Temples & Other interesting Places
1. Sri Anjaneyar Temple (Krishnapuram)
This anjaneyar temple is very famous in Tenkasi taluk. Lots of people visits this temple on saturday and thursday.
How to reach:
Bus: Take any bus to tenkas/Sengottai and get down at Krishnapuram
Train: Chennai to sengottai or madurai to sengottai get down at kadayanallur share auto from kadayanallur station to direct temple.
Located in the mid of the paddy fields. In the month of Nov to feb the view will be nice.
Accomodation: You can stay in Tenkasi
2. Sri Thirumalaikumarasamy Kovil (Panpozhil)
At a distance of 5 km from Panpoli Bus Stop, 14 km Tenkasi, 18 km from Courtallam and 71 km from Tirunelveli, Thirumalai Kovil is a Murugan temple situated at Panpoli. The temple is situated at an altitude of 400 m on a small hill surrounded by Western Ghats on the border of Kerala.
The main deity Murugan is found with four hands in the standing posture. The deity here is called Thirumalai Kumaraswamy or Thirumalai Murugan. Lord Muruga gave darshan to sage Agasthiar at this place. This temple has 2 enclosures and two entrances. The sanctum faces the east. The temple boasts a mukha-mandapa, maha-mandapa in front of the sanctum. At the entrance of the main sanctum, there is a small idol for Lord Ganesha. A three tiered gopura covers the entrance to the inner enclosure. Much of the current structure of the temple dates back to 15th century. There are few 18th century inscriptions found in the temple.
At the entrance of the hill, there is a shrine for Lord Vallabha Vinayaka. There is another Vinayaka shrine in the middle of the hill path. The sacred spring at the top of the hill is called Ashta Padmakulam. A flower called Kuvalai blossomed here. The Saptha Kannikas worshipped Muruga by offering the flower. The idols of Saptha Kannikas are installed on the banks of the spring.
There are 625 steps to reach the temple at the hill top. There is also a motorable road which can take you directly to the entrance of the temple. This hill temple is surrounded by lot of coconut plantations.
Step festival on the first of Chithirai in April, Vaikasi Visakam in May/June, Skanda Sashti in October/November, Karthikai float festival in November/December and Thai Poosam in January/February are the festivals celebrated in the temple.
Timings: 6 AM – 1 PM and 5 PM to 8.30 PM
4. Mekkarai Dam (Panpozhil)
The Mekkara Dam is located east of the Western Ghats in Tirunelveli District. This dam is around 670 m long and irrigates about 91,400 hectares land in the districts of Tirunelveli, Virudhunagar and Tuticorin.
5. Arulmigu Kasi Viswanathar Temple(Tenkasi)
At a distance of 1.5 km from Tenkasi Bus Station, 5 km from Courtallam and 55 km from Tirunelveli, Sri Kasi Viswanathar Temple is one of the main attractions of Tenkasi. Built by the Pandya Kings, the massive gopura of the temple is the second largest in Tamil Nadu. This temple is also known as Ulagamman Temple.
The temple was built by Parakrama Pandyan in Dravidian style. The construction of Rajagopuram was completed in the year 1505. The gopura caught fire in 1824 and was in a bad condition till 1966. Then the renovation began and was completed in the year 1990. The Rajagopuram is 180 feet tall and is a masterpiece of aesthetic beauty. A pathway is also provided up to tower in the 9th tier to have an aerial look of Tenkasi.
The temple is dedicated to Kasi Viswanathar a form of Lord Shiva in a self incarnated form (swayambu). It is believed that worshipping the Lord in this temple is as equal to worshipping the Lord in Kasi. The consort of Kasi Viswanathar is known as Ullagamman in this temple.
This temple has three shrines – Siva, Amman and Murugan. This temple boasts beautiful sculptures and also has musical stone pillars that produce different sounds when tapped with fingers. There are twin statues of Veerabhadra, Nataraja, Rathi-Manmatha, idols of Thirumal and Kali Devi are wonderfully carved. Name of the town is derived from this temple and known as Kasi of South. The nearby river Chittar is considered equivalent to Ganga. People here believe that those who worship in Tenkasi get the same benefit of worship undertaken in Kasi.
The 10 day Masi Magam in February/March, Navarathri in September/October, Tirukalyanam in October/November, boat festival in August/September are the festivals grandly celebrated in the temple.
Timings: 6 AM – 11 AM and 4 PM to 8 PM
6. Courtallam – Tourist Place
Courtallam or Kuttalam, Spa of South India, is a panchayat town situated at a mean elevation of 160 m (520 ft) on the Western Ghats in Tenkasi district of Tamil Nadu bordering to Kollam district, Kerala. Many seasonal and few perennial rivers such as the Chittar River, the Manimuthar River, the Pachaiyar River and the Thamirabarani River originate in this region. The numerous waterfalls and cascades along with the ubiquitous health resorts in the area have earned it the title the Spa of South India.[1] The falls carry a good amount of water only when there is a rain on the hills. The season begins from June of every year till September. The South West Monsoon brings in the cold breeze with mild temperature. From October to December North East Monsoon sets over in Tamil Nadu and the climate is cold and the rains are very heavy sometimes. Sometimes the falls get flooded and people are not allowed to take bath during floods. The best time to visit kuttalam is between July and September.