Tiruvannamalai City General Information |
Tiruvannamalai |
Tiruvannamalai is a pilgrimage town
Tiruvannamalai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters
of the Tiruvannamalai district. Tiruvannamalai is home to the Annamalaiyar
Temple located at the foot of the Annamalai hill. Tiruvannamalai has long
been associated with many yogis and siddhars, and more recently the 20th
century guru Ramana Maharshi. |
Pilgrimage |
 Tiruvannamalai is one of
the panchabhootasthalas representing the fire element along with Chidambaram,
Sri Kalahasti, Thiruvanaikoil and Kanchipuram representing sky, air, water
and earth respectively. Four Brahmotsavams are celebrated every year,
the most famous of which is the one celebrated during the Tamil month
of Karthigai (November/December). The ten day event culminates on the
day of Karthigai Deepam. On that evening, a huge lamp is lit in a cauldron
with three tons of ghee at the top of the Annamalai hill. Every full moon
night, lakhs of pilgrims worship Shiva by circumambulating the Arunachala
hill barefoot. The circumambulation covers a distance of about 14 km.On
the yearly Chitra Powrnami (full moon) night in the Tamil calendar year,
lakhs of pilgrims come from across the world to worship Him. The height
of the Arunachala hill is approximately 1,600 feet. Advaita Vedanta guru
Ramana Maharshi lived in Thiruvannamalai for fifty three years until his
death in 1950. His ashram, Ramanasramam, is located at the foot of the
Arunachala hill, to the west of the town. Seshadri Swamigal and Yogi RamSurat
Kumar are examples of two other gurus who lived in this city.
Do not take excess kumkum or Bhasma and finally put them on the wonderful
carvings. These are very rare carvings and need to be preserved. Let the
temple management know that the root cause is excess of the ash and kumkum
and scratching this precious work with brush once in a while is not the
solution and it harms the temple rather than saving it.
|
Architecture |
The 11 tiered East Rajagopuram
towers to a height of 217 feet, while the fortified walls pierced with
4 gopura entrances offer a formidable look to this vast temple complex
. The Pei Gopuram, Tirumanjana Gopuram and Ammanaiammal gopuram are the
other three. The 1000 pillared hall and the temple tank were built by
Krishna Deva Rayarar of Vijayanagar. Each of the prakarams has a huge
Nandi and several towers such as the Vallala Maharaja Gopuram and Kili
Gopuram. |
Geography |
Thiruvannamalai is located
at 12°132 N 79°042 E / 12.22, 79.07[4]. It has an average elevation of
171 metres (561 feet). Tiruvannamalai is situated 185 km from Chennai
and 210 km from Bangalore.
Saathanoor Dam across Thenpennai River is a tourist place near Thiruvannamalai.
Thiruvannamalai Temple from the hill. |
Demographics |
As of 2001[update] India
census[5], Thiruvannamalai had a population of 130,301. Males constitute
51% of the population and females 49%. Thiruvannamalai has an average
literacy rate of 74%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male
literacy is 81%, and female literacy is 68%. In Thiruvannamalai, 11% of
the population is under 6 years of age. Hindu mudaliyar,vanniyar,adidravidar
and naidu communities are the major livings.
Transport and travel to Tiruvannamalai |
Road |
Thiruvannamalai is well
connected to many cities and towns in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra
Pradesh by road. This town lies on the junction of the Chittoor - Cuddalore
state highway and the Puduchery - Bengalooru national highway (NH 66).
The TNSTC operates many bus services to the different towns and cities
in Tamil Nadu. |
Train |
A railway line between
Vellore and Villupuram passes through Thiruvannamalai, where passengers
can board a passenger train to Vellore (up) or Villupuram (down) (traffic
in this section is now closed for gauge conversion). The nearest major
railway station is at Tindivanam (63 km). |
Air |
The nearest airport is
at Chennai 195 km. |
