163-518: Thiruparankundram , also spelled Tirupparankundram or Tiruparangundram , is a neighbourhood in Madurai city in Tamil Nadu , India. It is about 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) from Periyar Bus Terminus , the centre of the city and constitutes the southwest part of the Madurai city. The town's landmark and fame is the huge monolithic rock hill that towers to a height of 1,048 feet (319 m) and has
326-442: A tropical savanna climate ( Köppen Aw/As ). Madurai is hot and dry for eight months of the year. Cold winds are experienced during February and March as in the neighbouring Dindigul . The hottest months are from March to July. The city experiences a moderate climate from August to October, tempered by heavy rain and thundershowers, and a slightly cooler climate from November to February. Fog and dew are rare, occurring only during
489-489: A Hindu religious identity". Scholars state that Hindu, Buddhist and Jain identities are retrospectively-introduced modern constructions. Inscriptional evidence from the 8th century onwards, in regions such as South India, suggests that medieval era India, at both elite and folk religious practices level, likely had a "shared religious culture", and their collective identities were "multiple, layered and fuzzy". Even among Hinduism denominations such as Shaivism and Vaishnavism,
652-526: A North western Indian region of seven rivers and as an India whole). The Greek cognates of the same terms are " Indus " (for the river) and " India " (for the land of the river). Likewise Hebrew cognate hōd-dū refers to India mentioned in Hebrew Bible ( Esther 1:1 ). The term " Hindu " also implied a geographic, ethnic or cultural identifier for people living in the Indian subcontinent around or beyond
815-408: A circumference of over 2 miles (3.2 km). It is a home to many ancient and historic monuments including Jain caves, some protected as India's national monuments. As of 2011, the town had a population of 48,810. It was incorporated into a new township in 2011, and the first local body election for the corporation was held on 18 October 2011. Thiruparankundram and its landmark hill contains some of
978-615: A common name for the country. Al-Biruni 's 11th-century text Tarikh Al-Hind , and the texts of the Delhi Sultanate period use the term 'Hindu', where it includes all non-Islamic people such as Buddhists, and retains the ambiguity of being "a region or a religion". The 'Hindu' community occurs as the amorphous 'Other' of the Muslim community in the court chronicles, according to the Indian historian Romila Thapar . The comparative religion scholar Wilfred Cantwell Smith notes that
1141-534: A consequence, religious groups have an interest in being recognised as distinct from the Hindu majority in order to qualify as a "religious minority". Thus, the Supreme Court was forced to consider the question whether Jainism is part of Hinduism in 2005 and 2006. Starting after the 10th century and particularly after the 12th century Islamic invasion, states Sheldon Pollock , the political response fused with
1304-411: A daily basis started by Air India Express since February 2018. The carriers operating from the airport are Air India , Air India Express , SpiceJet , IndiGo and SriLankan Airlines . The airport handled 842,300 passengers between April 2015 and March 2016. Madurai has been an academic centre of learning for Tamil culture, literature, art, music and dance for centuries. All three assemblies of
1467-547: A district headquarters of a larger Madurai district. In 1837, the fortifications around the temple were demolished by the British. The moat was drained and the debris was used to construct new streets – Veli, Marat and Perumaal Mesthiri streets. The city was constituted as a municipality in 1866 under the Town Improvement Act of 1865. The British government faced initial hiccups during the earlier period of
1630-582: A diversity of beliefs, and seems to oscillate between Hindus holding a centralist and pluralist religious views. In the texts of Delhi Sultanate era, states Sharma, the term Hindu remains ambiguous on whether it means people of a region or religion, giving the example of Ibn Battuta's explanation of the name "Hindu Kush" for a mountain range in Afghanistan. It was so called, wrote Ibn Battuta, because many Indian slaves died there of snow cold, as they were marched across that mountain range. The term Hindu there
1793-450: A documented history of more than 2500 years. It is often referred to as "Thoonga Nagaram", meaning "the city that never sleeps". Madurai is closely associated with the Tamil language . The third Tamil Sangam , a major congregation of Tamil scholars, is said to have been held in the city. The recorded history of the city goes back to the 3rd century BCE, being mentioned by Megasthenes ,
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#17328019936811956-821: A feeding house, a Vedic school and for traditional performance arts. This is now a major temple complex known as the Thirupparamkunram Murugan temple . It is one of the Six Abodes of Murugan , a major pilgrimage site. It is among the most visited tourist places in Madurai, next only to the Meenakshi Amman Temple . The western edge of the Thiruparankundram hill is home to ancient Jain beds with Tamil Brahmi inscriptions dated between 2nd century BCE and 2nd century CE. Uphill,
2119-571: A fixed set of religious beliefs within Hinduism. One need not be religious in the minimal sense, states Julius Lipner , to be accepted as Hindu by Hindus, or to describe oneself as Hindu. Hindus subscribe to a diversity of ideas on spirituality and traditions, but have no ecclesiastical order, no unquestionable religious authorities, no governing body, nor a single founding prophet; Hindus can choose to be polytheistic, pantheistic, monotheistic, monistic, agnostic, atheistic or humanist. Because of
2282-401: A reasonable construction of history. However, the existence of non-textual evidence such as cave temples separated by thousands of kilometers, as well as lists of medieval era pilgrimage sites, is evidence of a shared sacred geography and existence of a community that was self-aware of shared religious premises and landscape. Further, it is a norm in evolving cultures that there is a gap between
2445-430: A result of Western influence during its colonial history. Scholars such as Fleming and Eck state that the post-Epic era literature from the 1st millennium CE amply demonstrate that there was a historic concept of the Indian subcontinent as a sacred geography, where the sacredness was a shared set of religious ideas. For example, the twelve Jyotirlingas of Shaivism and fifty-one Shaktipithas of Shaktism are described in
2608-646: A sacred pilgrimage site is documented in the Varanasimahatmya text embedded inside the Skanda Purana , and the oldest versions of this text are dated to 6th to 8th-century CE. The idea of twelve sacred sites in Shiva Hindu tradition spread across the Indian subcontinent appears not only in the medieval era temples but also in copper plate inscriptions and temple seals discovered in different sites. According to Bhardwaj, non-Hindu texts such as
2771-756: A saint. [...] When Khusraw stopped at his residence, [Arjan] came out and had an interview with [Khusraw]. Giving him some elementary spiritual precepts picked up here and there, he made a mark with saffron on his forehead, which is called qashqa in the idiom of the Hindus and which they consider lucky. When this was reported to me, I realized how perfectly false he was and ordered him brought to me. I awarded his houses and dwellings and those of his children to Murtaza Khan, and I ordered his possessions and goods confiscated and him executed. Sikh scholar Pashaura Singh states, "in Persian writings, Sikhs were regarded as Hindu in
2934-585: A uniform civil code, where all citizens are subject to the same laws, everyone has equal civil rights, and individual rights do not depend on the individual's religion. In contrast, opponents of Hindu nationalists remark that eliminating religious law from India poses a threat to the cultural identity and religious rights of Muslims, and people of Islamic faith have a constitutional right to Islamic shariah -based personal laws. A specific law, contentious between Hindu nationalists and their opponents in India, relates to
3097-604: A wedding or when a baby is born or cremation rituals. Some Hindus go on pilgrimage to shared sites they consider spiritually significant, practice one or more forms of bhakti or puja , celebrate mythology and epics, major festivals, love and respect for guru and family, and other cultural traditions. A Hindu could: In the Constitution of India , the word "Hindu" has been used in some places to denote persons professing any of these religions: Hinduism , Jainism , Buddhism or Sikhism . This however has been challenged by
