Reams have been written and reels have been taken depicting the magnificence , and grandeur of the meenakshi temple,how it"s length and breadth straddle almost four bazaars,it's splendid architectural wealth,sprawling mantapams,cool stone corridors,I really can not describe it nor should dare to make an attempt at it, for quite frankly lay people like me can not understand the intricate aspects of it except appreciating the beauties peripherally.

What i mean is you have to be a historian or an architect to savour it"s significance., For unprepared visitors like us,who start out just on a short notice(alas we only looked for hotel accommodations,package tours,and distance maps on net) the vast temple would be a bit confusing, excepting the landmark points like chokkanathar temple etc ,which anybody could show you (no need even for that,there are directions)...Without a proper guide,you could end up seeing everything, but nothing.I think even a guide would be of so much help that is all,for instance, suppose the guide starts by saying"this temple was built by kulasekhara pandyan" you wisely nod ur head "yeah .pandyan..ofcource...great chap..btw was he the one a sivaji starrer was made on?" If u are a serious visitor, bent on appreciating the sculpture of the temple you should know a bit of silpam, a bit of temple vastu, at least some rudimentary knowledge of temple rituals and come prepared , after having done your homework,and catching up with your history lessons.


On our part,the driver, assigned to us ,dropped us at the south west corners of the temple, swung his hand both ways and said we could start from whichever direction we wanted..So we walked on ...and entered the temple through it"s massive southern gates,passed into a vast wide pillared corridor(no,it is too wide to be called a corridor) portico....It was flanked by a lake on it"s left,...must be where theppotsavam is conducted....where there was a golden lotus....to seat the deities, i suppose...

There was a miniature model temple complex on a glass topped table....from there we were directed to the meenakshi temple which was quite nearby...after the darshan we floundered a bit searching for the sundareswar temple,.could find it soon...and then had his darshan too.... Usually for people undergoing mercury major periods,malefic or even otherwise too...astrologers routenely prescribe a darshan of sundareswaraswami ,,, As my husband was then going through one ... i was particularly happy at seeing him,it being a wednesday too, though we had not really planned it that way.


Recollecting all those events now ,it all looks like a blur... a dream.... I could remember strolling across temple.., Srinivas"s kids had a field day running around, they went up to the temple elephant, who would lift it"s trunk to shower blessings and a bit of spew too,only when u put a rupee coin in it"s mouth...Ran around and pointed places where the film "arjun"was taken...this is where that fight took place.... this was where they danced....I could remember me and Prasanna (srinivas"s wife) going gaga over the variety of flowers at the stalls....jasmines, roses,kanakambarams,above all...lotuses,..both white and red.... thickly braided garlands for the deities and at nominal rates tooo... In Hyderabad they were charging 5 rs per moora...

I could remember inspecting various items that were being sold in an arch under the easterntowers,..sivalingams,japamalas,rudrakshas..It was a veritable bazaaar over there..Then the kids started to complain a bit,,.and the harried parents had to recharge them with goodies,.. from the prasadam stalls..well... The elders too have joined in.. and i have this one thing to say.....o kay ,,i had been to Thirupathi,,, i had been to Sri sailam,,,,,Shirdi..Okay..it might not be an impressive list...but ,,nowhere had i seen as many prasadams as at Madurai...You could believe me or leave me...ofcource,all of them had to be bought..but ...still..it was so awesome that i blashemously wondered if really all these had been offered to the gods.Then when little Jyotsna squatted on the floor and declared she could not walk anymore,we realized we had been there at the temple for four hours already and turned back agreeing in unison it could not be covered like this in one day,,, we would come back again(yeah..may be next year?.yeah..why not?..all u have to do is to book train tickets in advance..that is all ..hey ...now we know all the ropes..what"s there?)


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