Nagar Kovil , alternatively spelled as Nagarcoil ( Tamil : நாகர்கோயில் ), is a small town in Jaffna District , Sri Lanka . Its name translates to "Temple of Nagas " in Tamil .
51-574: There is an ancient town in the Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu with the same name as Nagarcoil . The beach has the remains of a large Ayyanaar temple. Once it was an Aaseevagam centre for theological debates and is now under the Indian Ocean. The temple built along the Assevagam centre also was taken away by the ocean. The Murugan temple in the middle of the town is very special in
102-464: A height of 29 metres (95 feet) and stands upon an 11.5-metre (38 ft) rock that represents the 38 chapters of virtue in the Thirukkural . The statue standing on the rock represents wealth and pleasures, signifying that wealth and love be earned and enjoyed on the foundation of solid virtue. The combined height of the statue and pedestal is 133 ft (40.5 m), denoting the 133 chapters in
153-735: A point where three oceans meet: the Bay of Bengal , the Laccadive Sea , which is connected to the Indian Ocean , and the Arabian Sea . Kamarajar Mani Mantapa Monument was raised and dedicated to K. Kamarajar , a freedom fighter, former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, and President of Indian National Congress. He is also popularly known as "Black Gandhi" among the masses. Like the Gandhi Memorial Mandapam, this monument
204-403: A total of 119 marginal workers: 4 marginal cultivators, 3 marginal agricultural labourers, 11 marginal workers in household industries, and 101 other marginal workers. Kanyakumari is located at 8°05′N 77°34′E / 8.08°N 77.57°E / 8.08; 77.57 and has an average elevation of 30 metres. The peninsular tip of Kanyakumari is bordered on three sides by
255-609: Is Thiruvananthapuram International Airport , 90 km (56 mi) from Kanyakumari town and 70 km (43 mi) from Nagercoil. Kanyakumari is 744 km (462 mi) from Chennai. Kanyakumari has heliports for VVIP visitors at the Tri Sea Hotel on Beach Road. Shakta pithas The Shakta pithas , Shakti pithas or Sati pithas ( Sanskrit : शाक्त पीठ , Śakta Pīṭha , seats of Shakti ) are significant shrines and pilgrimage destinations in Shaktism ,
306-632: Is Tripura Sundari herself. Many legends are associated with Vindhyavasini, she is also called Mahadurga . She is the combined form of all 108 Shakta pithas as mentioned in the Devi Bhagavata Purana text. This is because it is the place where the goddess chose to reside after her birth in Dvapara Yuga . At the time of the birth of Krishna to Devaki and Vasudeva , Vindhyavasini took birth in Gokula to Nanda and Yashoda as per
357-550: Is a 3,000-year-old temple dedicated to Goddess Kumari Amman located at Kanyakumari on the shore of the Laccadive Sea. Kumari Amman is one of the forms of Devi, popularly known as "Kumari Bhagavathy Amman". The temple is the first Durga temple created by Lord Parasurama and one of the 108 Shakthi Peethas. It is mentioned in the Ramayana , Mahabharata , and Purananuru . The Gandhi Memorial Mandapam has been built on
408-470: Is a city in Kanyakumari district in the state of Tamil Nadu , India . It is the southernmost tip of the Indian subcontinent and the southernmost city in mainland India , and thus referred to as "The Land's End". The city is situated 90 kilometres (56 mi) south of Thiruvananthapuram city, and about 20 kilometres (12 mi) south of Nagercoil , the headquarters of Kanyakumari district. Kanyakumari
459-494: Is a popular tourist destination and pilgrimage centre in India. Notable tourist spots include its unique sunrise and sunset points, the 41-metre (133 ft) Thiruvalluvar Statue , and Vivekananda Rock Memorial off the coast. Lying at the tip of peninsular India, the town is bordered on the west, south, and east by the Laccadive Sea . It has a coastline of 71.5 kilometres (44.4 mi) stretched along these three sides. On
510-413: Is based on the story of the death of the goddess Sati . Out of grief and sorrow, Shiva carried Sati's body, reminiscing about their moments as a couple, and roamed around the universe with it. Vishnu had cut her body into 51 body parts, using his Sudarshana Chakra , which fell on earth to become sacred sites where all the people can pay homage to the goddess. To complete this massively long task, Shiva took