3260-536: A wide range of Hindu gods carved on the walls. Kazimar Big Mosque is the first Muslim place of worship in the city. It was constructed under the supervision of Kazi Syed Tajuddin, believed to be a descendant of the prophet Muhammed . He came from Oman and received the piece of land from the Pandya ruler, Kulasekara Pandiyan during the 13th century. It is claimed to be the oldest Islamic monument in Madurai. The dargah of Madurai Hazrats called as Madurai Maqbara
3423-487: Is Madurai Airport at Avaniyapuram which is 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) from Thirupparankundram. Madurai Madurai ( / ˈ m ʌ d ʊ r aɪ / MUH -doo-rai , US also / ˌ m ɑː d ə ˈ r aɪ / MAH -də- RY , Tamil: [mɐðuɾɐi̯] ), formerly known by its colonial name Madura is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu . It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and
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#17328019936813586-473: Is a controversial political subject, with no consensus about what it means or implies in terms of the form of government and religious rights of the minorities. There are 1.2 billion Hindus worldwide (15% of world's population), with about 95% of them being concentrated in India alone. Along with Christians (31.5%), Muslims (23.2%) and Buddhists (7.1%), Hindus are one of the four major religious groups of
3749-541: Is a historic Hindu temple located on the south side of the Vaigai River in Madurai, which is one of the most prominent landmarks of the city. It is dedicated to Parvati known as Meenakshi and her consort, Shiva as Sundareswarar. The complex houses 14 gopuram s (gateway towers) ranging from 45–50 metres (148–164 ft) in height, the tallest being the southern tower, 51.9 metres (170 ft) high. There are also two golden sculptured vimana (shrines) over
3912-594: Is a part of the Pongal festival (harvest festival) celebrated during January. The bull taming event is held in the villages surrounding Madurai when people from the neighbouring villages throng the open grounds to watch man and bull pitting their strength against each other. Although the event was banned by the Supreme Court of India in 2014, large protests in 2017 led to the sport's reinstatement. Santhanakoodu festivals in Madurai are celebrated on various days during
4075-471: Is a term used to describe the culture and identity of Hindus and Hinduism , including the historic Vedic people . Hindu culture can be intensively seen in the form of art , architecture , history , diet , clothing , astrology and other forms. The culture of India and Hinduism is deeply influenced and assimilated with each other. With the Indianisation of southeast Asia and Greater India ,
4238-511: Is a women's general degree college (established in 1953), Sourashtra College (established in 1967) and M.S.S. Wakf Board College (established in 1964), Tamil Nadu Polytechnic College ( established in 1946), are the oldest educational institutions of the city. Madurai Kamaraj University (originally called Madurai University), established in 1966, is a state-run university which has 109 affiliated arts and science colleges in Madurai and neighbouring districts. There are 47 approved institutions of
4401-676: Is ambivalent and could mean geographical region or religion. The term Hindu appears in the texts from the Mughal Empire era. Jahangir , for example, called the Sikh Guru Arjan a Hindu: There was a Hindu named Arjan in Gobindwal on the banks of the Beas River. Pretending to be a spiritual guide, he had won over as devotees many simple-minded Indians and even some ignorant, stupid Muslims by broadcasting his claims to be
4564-478: Is an organic relation of Sikhs to Hindus, states Zaehner, both in religious thought and their communities, and virtually all Sikhs' ancestors were Hindus. Marriages between Sikhs and Hindus, particularly among Khatris , were frequent. Some Hindu families brought up a son as a Sikh, and some Hindus view Sikhism as a tradition within Hinduism, even though the Sikh faith is a distinct religion. Julius Lipner states that
4727-543: Is another rock-cut pre-9th century Kasi Viswanathar temple – named after the one in Varanasi – with a natural water tank and an overview of the rural scenery around Madurai. The stone walkway is marked and has Torana-like gateways along the way. Covered mandapa (choultry) are found along the hike. Some caverns feature Jain Tirthankara images along the way, confirming the hills importance to Jainism. The cave temple at
4890-706: Is celebrated in the month of January – February, on the full moon day of Tamil Month Thai to celebrate the birth anniversary of King Thirumalai Nayak. The decorated icons of the Meenakshi and her consort are taken out in a procession from the Meenakshi Temple to the Mariamman Teppakulam. The icons are floated in the tank on a raft decked with flowers and flickering lamps. Jallikattu is the most popular historical sport in Tamil Nadu, which
5053-643: Is documented in Islamic literature such as those relating to 8th century Muhammad bin-Qasim , 11th century Mahmud of Ghazni , the Persian traveler Al Biruni, the 14th century Islamic army invasion led by Timur, and various Sunni Islamic rulers of the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal Empire. There were occasional exceptions such as Akbar who stopped the persecution of Hindus, and occasional severe persecution such as under Aurangzeb , who destroyed temples, forcibly converted non-Muslims to Islam and banned
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5216-597: Is further divided into six divisions. Water supply is provided by the Madurai City Corporation with overhead tanks and power pumps. In the period 2010–2011, a total of 950.6 lakh litres of water was supplied to 87,091 connections for households in Madurai. Hindus Traditional Hindus ( Hindustani: [ˈɦɪndu] ; / ˈ h ɪ n d uː z / ; also known as Sanātanīs ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism , also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma . Historically,
5379-616: Is glorified in the Naalayira Divya Prabandham , the early medieval Tamil canon of the Alvar saints from the 5th–9th centuries CE. It is one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Maha Vishnu , who is worshiped as Kallalagar , and his consort Lakshmi as Thirumagal. This temple is called as Thirumaliruncholai in Sangam literatures and Naalayira Divya Prabandham sung by Tamil Alvar saints. Pazhamudircholai , one of
5542-513: Is headed by a Commissioner of police , assisted by Deputy Commissioners. Enforcement of law and order in the suburban areas are handled by the Madurai district police. In 2008, the crime rate in the city was 283.2 per 100,000 people, accounting for 1.1 per cent of all crimes reported in major cities in India, and it was ranked 19th among 35 major cities in India. As of 2008, Madurai recorded the second highest SLL (Special and Local Laws) crimes, at 22,728, among cities in Tamil Nadu. However, Madurai had
5705-499: Is held on 15th night of the Islamic month of Rabi al-awwal on every hijri year. St. Mary's Cathedral is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Madurai . Samanar Malai and Panchapandavar Malai are important Jain centres. Madurai is popularly called Thoonga Nagaram meaning the city that never sleeps, on account of the active night life. The city attracts a large number of tourists from within
5868-647: Is located inside the mosque. Tirupparankunram Dargah is the grave of an Islamic saint who came from Jeddah ; his festival is celebrated during Rajab every Hijri year. Goripalayam Mosque is located in Gorippalayam, the name of which is derived from the Persian word Gor , meaning Grave . The graves of Hazrat Sulthan Alauddin Badhusha, Hazrat Sulthan Shamsuddeen Badhusha and Hazrat Sulthan Ghaibuddeen Badhusha are found here. The urus festival of this dargah
6031-576: Is one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshipped as Viyooga Sundarrajan, and his consort Lakshmi as Mathuravalli. A granite wall surrounds the temple, enclosing all its shrines. The temple has a five-tiered raja gopuram , the gateway tower. The temple is originally believed to be built by the Pandyas , with later additions by the Vijayanagara empire and Madurai Nayaks kings who commissioned pillared halls and major shrines of
