggest that the Temple existed by early 6th CE. Very famous saint of Saiva philosophy Thirugnanasambandar mentions the Temple as early as of 7Th CE. The Temple complex has been awarded as the best -- Swachh Iconic Place -- in India as on 1 October 2017 under -- Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. [info and Image Credit: Meenakshi_Temple,_Madurai, Wikipedia] [Image : Yali in Pillars at Madurai Meenakshi Amman Temple] [Image Availed Under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (Please Relate to Individual Image URLs for More Usage Property)][Source Image URL :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:01MaduraiMeenakshiAmmanTemple%26IndoorCorridorView.jpg ]
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Monuments and Architecture
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