561-614: Is believed to remove the rigidity from the mind, and women pray for marriage at her temple. In 1656, the Dutch East India Company conquered Portuguese Ceylon from the Portuguese East Indies , and the name eventually corrupted to "Comorin" and was called "Cape Comorin" during British rule in India . In 2016, the town and its district were renamed to "Kanniyakumari" by the Government of India and
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#1732765671410612-652: Is currently in a ruined state. Only ruins are found in these places. Its ruins are near the Line of Control (LOC) between the Indian and Pakistani-controlled portions of the former princely state of Kashmir and Jammu . Instead, Sringeri Sharada pitham , Sringeri in Karnataka even though not a Shakta pithas, is this aspect of the goddess. It is believed that Goddess Sharada moved from her ruined temple in Kashmir to live in
663-464: Is no evidence. The Vindhyavasini Shakta pitha is considered a Shakta pitha even though any body parts of Sati did not fall there. Vindhyavasini is the ultimate and the highest form of the goddess, she is called Adi Parashakti . Goddess Vindhyavasini is considered the embodiment of all of the Mahavidyas , Navadurgas , Matrikas , Yoginis and all the other goddesses present in this universe, she
714-421: Is part of the common Hindustani phrase used to describe the length of India: "Kashmir se Kanyakumari"; before the partition, the phrase in undivided India was "Khyber se Kanyakumari". However, the southernmost point of Republic of India is at Indira Point on Great Nicobar Island , at 6°45’10″N and 93°49’36″E. The Thiruvalluvar Statue is a 7,000-ton stone statue of poet and philosopher Valluvar . It has
765-469: Is restricted for tourists. The Vivekananda Rock Memorial is a popular tourist monument in Vavathurai, Kanyakumari, India. The memorial stands on one of two rocks in the Laccadive Sea, located about 500 metres (1,600 ft) east of the mainland of Vavathurai. It was built in 1970 in honour of Swami Vivekananda who is said to have attained enlightenment on the rock. According to local legends, it
816-725: Is situated in Jaintiapur Upazila, Bangladesh , which was previously the capital of the Jaintia Hills tribe kingdom, which became the Jaintia hills district of Meghalaya, India, excluding Jaintiapur. However, some people say that it is the Nartiang Durga temple which is the real Jayanti Temple, though there is a shortage of evidence. Some other people argue the actual shrine is at Amta in West Bengal, where
867-475: Is where Kamarajar's ashes were kept for the public to pay homage before immersion into the sea. Near Kanyakumari's southern shore stands a monument to the memory of those who died in the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami , an underwater megathrust earthquake that claimed around 230,000 lives in many countries, including India, Sri Lanka, Somalia, Thailand, Maldives, and Indonesia. The state-owned Poompuhar Shipping Corporation runs ferry services between
918-596: The ASI . The Hindus claims that the temple was destroyed and the minar was built there. It is claimed that Shrinkhala Mata Murti was taken to Shringeri Karnataka but no such temple exits there till date. At present in Hooghly district only one Ratnabali Shaktipeeth is present (Third mahavidya) (main form of Parvati ) Currently in Kumartoli Kolkata , West Bengal Other Shakipeeths:- These are not recognised as
969-521: The Bengal region, 14 of these are located in what is now West Bengal , India, 1 in Baster (Chhattisgarh), while 7 are in what is now Bangladesh . According to legend, lord Brahma once conducted a huge yajna (ritual sacrifice), where all the prajapatis, deities, and kings of the world were invited. Shiva and Sati were also called on to participate in the yajna. All of them came for the yajna, and sat in
1020-613: The Bharat or Greater India including present-day India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, some parts of Southern Tibet in China and parts of southern Pakistan. Another text which gives a listing of these shrines, is the Shakta Pitha Stotram , written by Adi Shankara , the 9th-century Hindu philosopher. According to the manuscript Mahapithapurana (c. 1690–1720 CE), there are 52 such places. Among them, 23 are located in
1071-403: The Government of Madras . According to a Hindu legend, Kanya Devi , an avatar of Parvati , was to marry Shiva , who failed to show up on his wedding day. Rice and other grains meant for the wedding feast remained uncooked and unused. The uncooked grains turned into stones as time went by. Some believe that the small stones on the shore today, which look like rice, are indeed grains from