6194-722: Is one of the seven circles of the Tamil Nadu State Highway network. Madurai is the headquarters of the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (Madurai) and provides local and inter city bus transport across four districts namely Madurai, Dindigul , Theni , and Virudhunagar . Madurai has four major bus stands, namely, Mattuthavani Integrated Bus Terminus (MIBT), Arappalayam , Palanganatham and Periyar Bus stand. There are 12,754 registered three-wheeled vehicle called auto rickshaws which are commercially available for renting within
6357-729: Is represented in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly by six elected members, one each for the Madurai East, Madurai West, Madurai North, Madurai Central, Madurai South and Thirupparankundram constituencies. Most of Madurai city comes under the Madurai Lok Sabha constituency and elects a member to the Lok Sabha , the lower house of the Parliament of India , once every five years. From 1957,
6520-643: Is spoken by 89.0% of the population. Saurashtra , is the largest minority language which is spoken by 5.4% of the population. Other significant minority languages include Telugu (2.7%) and Urdu (1.5%). Roman Catholics in Madurai are affiliated with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Madurai, while Protestants are affiliated with the Madurai-Ramnad Diocese of the Church of South India . In 2001, Slum-dwellers comprise 32.6 per cent of
6683-557: Is sub-urban of Madurai is business hub for automotive industries such as KUN BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Isuzu, Volkswagen, Toyota, Mahindra, Tata, Maruti Suzuki, Mitsubishi, Ashok Leyland, Jeep, Fiat India (FCA). The government has created Uchapatti-Thoppur satellite Township in Kappalur. Small Industries Development Corporation Kappalur has many polymer and houseware manufacturing units. Some software companies have opened their offices in Madurai. Software Technology Parks of India , an agency of
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6846-511: Is this Rama to be described.. who freed Varanasi from the mleccha (barbarian, Turk Muslim) horde, and built there a golden temple of Sarngadhara". Pollock notes that the Yadava king Ramacandra is described as a devotee of deity Shiva (Shaivism), yet his political achievements and temple construction sponsorship in Varanasi, far from his kingdom's location in the Deccan region, is described in
7009-740: The British East India Company's British Raj . The city has a number of historical monuments, with the Koodal Azhagar temple , Meenakshi Temple and the Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal being the most prominent. Madurai is an important industrial and educational hub in South Tamil Nadu. The city is home to various automobile, rubber , chemical and granite manufacturing industries. Madurai has important government educational institutes such as
7172-493: The Hindu Sabhas (Hindu associations), and ultimately a Hindu-identity driven nationalism in the 1920s. The colonial era Hindu revivalism and mobilisation, along with Hindu nationalism, states Peter van der Veer, was primarily a reaction to and competition with Muslim separatism and Muslim nationalism. The successes of each side fed the fears of the other, leading to the growth of Hindu nationalism and Muslim nationalism in
7335-695: The Madurai Medical College , Homeopathic Medical College, Madurai Law College , Agricultural College and Research Institute and All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Madurai . The city covers an area of 147.97 km (57.13 sq mi) and had a population of 1,470,755 in 2011. The city is also the seat of a bench of the Madras High Court . It is one of the few towns and cities in List of AMRUT Smart cities in Tamil Nadu selected for AMRUT Schemes from central government and
7498-635: The Madurai Monorail in 2011; as of 2020 , it remains in planning stages. Madurai International Airport , first used by the Royal Air Force in World War II in 1942., is located 12 kilometers from the city. The airport was declared a customs airport in 2012 allowing limited number of international flights. It offers domestic flights to some cities in India and international services to Colombo , Dubai and for Singapore on
7661-587: The Sangam age . A town in the neighbouring Dindigul district is called Vada Madurai ( North Madurai ) and another in Sivagangai district is called Manamadurai . The different names by which the city has been referred to historically are listed in the 7th-century poem Thiruvilayaadal Puraanam written by Paranjothi Munivar. Vaishnava texts refer to Madurai as the "southern Mathura", probably similar to Tenkasi ( southern Kashi ). Koodal means an assembly or congregation of scholarly people, referring to
7824-770: The Sindhu (Indus) River . By the 16th century CE, the term began to refer to residents of the subcontinent who were not Turkic or Muslims . Since ancient times, Hindu has been used to refer to people inhibiting region beyond the Sindhu river, therefore some assumptions that medieval Persian authors considered Hindu as derogatory is not accepted by practicing Hindus themselves as those references are much later to references used in pre-Islamic Persian sources, early Arab and Indian sources, all of them had positive connotation only as they either referred to region or followers of Hinduism. The historical development of Hindu self-identity within
7987-748: The Thiagarajar College of Engineering being the oldest. The Madurai Law College , established in 1979, is one of the seven government law colleges in the state. It is administered by the Tamil Nadu Government Department of Legal Studies, and affiliated with the Tamil Nadu Dr. Ambedkar Law University . There are three teacher training institutes, two music colleges, three management institutes and 30 arts and sciences colleges in Madurai. The agricultural college and research institute in Madurai, started in 1965 by
8150-600: The United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom . These together accounted for 99% of the world's Hindu population, and the remaining nations of the world combined had about 6 million Hindus as of 2010 . The word Hindu is an exonym . This word Hindu is derived from the Indo-Aryan and Sanskrit word Sindhu , which means "a large body of water", covering "river, ocean". It was used as
8313-830: The Upanishads . The Puranas and the Itihasa (mainly Ramayana and the Mahabharata ) are enduring traditions among Indonesian Hindus, expressed in community dances and shadow puppet ( wayang ) performances. As in India, Indonesian Hindus recognise four paths of spirituality, calling it Catur Marga . Similarly, like Hindus in India, Balinese Hindus believe that there are four proper goals of human life, calling it Catur Purusartha – dharma (pursuit of moral and ethical living), artha (pursuit of wealth and creative activity), kama (pursuit of joy and love) and moksha (pursuit of self-knowledge and liberation). Hindu culture
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#17328019936818476-399: The "lived and historical realities" of a religious tradition and the emergence of related "textual authorities". The tradition and temples likely existed well before the medieval era Hindu manuscripts appeared that describe them and the sacred geography. This, states Fleming, is apparent given the sophistication of the architecture and the sacred sites along with the variance in the versions of
8639-587: The 17th-century Bhakta Mala text using the phrase "Hindu dharma ". Scholar Arvind Sharma notes that the term "Hindus" was used in the 'Brahmanabad settlement' which Muhammad ibn Qasim made with non-Muslims after the Arab invasion of northwestern Sindh region of India, in 712 CE. The term 'Hindu' meant people who were non-Muslims, and it included Buddhists of the region. In the 11th-century text of Al Biruni, Hindus are referred to as "religious antagonists" to Islam, as those who believe in rebirth, presents them to hold
8802-801: The 1920s, as a reaction to the Islamic Khilafat Movement wherein Indian Muslims championed and took the cause of the Turkish Ottoman sultan as the Caliph of all Muslims, at the end of the World War I . Hindus viewed this development as one of divided loyalties of Indian Muslim population, of pan-Islamic hegemony, and questioned whether Indian Muslims were a part of an inclusive anti-colonial Indian nationalism. The Hindu nationalism ideology that emerged, states Jeffrelot,
8965-524: The 19th century as a response to British colonialism by Indian nationalists and neo-Hinduism gurus. Jaffrelot states that the efforts of Christian missionaries and Islamic proselytizers, during the British colonial era, each of whom tried to gain new converts to their own religion, by stereotyping and stigmatising Hindus to an identity of being inferior and superstitious, contributed to Hindus re-asserting their spiritual heritage and counter cross examining Islam and Christianity, forming organisations such as
9128-559: The 3rd century BCE. Megasthenes may have visited Madurai during the 3rd century BCE, with the city referred as "Methora" in his accounts. The view is contested by some scholars who believe "Methora" refers to the north Indian city of Mathura , as it was a large and established city in the Mauryan Empire . Madurai is also mentioned in Kautilya 's (370–283 BCE) Arthashastra . Sangam literature like Maturaikkāñci records
9291-610: The 7th- or 8th-century Tamil compositions on Shiva by the three prominent Nayanars ( Saivites ), namely Appar , Sundarar and Thirugnanasambandar, address the city as Thirualavai . The Buddhist text Mahavamsa mentions Madurai in the context of Prince Vijaya 's (543–505 BCE) arrival in Sri Lanka with his 700 followers. According to the Mahavamsa, emissaries laden with precious gifts, jewels and pearls, were sent from Sri Lanka to Madurai of ancient Tamilakam . Their mission
9454-400: The 7th-century CE Chinese text Records on the Western Regions by the Buddhist scholar Xuanzang . Xuanzang uses the transliterated term In-tu whose "connotation overflows in the religious" according to Arvind Sharma . While Xuanzang suggested that the term refers to the country named after the moon, another Buddhist scholar I-tsing contradicted the conclusion saying that In-tu was not
9617-488: The Corporation of Madurai, is situated between the Gandhi museum and the Tamukkam grounds – it has a visitor average of 5,000 per day during holidays and 2,000–3,000 on working days. MGR Race Course Stadium is an athletic stadium which has a synthetic track and a swimming pool. Several National Meets are held here. It also hosts several international and national level Kabbadi Championships. Railway grounds at Arasaradi, Medical college grounds & Madura College Grounds are
9780-420: The European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus. Other prominent mentions of 'Hindu' include the epigraphical inscriptions from Andhra Pradesh kingdoms who battled military expansion of Muslim dynasties in the 14th century, where the word 'Hindu' partly implies a religious identity in contrast to 'Turks' or Islamic religious identity. The term Hindu
9943-399: The Government of India, has authorised several such companies to receive benefits under its national information technology development program. The state government proposed two IT-based Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in Madurai, and these have been fully occupied by various IT companies, HCLTech and Honeywell have their own campuses in ELCOT IT Park in Madurai. Meenakshi Amman Temple
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#173280199368110106-490: The Greek ambassador to the Mauryan Empire , and Kautilya , a minister of the Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya . Signs of human settlements and Roman trade links dating back to 300 BCE are evident from excavations by Archeological Survey of India in Manalur. The city is believed to be of significant antiquity and has been ruled, at different times, by the Pandyan Kingdom , Chola Empire , Madurai Sultanate , Vijayanagar Empire , Madurai Nayaks , Carnatic kingdom , and
10269-678: The Hindu identities, states Leslie Orr, lacked "firm definitions and clear boundaries". Overlaps in Jain-Hindu identities have included Jains worshipping Hindu deities, intermarriages between Jains and Hindus, and medieval era Jain temples featuring Hindu religious icons and sculpture. Beyond India, on Java island of Indonesia , historical records attest to marriages between Hindus and Buddhists, medieval era temple architecture and sculptures that simultaneously incorporate Hindu and Buddhist themes, where Hinduism and Buddhism merged and functioned as "two separate paths within one overall system", according to Ann Kenney and other scholars. Similarly, there
10432-523: The Hindu identity and religious response to Islamic invasion and wars developed in different kingdoms, such as wars between Islamic Sultanates and the Vijayanagara kingdom, and Islamic raids on the kingdoms in Tamil Nadu . These wars were described not just using the mythical story of Rama from Ramayana, states Chattopadhyaya, the medieval records used a wide range of religious symbolism and myths that are now considered as part of Hindu literature. This emergence of religious with political terminology began with
10595-413: The Hindu-majority post-British India. After the separation of India and Pakistan in 1947, the Hindu nationalism movement developed the concept of Hindutva in second half of the 20th century. The Hindu nationalism movement has sought to reform Indian laws, that critics say attempts to impose Hindu values on India's Islamic minority. Gerald Larson states, for example, that Hindu nationalists have sought
10758-701: The Hindus and intensely scrutinized them, but did not interrogate and avoided reporting the practices and religion of Mughal and Arabs in South Asia", and often relied on Muslim scholars to characterise Hindus. In contemporary era, the term Hindus are individuals who identify with one or more aspects of Hinduism , whether they are practising or non-practicing or Laissez-faire . The term does not include those who identify with other Indian religions such as Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism or various animist tribal religions found in India such as Sarnaism . The term Hindu, in contemporary parlance, includes people who accept themselves as culturally or ethnically Hindu rather than with
10921-450: The Indian subcontinent. In the 20th century, the sense of religious nationalism grew in India, states van der Veer, but only Muslim nationalism succeeded with the formation of the West and East Pakistan (later split into Pakistan and Bangladesh), as "an Islamic state" upon independence. Religious riots and social trauma followed as millions of Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs moved out of the newly created Islamic states and resettled into
11084-403: The Indic religious culture and doctrines. Temples dedicated to deity Rama were built from north to south India, and textual records as well as hagiographic inscriptions began comparing the Hindu epic of Ramayana to regional kings and their response to Islamic attacks. The Yadava king of Devagiri named Ramacandra , for example states Pollock, is described in a 13th-century record as, "How
11247-432: The Islamic calendar year to commemorate Islamic saints. The city hosts several radio stations, including the state-owned All India Radio and private channels like Hello FM , Radio Mirchi , Suryan FM and Radio City . The Hindu , The New Indian Express and The Times of India are the three principal English-language daily newspapers which have Madurai editions. Deccan Chronicle , though not printed in
11410-407: The Madras Presidency. According to 2011 census , Thiruparankundram had a population of 48,810 with a sex-ratio of 999 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929. A total of 4,736 were under the age of six, constituting 2,455 males and 2,281 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 7.44% and 0.66% of the population, respectively. The average literacy of
11573-515: The Madurai morning flower market. An average of 2,000 farmers sell flowers daily at the flower market. With the advent of Small Scale Industries (SSI) after 1991, the industrialisation of Madurai increased employment in the sector across the district from 63,271 in 1992–93 to 166,121 persons in 2001–02. Madurai is one of the few rubber growing areas in South India, and there are rubber-based industries in Madurai. Gloves, sporting goods, mats, other utility products and automobile rubber components are
11736-616: The Madurai parliament seat was held by the Indian National Congress seven times in the 1962–67, 1971–77, 1977–80, 1980–84, 1984–89, 1989–91 and 1991 elections. The Communist Party of India (Marxist) won the seat three times during 1967–71, 1999–2004 and 2004–09 general elections. The Communist Party of India (1957–61), Tamil Maanila Congress (Moopanar) (1996–98), Janata Party (1998), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (2009–2014) and All India Anna Dravida Munnertra Kazhagam (2014–2020) have each won once. Part of