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#17327656714101122-487: The Laccadive Sea . It is located at the confluence of the Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats . The nearest city is Thiruvananthapuram , Kerala (85 km (53 mi) away), and the nearest town is Nagercoil , the administrative headquarters of Kanyakumari district (22 km (14 mi) away). Kanyakumari is at the southern tip and is the southernmost point of the contiguous Indian Subcontinent . As such, it
1173-572: The Thirukkural . The statue is reminiscent of a dancing pose of Nataraja . It was sculpted by the Indian sculptor V. Ganapati Sthapati , who also created the Iraivan Temple , and its opening ceremony was on 1 January 2000. The monument was hit by the Indian Ocean tsunami on 26 December 2004, but stood unaffected. The statue is designed to survive earthquakes of high magnitude. During maintenance work, as well as during rough sea, entry
1224-509: The mother goddess denomination in Hinduism . The shrines are dedicated to various forms of Adi Shakti . Various Puranas such as Srimad Devi Bhagavatam state the existence of a varying number of 51, 52, 64 and 108 Shakta pithas of which 18 are named as Astadasha Maha (major) in medieval Hindu texts. Various legends explain how the Shakta pithas came into existence. The most popular
1275-503: The 51 pithas are in the present day countries of India, Sri Lanka , Bangladesh , Nepal , Tibet, Bhutan and Pakistan. The Shivacharita besides listing 51 maha-pithas, speaks about 26 more upa-pithas. The Bengali almanac , Vishuddha Siddhanta Panjika too describes the 51 pithas including the present modified addresses. A few of the several accepted listings are given below. In South India, Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh became
1326-458: The Bengal region. During partition the numbers were West Bengal (18, 1 disputed as Shrinkhala Devi Temple ) and Bangladesh (7). After the secret transfer of Dhakeshwari Shaktipeeth to Kolkata the numbers stand as West Bengal (19,1 disputed Shrinkhala Devi Temple) and Bangladesh (6). The Brahmanda Purana , one of the major eighteen Puranas mentions 64 Shakta pithas of the goddess Parvati in
1377-587: The Himalayas to Lanka ( Sri Lanka ) during the Ramayana War . The fallen earth formed an area called Marunthuvazh Malai , literally "hills where medicine lives". This legend explains the abundance of unique native medicinal plants in the area. Marunthuvazh Malai is located near Kottaram, about 7 km (4 mi) from Kanyakumari town on the Kanyakumari–Nagercoil highway. The sage Agasthya , who
1428-650: The Indian Government and the Sringeri Sharada Peetham in 2023, in Kupwara district, Jammu and Kashmir, on the other side of the LOC and much farther from the original temple. The Indian Government is planning an international corridor between the old Sharada pitha and mainland India. As per Sankara Samhita of Skanda Purana , In the listings below: More details on this are available in
1479-582: The Shakta pithas, but still claimed by the followers, for various reasons. 1. Jwala Devi Jobner 2. Jayanti Kali Temple 3. Asamai Devi Temple in Kabul, Afghanistan 4. Juranpur Kali Temple , West Bengal 5. Sarbamangala Temple Burdwan West Bengal ( it is said that Devi Shakti's part fell here as claimed by the pujaris and local legends) There are disputes about the location of the Jayanti Shakta pitha. Based on most presented manuscripts and facts it
1530-584: The Temple. The main gem of Goddess Sati is lost long before (the factual date is unknown). So for actual Darshan visit the Kumartoli kolkata West Bengal one. 2) The Shrinkhala Shaktipeeth (one of 18 Maha Shakta pitha) in West Bengal Hooghly is a disputed site and today only an Islamic Minar is seen there and a door claimed by the locals as the door to the garbagriha of the temple is closed by
1581-483: The beginning of Shiva's house-holder ( grihastāshramī ) life from an ascetic. This event is ahead of the emergence of both of the couple's children, Kartikeya and Ganesha . Each temple has shrines for Shakti and Kalabhairava , and most Shakti and Kalabhairava in different Shakta pithas have different names. The scriptures, which include the Kalika Purana , recognize four Shakta pithas as sites where most of