11899-570: The Puranic literature. According to Diana L. Eck and other Indologists such as André Wink, Muslim invaders were aware of Hindu sacred geography such as Mathura, Ujjain, and Varanasi by the 11th century. These sites became a target of their serial attacks in the centuries that followed. The Hindus have been persecuted during the medieval and modern era. The medieval persecution included waves of plunder, killing, destruction of temples and enslavement by Turk-Mongol Muslim armies from central Asia. This
12062-663: The Sikhs and by neo-Buddhists who were formerly Hindus. According to Sheen and Boyle, Jains have not objected to being covered by personal laws termed under 'Hindu', but Indian courts have acknowledged that Jainism is a distinct religion. The Republic of India is in the peculiar situation that the Supreme Court of India has repeatedly been called upon to define "Hinduism" because the Constitution of India , while it prohibits "discrimination of any citizen" on grounds of religion in article 15, article 30 foresees special rights for "All minorities, whether based on religion or language". As
12225-517: The Tamil language, the Tamil Sangam (about the 3rd century BCE to the 3rd century CE), were said to have been held at Madurai. Tamil poets of different epochs participated in these assemblies, and their compositions are referred to as Sangam literature . During the third Tamil sangam , the comparative merit of the poets was decided by letting the works float in the lotus tank of the temple. It
12388-675: The Thiruvonam festival celebrated in the temple. Koodal Azhagar temple is revered in Nalayira Divya Prabhandam , the 5th–9th century Vaishnava canon, by Periyalvar , Thirumalisai Alvar and Thirumangai Alvar . The temple is classified as a Divya Desams , one of the 108 Vishnu temples that are mentioned in the book. During the 18th and 19th centuries, the temple finds mention in several works like 108 Tirupathi Anthathi by Divya Kavi Pillai Perumal Aiyangar and Koodal Sthala Purana . |date=September 2023}} Tevaram ,
12551-480: The Vaigai delta across Madurai North, Melur, Nilakottai and Uthamapalayam are known as "double-crop paddy belts". Farmers in the district supplement their income with subsidiary occupations like dairy farming, poultry-farming, pottery, brick making, mat-weaving and carpentry. Madurai is famed for its jasmine plantations, called Madurai Malli , primarily carried out at the foothills of Kodaikanal hills and traded at
12714-542: The Yavanas [Muslims], The Kali age now deserves deepest congratulations for being at the zenith of its power, gone is the sacred learning, hidden is refinement, hushed is the voice of Dharma . The historiographic writings in Telugu language from the 13th- and 14th-century Kakatiya dynasty period presents a similar "alien other (Turk)" and "self-identity (Hindu)" contrast. Chattopadhyaya, and other scholars, state that
12877-510: The administrative headquarters of Madurai District , which is governed by the Madurai Municipal Corporation established in 1 November 1866. As of the 2011 census , it is the third largest metropolis in Tamil Nadu after Chennai and Coimbatore in terms of population and 27th largest urban agglomeration in India . Located on the banks of River Vaigai , Madurai has been a major settlement for two millennia and has
13040-463: The area covered under the Corporation of Madurai had a population of 1,017,865 with a sex-ratio of 999 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929. A total of 100,324 were under the age of six, constituting 51,485 males and 48,839 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 6.27% and 0.31% of the population respectively. The average literacy of the city
13203-417: The area of its jurisdiction from seventy-two wards to one hundred wards, an increase in area from 51.82 square kilometres (12,810 acres) to 147.997 square kilometres (36,571 acres). Madurai is built around the Koodal Azhagar temple and Meenakshi Temple , which acted as the geographic and ritual centre of the ancient city of Madurai. The city is divided into a number of concentric quadrangular streets around
13366-537: The celebration of Hindu festivals such as Holi and Diwali . Other recorded persecution of Hindus include those under the reign of 18th century Tipu Sultan in south India, and during the colonial era. In the modern era, religious persecution of Hindus have been reported outside India in Pakistan and Bangladesh . Christophe Jaffrelot states that modern Hindu nationalism was born in Maharashtra , in
13529-478: The celestial wedding of Meenakshi (Parvati) with Sundareswarar (Shiva). During the Cradle festival, the festive idols of Meenakshi and Sundareswarar are taken in procession to a mirror chamber and set on a rocking swing for nine days. Avanimoolam festival is celebrated during the month of September when the 64 sacred games of Hindu god Shiva, thiruvilayadal are recited. The Thepporchavam festival or float festival
13692-420: The city and the surrounding streets appearing liken a lotus and its petals. The city's axes were aligned with the four-quarters of the compass, and the four gateways of the temple provided access to it. The wealthy and higher echelons of the society were placed in streets close to the temple, while the poorest were placed in the fringe streets. With the advent of British rule during the 19th century, Madurai became
13855-584: The city which falls under Thirupparankundram assembly constituency comes under the Virudhunagar Lok Sabha constituency . Law and order is enforced by the Tamil Nadu Police , which, for administrative purposes, has constituted Madurai city as a separate district. The district is divided into four sub-divisions, namely Thallakulam, Anna Nagar, Thilagar Thidal and Town, with a total of 27 police stations. The Madurai city police force
14018-454: The city, is another English-language daily newspaper available in the city. The most read Tamil-language daily morning newspapers include Dinamalar , Dina Thanthi , Dinamani and Dinakaran – all these newspapers have editions from Madurai. There are also daily Tamil evening newspapers like Tamil Murasu , Malai Murasu and Maalai Malar published in Madurai. Television broadcasting from Chennai for whole of Tamil Nadu
14181-829: The city. Over the government operated city buses that are used for public transport, there are 236 registered private mini-buses that support local transportation. Madurai Junction is an important railway junction in southern Tamil Nadu and constitutes a separate division of the Southern Railway zone . There are direct trains from Madurai connecting the important cities in Tamil Nadu like Chennai , Coimbatore , Kanyakumari , Tiruchirappalli , Tirunelveli , Karaikudi , Mayiladuthurai , Rameswaram , Thanjavur , Tiruttani, Tirupathi and Virudhachalam . Madurai has rail connectivity with most important cities and towns in India. Madurai has rail connectivity with important cities and towns in India. The state government has announced
14344-586: The country and abroad. About 9,100,000 tourists visited Madurai in 2010, out of which foreigners numbered 524,000. The palace complex of Thirumalai Nayak Palace was constructed in the Indo-Saracenic style by Thirumalai Nayakar in 1636 CE. It is a national monument maintained by the Tamil Nadu Archaeological Department. The daily sound and light show organized by the department explains the virtues of King Thirumalai and
14507-431: The custom of distinguishing between Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs is a modern phenomena, but one that is a convenient abstraction. Distinguishing Indian traditions is a fairly recent practice, states Lipner, and is the result of "not only Western preconceptions about the nature of religion in general and of religion in India in particular, but also with the political awareness that has arisen in India" in its people and
14670-543: The dargha and other the locations as believed by the visiting people. In the 18th century and after, the Murugan temple's mandapas and infrastructure were used as civic hospital by Hindus and as a second outpost of Madurai where soldiers gathered during times of war. Later, the European regiments aided by Haider Ali and Yusuf Khan targeted controlling the temple during the British and French campaign to form what later became
14833-625: The data available with the Indian Meteorological Department on Madurai over a period of 62 years indicate rising trend in atmospheric temperature over Madurai city, attributed to urbanisation, growth of vehicles and industrial activity. The maximum temperature of 42 °C or 107.6 °F for the decade of 2001 to 2010 was recorded in 2004 and in 2010. Madurai has been ranked 42nd best “National Clean Air City” (under Category 1 >10L Population cities) in India. According to 2011 census based on pre-expansion limits,
14996-645: The death of Kulasekara Pandian (1268–1308 CE), Madurai came under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate . The Madurai Sultanate then seceded from Delhi and functioned as an independent kingdom until its gradual annexation by the Vijayanagara Empire in 1378 CE. Madurai became independent from Vijayanagar in 1559 CE under the Nayaks . Nayak rule ended in 1736 CE and Madurai was repeatedly captured several times by Chanda Sahib (1740 – 1754 CE), Arcot Nawab and Muhammed Yusuf Khan (1725 – 1764 CE) in
15159-415: The developmental activities are taken care by government of Tamil Nadu. According to Iravatham Mahadevan , a 2nd-century BCE Tamil-Brahmi inscription refers to the city as matiray , an Old Tamil word meaning a "walled city". Madurai is one of the many temple towns known for Arshad in the state which is named after the groves, clusters or forests dominated by a particular variety of a tree or shrub and
15322-404: The earliest cave temples of Shaivism tradition in this region. The hill is sacred to the Hindus. They call it Skandamalai (lit. "hill of Skanda (Murugan, Kartikeya) – the god of war"). One of the early Shaivism-tradition cave temple at the northern foot of the hill was greatly expanded in stages with mandapas and additional shrines over the 7th to 15th century by various Hindu dynasties, to include
15485-477: The early medieval era Puranas as pilgrimage sites around a theme. This sacred geography and Shaiva temples with same iconography, shared themes, motifs and embedded legends are found across India, from the Himalayas to hills of South India, from Ellora Caves to Varanasi by about the middle of 1st millennium. Shakti temples, dated to a few centuries later, are verifiable across the subcontinent. Varanasi as
15648-437: The establishment of municipality in land ceiling and tax collection in Madurai and Dindigul districts under the direct administration of the officers of the government. The city, along with the district, was resurveyed between 1880 and 1885 CE and subsequently, five municipalities were constituted in the two districts and six taluk boards were set up for local administration. Police stations were established in Madurai city, housing
15811-659: The features of the palace. The palace of Rani Mangamma has been renovated to house one of the five Gandhi Sanghralayas ( Gandhi Memorial Museum, Madurai ) in the country. It includes a part of the blood-stained garment worn by Gandhi when he was assassinated by Nathuram Godse . A visit by Martin Luther King Jr. to the museum inspired him to lead peaceful protests against discrimination. The Eco park, situated in Tallakulam, features fountains and lighting in trees using optical fibres. Rajaji children park, maintained by
15974-410: The festivals associated. The temple prakarams (outer precincts of a temple) and streets accommodate an elaborate festival calendar in which dramatic processions circumambulate the shrines at varying distances from the centre. The temple chariots used in processions are progressively larger in size based on the size of the concentric streets. Ancient Tamil classics record the temple as the centre of
16137-539: The first Muslim invasion of Sindh in the 8th century CE, and intensified 13th century onwards. The 14th-century Sanskrit text, Madhuravijayam , a memoir written by Gangadevi , the wife of Vijayanagara prince, for example describes the consequences of war using religious terms, I very much lament for what happened to the groves in Madhura , The coconut trees have all been cut and in their place are to be seen, rows of iron spikes with human skulls dangling at
16300-489: The flat and fertile plain of the river Vaigai , which runs in the northwest–southeast direction through the city, dividing it into two almost equal halves. The Sirumalai and Nagamalai hills lie to the north and west of Madurai. The land in and around Madurai is utilised largely for agricultural activity, which is fostered by the Periyar Dam . Madurai lies southeast of the western ghats, and the surrounding region occupies
16463-558: The full-fledged cricket stadiums in the city. The people of Madurai celebrate numerous festivals, which include Meenakshi Tirukkalyanam, the Chittirai Festival and the Car Festival . The annual 10 day Meenakshi Tirukalyanam festival, also called Chittirai festival, celebrated during April–May every year attracts 1 million visitors. Legend has it that Hindu god Vishnu, as Alagar, rode on a golden horse to Madurai to attend
16626-478: The government of Madras Presidency under C. Rajagopalachari in 1939 removed restrictions prohibiting Shanars and Dalits from entering Hindu temples. The temple entry movement was first led in Madurai Meenakshi temple by independence activist A. Vaidyanatha Iyer in 1939. In 1971, the municipality of Madurai was upgraded to a Municipal Corporation . In 2011 the Corporation of Madurai expanded
16789-428: The headquarters of a large colonial political complex and an industrial town; with urbanisation, the social hierarchical classes became unified. The Corporation of Madurai has an area of 147.97 square kilometres or 57.13 square miles. Madurai is located at 9°56′N 78°07′E / 9.93°N 78.12°E / 9.93; 78.12 . It has an average elevation of 134 metres. The city of Madurai lies on
16952-617: The headquarters of the District Superintendent. It was in Madurai, in 1921, that Mahatma Gandhi , pre-eminent leader of Indian nationalism in British-ruled India, first adopted the loin cloth as his mode of dress after seeing agricultural labourers wearing it. Leaders of the independence movement in Madurai included N. M. R. Subbaraman , Karumuttu Thiagarajan Chettiar and Mohammad Ismail Sahib. The Temple Entry Authorization and Indemnity Act passed by
17115-486: The highest percentage of Hindus (in decreasing order) are Nepal , India , Mauritius , Fiji , Guyana , Bhutan , Suriname , Trinidad and Tobago , Qatar , Sri Lanka , Kuwait , Bangladesh , Réunion , Malaysia , and Singapore . The fertility rate, that is children per woman, for Hindus is 2.4, which is less than the world average of 2.5. Pew Research projects that there will be 1.4 billion Hindus by 2050. In more ancient times, Hindu kingdoms arose and spread
17278-550: The hills has several other Jain bas-reliefs of Parsvanatha and Mahavira with inscriptions, dated to about the 8th to 9th century. The traditional name of these Jain beds is "Pancha Pandava" beds, reflecting the local historic belief that the beds were one of the places where the five brothers of the Mahabharata fame rested. The southern side of the hill has a natural spring called Saraswati Tirtha as well as another Thirupparankundram rock-cut cave temple that some have proposed
17441-609: The historical records in Vaishnavism terms of Rama, a deity Vishnu avatar. Pollock presents many such examples and suggests an emerging Hindu political identity that was grounded in the Hindu religious text of Ramayana, one that has continued into the modern times, and suggests that this historic process began with the arrival of Islam in India. Brajadulal Chattopadhyaya has questioned the Pollock theory and presented textual and inscriptional evidence. According to Chattopadhyaya,
17604-785: The importance of Madurai as a capital city of the Pandyan dynasty. Madurai is mentioned in the works of Roman historians Pliny the Younger (61 – c. 112 CE ), Ptolemy ( c. 90 – c. CE 168 ), those of the Greek geographer Strabo (64/63 BCE – c. 24 CE ), and also in Periplus of the Erythraean Sea . After the Sangam age, most of present-day Tamil Nadu, including Madurai, came under
17767-476: The influential Asiatick Researches founded in the 18th century, later called The Asiatic Society , initially identified just two religions in India – Islam, and Hinduism. These orientalists included all Indian religions such as Buddhism as a subgroup of Hinduism in the 18th century. These texts called followers of Islam as Mohamedans , and all others as Hindus . The text, by the early 19th century, began dividing Hindus into separate groups, for chronology studies of
17930-486: The legal age of marriage for girls. Hindu nationalists seek that the legal age for marriage be eighteen that is universally applied to all girls regardless of their religion and that marriages be registered with local government to verify the age of marriage. Muslim clerics consider this proposal as unacceptable because under the shariah-derived personal law, a Muslim girl can be married at any age after she reaches puberty. Hindu nationalism in India, states Katharine Adeney,