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1632-509: The celestial dance of destruction, across all creation. Frightened, the other deities requested Vishnu to intervene to stop this destruction. As a recourse, Vishnu used the Sudarshana Chakra on Sati's corpse. This caused various parts of Sati's body to fall at several spots across the world. The history of Daksha yajna and Sati's self-immolation had immense significance in shaping the ancient Sanskrit literature and influenced
1683-447: The ceremonial place. Daksha came last. When he arrived, everyone in the yajna, with the exception of Brahma and Shiva, stood up, showing their reverence for him. Brahma, being Daksha's father, did not rise. Shiva, being Daksha's son-in-law, and also due to the fact that he considered himself superior in stature to Daksha, remained seated. Daksha misunderstood Shiva's gesture, and considered this act an insult. Daksha vowed to take revenge on
1734-510: The culture of India. Each of the places on Earth where Sati's body parts were known to have fell were then considered as Shakta pithas and were deemed places of great spiritual importance. Several stories in the Puranas and other Hindu religious books refer to the Daksha yajna. It is an important incident in both Shaivism and Shaktism , and marks the replacement of Sati with Parvati , and of
1785-474: The energy is. Vimala where the feet fell (Pada Khanda), Tara Tarini housing the breasts (Stana Khanda), Kamakhya , where the genitals fell ( Yoni Khanda) and Dakshina Kalika , where the toes of right foot fell. These four temples originated from the lifeless body of Sati. Apart from these 4 there are 48 other famous pithas recognized by religious texts. According to the Pithanirnaya Tantra
1836-722: The form of Bhairava . Most of these historic places of goddess worship are in India, but there are seven in Bangladesh, four in Nepal, two in Pakistan, and one each in Tibet , Sri Lanka and Bhutan. There were many legends in ancient and modern sources that document this evidence. A consensus view on the number and location of the precise sites where goddess Sati's corpse fell is lacking, although certain sites are more well-regarded than others. Maximum number of Shaktipeeths are present in
1887-781: The goddess is worshiped as Maa Melai Chandi in Melai Chandi Mandir . But this fact can not be corroborated with any evidence. Moreover, refuting most texts, in Melai Chandi Mandir, the Bhairava is Durgeshwar rather than Kramadishwar . Some also identify the Jayanti shrine with the Mahakal cave temple situated in the village Jayanti of Alipurduar, where many statues were created by Stalagmites and Stalactites (combination of limestone and water), but there
1938-503: The instruction of Lord Vishnu . Vasudeva replaced his son Krishna with this girl child of Yashoda so that Krishna could escape his demon uncle Kamsa , whom he would kill later according to a prophecy. When Kamsa tried to kill the girl, she slipped from his hands, assumed her true form and warned Kamsa that his killer (Krishna) still lived on. She left Mathura and the goddess chose the Vindhya Mountains as her abode to live on
1989-419: The insult in the same manner. Daksha performed a yajna with a desire to take revenge on Shiva. Daksha invited all the deities to the yajna, except Shiva and Sati. The fact that she was not invited did not deter Sati's desire to attend the yajna. She expressed her desire to Shiva, who tried his best to dissuade her from going. He relented at her continued insistence, Sati went to her father's yajna. However, Sati
2040-755: The locality. Thaipoosam festival is celebrated in a big way with the paternity of nearby villages. On September 22, 1995, a school was bombed by the Sri Lankan Air Force, killing 39. 9°42′02″N 80°18′31″E / 9.700519°N 80.308658°E / 9.700519; 80.308658 This Northern Province, Sri Lanka location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kanyakumari Kanyakumari ( UK : / k ə n ˈ j ʌ k ʊ m æ r iː / ; lit. ' The Virgin (or Kanya) Princess ' referring to Devi Kanya Kumari , officially known as Kanniyakumari , formerly known as Cape Comorin )
2091-577: The new temple in Sringeri. Requests have been made by the Hindu community in Pakistan to the Pakistani government to renovate the temple, the issue being raised by former Indian Home minister L. K. Advani to the Pakistan authorities as a confidence-building measure, by increasing the people-to-people cross-border interaction. Currently, a new Sharada pitha temple has been inaugurated and consecrated by