18093-678: The local Indian population, in a religious or cultural sense, is unclear. Competing theories state that Hindu identity developed in the British colonial era , or that it may have developed post-8th century CE after the Muslim invasions and medieval Hindu–Muslim wars . A sense of Hindu identity and the term Hindu appears in some texts dated between the 13th and 18th century in Sanskrit and Bengali . The 14th- and 18th-century Indian poets such as Vidyapati , Kabir , Tulsidas and Eknath used
18256-509: The memoirs of Chinese Buddhist and Persian Muslim travellers attest to the existence and significance of the pilgrimage to sacred geography among Hindus by later 1st millennium CE. According to Fleming, those who question whether the term Hindu and Hinduism are a modern construction in a religious context present their arguments based on some texts that have survived into the modern era, either of Islamic courts or of literature published by Western missionaries or colonial-era Indologists aiming for
18419-415: The mid-19th century, colonial orientalist texts further distinguished Hindus from Buddhists , Sikhs and Jains , but the colonial laws continued to consider all of them to be within the scope of the term Hindu until about mid-20th century. Scholars state that the custom of distinguishing between Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs is a modern phenomenon. At approximately 1.2 billion, Hindus are
18582-528: The middle of the 18th century. In 1801, Madurai came under the direct control of the British East India Company and was annexed to the Madras Presidency . The British government made donations to the Meenakshi temple and participated in the Hindu festivals during the early part of their rule. The city evolved as a political and industrial complex through the 19th and 20th centuries to become
18745-399: The military and political campaign during the medieval era wars in Deccan peninsula of India, and in the north India, were no longer a quest for sovereignty, they embodied a political and religious animosity against the "otherness of Islam", and this began the historical process of Hindu identity formation. Andrew Nicholson, in his review of scholarship on Hindu identity history, states that
18908-418: The most produced items by these industries. Automobile manufacturers are the major consumers of rubber components produced in the city. There are numerous textile, granite and chemical industries operating in Madurai. Kashmir gold granite and Kashmir white granite are the trade names of two types of granite produced in Madurai. Madurai is promoted as a tier II city for IT and Industry . Kappalur which
19071-583: The municipality are devolved into six departments: General, Engineering, Revenue, Public Health, Town planning, and the Computer Wing. All these departments are under the control of a Municipal Commissioner, who is the supreme executive head. The legislative powers are vested in a body of 100 members, one each from the 100 wards. The legislative body is headed by an elected Mayor assisted by a Deputy Mayor. The corporation received several awards in 2008 for implementing development works. The city of Madurai
19234-679: The name of the Indus River and also referred to its tributaries. The actual term 'hindu' first occurs, states Gavin Flood, as "a Persian geographical term for the people who lived beyond the river Indus (Sanskrit: Sindhu )", more specifically in the 5th-century BCE, DNa inscription of Darius I . The Punjab region , called Sapta Sindhu in the Vedas, is called Hapta Hindu in Zend Avesta . The 6th-century BCE inscription of Darius I mentions
19397-533: The other six abodes of the Hindu god Murugan, is located atop the Solaimalai hill. Thiruparankundram is a hill 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) away from Madurai, where the Hindu god Murugan is believed to have married Deivanai. The temple is the first among the six holy abodes of Murugan, the Arupadai Veedu , literally "Six Battle Camps", and one of the most visited tourist spots in Madurai. The temple has
19560-527: The period 1891 to 1896, when no elections were held due to violent factionalism. During the early years of independent India, the Madurai municipality was dominated by reformists of the Indian National Congress . Madurai was upgraded to a municipal corporation on 1 May 1971 as per the Madurai City Municipal Corporation Act, 1971. It is the second oldest municipal corporation in Tamil Nadu, after Chennai. The functions of
19723-431: The phrase Hindu dharma (Hinduism) and contrasted it with Turaka dharma ( Islam ). The Christian friar Sebastiao Manrique used the term 'Hindu' in a religious context in 1649. In the 18th century, European merchants and colonists began to refer to the followers of Indian religions collectively as Hindus , in contrast to Mohamedans for groups such as Turks, Mughals and Arabs , who were adherents of Islam. By
19886-415: The plains of South India and contains several mountain spurs. The soil type in central Madurai is predominantly clay loam, while red loam and black cotton types are widely prevalent in the outer fringes of the city. Paddy is the major crop, followed by pulses, millet, oil seed, cotton and sugarcane. As is typical for Tamil Nadu, Madurai has a hot semi-arid climate ( BSh ), although it borders closely upon
20049-511: The points, In the highways which were once charming with anklets sound of beautiful women, are now heard ear-piercing noises of Brahmins being dragged, bound in iron-fetters, The waters of Tambraparni , which were once white with sandal paste, are now flowing red with the blood of cows slaughtered by miscreants, Earth is no longer the producer of wealth, nor does Indra give timely rains, The God of death takes his undue toll of what are left lives if undestroyed by
20212-433: The province of Hi[n]dush , referring to northwestern India. The people of India were referred to as Hinduvān and hindavī was used as the adjective for Indian language in the 8th century text Chachnama . According to D. N. Jha , the term 'Hindu' in these ancient records is an ethno-geographical term and did not refer to a religion. Among the earliest known records of 'Hindu' with connotations of religion may be in
20375-522: The religion and traditions across Southeast Asia, particularly Thailand , Nepal , Burma , Malaysia , Indonesia , Cambodia , Laos , Philippines , and what is now central Vietnam . Over 3 million Hindus are found in Bali Indonesia, a culture whose origins trace back to ideas brought by Hindu traders to Indonesian islands in the 1st millennium CE. Their sacred texts are also the Vedas and
20538-453: The religions have drawn their curved swords;" however, the date of this text is unclear and considered by most scholars to be more recent. In Islamic literature, 'Abd al-Malik Isami 's Persian work, Futuhu's-salatin , composed in the Deccan under Bahmani rule in 1350, uses the word ' hindi' to mean Indian in the ethno-geographical sense and the word ' hindu' to mean 'Hindu' in
20701-466: The religious census of 2011, Thiruparankundram had 91.79% Hindus , 3.62% Muslims , 4.46% Christians , 0.01% Sikhs , and 0.11% following other religions. There is a bus stand with bus services connecting Thirupparangkundram with other parts of Madurai and adjacent villages. Passenger trains running between Madurai and Tirunelveli stop at Tirupparankundram railway station , which is 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) from Madurai Junction. The nearest airport
20864-620: The rule of the Kalabhra dynasty , which was ousted by the Pandyas around 590 CE. The Pandyas were ousted from Madurai by the Chola dynasty during the early 9th century. The city was fought over between the Cholas and the Pandyas during the 12th century, changing hands several times, until the early 13th century, when the second Pandyan empire was established with Madurai as its capital. After
21027-401: The same variety of tree or shrub sheltering the presiding deity. The region is believed to have been covered with Kadamba forest and hence called Kadambavanam. The city is referred by various names including "Madurai", "Koodal", "Malligai Maanagar", "Naanmadakoodal" and "Thirualavai". It is believed that Madurai is the derivative of the word Marutham , which refers to the type of landscape of
21190-408: The sanctum of the main deities. The temple is a significant symbol for Tamils and has been mentioned since antiquity in Tamil literature , though the present structure was built between 1623 and 1655 CE. The temple attracts 15,000 visitors a day and around 25,000 during Fridays. There are an estimated 33,000 sculptures in the temple. Koodal Azhagar Temple is a historic Hindu temple located on