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2142-532: The sex ratio (number of females per thousand males) of the town 997. A total of 2,403 people were under six years of age and the child sex ratio (number of females per thousand males under six years of age) stood at 1,024. The town had an average literacy of 88.62%, higher than the national average of 59.5%. There were a total of 4,236 households in the town. As of 2001, Kanyakumari had a total of 5,929 main workers: 11 cultivators, 78 agricultural labourers , 66 in household industries, and 5,774 other workers. There were
2193-458: The shores of the city is a temple dedicated to the goddess Kanya Kumari (the virgin goddess), after which the town is named. Kanyakumari has been a town since the Sangam period and was referred to in old Malayalam literature and in the accounts of Ptolemy and Marco Polo . The place derives its name from the goddess Kanya Kumari , considered to be the sister of Krishna . The goddess
2244-631: The site for a 2nd-century temple. There are believed to be 64 locations. Adi Shankara 's Ashtadasha Shakta pitha Stotram mentions 18 locations known as the Maha Shakta pithas . Among these, the Shakta pithas at Kamakhya , Gaya and Ujjain are regarded as the most sacred as they symbolize the three most important aspects of the Mother Goddess viz. Creation (Kamarupa Devi), Nourishment (Sarvamangala Devi/Mangalagauri), and Annihilation (Mahakali Devi). Modern location Sharadha pitha
2295-527: The spot where the urn containing the Mahatma 's ashes was kept for public viewing before immersion. Resembling central Indian Hindu temples in form,the memorial was designed such that on Gandhi's birthday, 2 October, the first rays of the sun fall on the exact place where his ashes were kept. Kanyakumari Pier or Sunset View Point is considered one of the iconic locations in Kanyakumari. It is situated at
2346-630: The text 'Tantrachūḍamanī' where Parvati tells these details to her son Skanda . Important : 1) The main vigraha of Dhakeshwari Shaktipeeth in Bangladesh is currently relocated in Kumartuli Dhakeshwari Temple in Kolkata West Bengal. The temple pujari came with the main murti during the Bengal violence during partition via a special chartered plane. While in Dhaka Bangladesh a replica is placed in
2397-576: The town and the Vivekananda Rock Memorial and Thiruvalluvar Statue , both situated on rocky islets off the coast. The operation of the ferry service began in 1984. Two ferries were used until June 2013, after which a third ferry was added to the service on the occasion of 150th birth anniversary of Swamy Vivekananda . The Kanyakumari railway station and nearby Nagercoil railway station offer direct connection by rail to almost all metropolitan cities in India. The nearest airport
2448-415: The wedding that was never solemnised. Kanya Devi is now considered a virgin goddess who blesses pilgrims and tourists who flock to the town. Her temple in Kanyakumari is a Shakta pitha : a holy shrine in the Shaktism tradition of Hinduism. According to another Hindu legend, Hanuman dropped a piece of earth near Kanyakumari as he was carrying a mountain with his life-saving herb, Mrita Sanjivani, from
2499-451: Was an expert in medicinal herbs, is believed to have lived around this site in ancient days. There is an ashram on the middle of the hillside; tourists trek up to visit the ashram and to glimpse the sea near Kanyakumari town, a few kilometres away. As per the 2011 Census , Kanyakumari town consisted of 61.16% Christians , 32.97% Hindus , and 5.47% Muslims . It had a population of 19,739, comprising 9,884 males and 9,855 females, making
2550-463: Was not given her due respect at the yajna, and had to bear witness to Daksha's insults aimed at Shiva. Anguished, Sati cursed her father and self-immolated. Enraged at the insult and death of his spouse, Shiva in his Virabhadra avatar destroyed Daksha's yajna and cut off his head. His anger not abated and immersed in grief, Shiva then picked up the remains of Sati's body and performed the Tandava ,
2601-553: Was on this rock that Goddess Kumari performed austerity. A meditation hall (Dhyana Mandapam) is also attached to the memorial for visitors to meditate. The design of the mandapa incorporates different styles of temple architecture from all over India. It houses a statue of Vivekananda. The memorial consists of two main structures: the Vivekananda Mandapam and the Shripada Mandapam. Bhagavathy Amman Temple
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