21353-496: The second lowest crime rate at 169.1 of all the cities in Tamil Nadu. The city is also the seat of a bench of the Madras High Court , one of only a few outside the state capitals of India. It started functioning in July 2004. The National Highways NH 7 , NH 45B , NH 208 and NH 49 pass through Madurai. The state highways passing through the city are SH-32, SH-33 and SH-72, which connect various parts of Madurai district. Madurai
21516-477: The sense of a follower of the Hindu religion". The poet Vidyapati 's Kirtilata (1380) uses the term Hindu in the sense of a religion, it contrasts the cultures of Hindus and Turks (Muslims) in a city and concludes "The Hindus and the Turks live close together; Each makes fun of the other's religion ( dhamme )." One of the earliest uses of word 'Hindu' in a religious context, in a European language (Spanish),
21679-443: The sense of non-Muslim Indians". However, scholars like Robert Fraser and Mary Hammond opine that Sikhism began initially as a militant sect of Hinduism and it got formally separated from Hinduism only in the 20th century. During the colonial era, the term Hindu had connotations of native religions of India, that is religions other than Christianity and Islam. In early colonial era Anglo-Hindu laws and British India court system,
21842-643: The south side of the Vaigai River in Madurai, which is one of the most prominent landmarks of the city. The temple is dedicated to Maha Vishnu . It has idols of the Navagraha (nine planet deities), which are otherwise found only in Shiva temples. the temple is glorified in the Naalayira Divya Prabandham , the early medieval Tamil canon of the Alvar saints from the 6th–9th centuries CE. It
22005-455: The state government, provides agricultural education to aspirants in the southern districts of Tamil Nadu. All India Institutes of Medical Sciences , a premier medical institution, is also under construction in Madurai and will cover 224 acres (910,000 m ) of land, at an estimated cost of ₹ 1,264 crore (US$ 150 million), and additionally allotted ₹ 736 crore (US$ 88 million) total around ₹ 2,000 crore (US$ 240 million) in
22168-479: The sub-urban Thoppur Madurai district. There are a total of 369 primary, secondary and higher secondary schools in the city. Madurai was traditionally an agrarian society, with rice paddies as the main crop. Cotton crop cultivation in the regions with black soil in Madurai district was introduced during the Nayaka rule during the 16th century to increase the revenue from agriculture. The paddy fields cultivated in
22331-454: The subsequently of part of the city into the Theni district in 1997. The compounded annual growth rate dropped from 4.10 per cent during 1971–81 to 1.27 per cent during 1991–2004. The municipality of Madurai was constituted on 1 November 1866 as per the Town Improvement Act of 1865. The municipality was headed by a chairperson and elections were regularly conducted for the post except during
22494-523: The temple during the 16th century. The Kallalagar temple , Alagar Koyil , is a celebrated Vishnu temple 21 kilometres (13 mi) northeast of Madurai situated at the foothills of Solaimalai. The deity, Kallazhagar, is believed to be the brother of Meenakshi and worshiped by Meenakshi, the presiding deity at the Meenakshi temple. The festival calendars of these two temples overlap during the Meenakshi Thirukalyanam festival. The temple
22657-431: The temple. Viswanatha Nayak (1529–64 CE), the first Madurai Nayak king, redesigned the city in accordance with the principles laid out by Shilpa Shastras (Sanskrit: śilpa śāstra , also anglicised as silpa sastra meaning rules of architecture) related to urban planning. These squares retain their traditional names of Aadi, Chittirai, Avani-moola and Masi streets, corresponding to the Tamil month names and also to
22820-470: The term 'Hindu' retained its geographical reference initially: 'Indian', 'indigenous, local', virtually 'native'. Slowly, the Indian groups themselves started using the term, differentiating themselves and their "traditional ways" from those of the invaders. The text Prithviraj Raso , by Chand Bardai , about the 1192 CE defeat of Prithviraj Chauhan at the hands of Muhammad Ghori , is full of references to "Hindus" and "Turks", and at one stage, says "both
22983-408: The term Hindu referred to people of all Indian religions as well as two non-Indian religions: Judaism and Zoroastrianism. In the 20th century, personal laws were formulated for Hindus, and the term 'Hindu' in these colonial 'Hindu laws' applied to Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs in addition to denominational Hindus. Beyond the stipulations of British colonial law, European orientalists and particularly
23146-457: The term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for people living in the Indian subcontinent . It is assumed that the term "Hindu" traces back to Avestan scripture Vendidad which refers to land of seven rivers as Hapta Hendu which itself is a cognate to Sanskrit term Sapta Sindhuḥ (This term Sapta Sindhuḥ is mentioned in RigVeda that refers to
23309-507: The three Tamil Sangams held at Madurai. Naanmadakoodal, meaning the junction of four towers, refers to the four major temples for which Madurai was known for. The sangam literature mentions the Koodal Azhagar temple at the centre of the city. Historians are of the opinion that Koodal Azhagar temple finds mention in Sangam literature (3rd century BCE–3rd century CE) in works like Madurai Kanchi by Mangudi Marudan, Paripāṭal , Kaliththokai and Silappatikaram . Madurai Kanchi details
23472-515: The top is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva with a few inscriptions. Thiruparankundram Dargah is the grave of an Islamic saint Sulthan Sikkandhar Badhushah who came from Jeddah; his festival is celebrated during Rajab every Hijri year This monument is called the Thiruparankundram Dargah , and the Muslim community calls the same hill as "Sikkandarmalai". There are other miracles of Sulthan Sikkandhar Badhusha happening day to day in
23635-440: The total population, much higher than the national average of 15.05 per cent. The increase in growth rate to 50 per cent from 1971 to 1981 is due to the city's upgrade to a municipal corporation in 1974 and the subsequent inclusion of 13 Panchayats into the corporation limits. The decline in the population growth rate between 1981 and 2001 is due to the bifurcation of Madurai district into two, Madurai and Dindigul in 1984, and
23798-431: The town was 79.55%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. The town had a total of 12934 households. There were a total of 18,480 workers, comprising 109 cultivators, 386 main agricultural labourers, 516 in house hold industries, 15,926 other workers, 1,543 marginal workers, 47 marginal cultivators, 69 marginal agricultural labourers, 228 marginal workers in household industries and 1,199 other marginal workers. As per
23961-779: The university in and around the city, consisting of autonomous colleges, aided colleges, self-financing colleges, constituent colleges, evening colleges and other approved institutions. There are seven polytechnical schools and five Industrial training institutes (ITIs) in Madurai, with the Government ITI and the Government Polytechnic for Women being the most prominent of them all. There are two government medical institutes in Madurai, Madurai Medical College and Homoeopathic Medical College, Thirumangalam and 11 paramedical institutes. There are fifteen engineering colleges in Madurai affiliated to Anna University , with
24124-505: The various beliefs. Among the earliest terms to emerge were Seeks and their College (later spelled Sikhs by Charles Wilkins), Boudhism (later spelled Buddhism), and in the 9th volume of Asiatick Researches report on religions in India, the term Jainism received notice. According to Pennington, the terms Hindu and Hinduism were thus constructed for colonial studies of India. The various sub-divisions and separation of subgroup terms were assumed to be result of "communal conflict", and Hindu
24287-456: The vernacular literature of Bhakti movement sants from 15th to 17th century, such as Kabir , Anantadas, Eknath, Vidyapati, suggests that distinct religious identities, between Hindus and Turks (Muslims), had formed during these centuries. The poetry of this period contrasts Hindu and Islamic identities, states Nicholson, and the literature vilifies the Muslims coupled with a "distinct sense of
24450-424: The wide range of traditions and ideas covered by the term Hinduism, arriving at a comprehensive definition is difficult. The religion "defies our desire to define and categorize it". A Hindu may, by his or her choice, draw upon ideas of other Indian or non-Indian religious thought as a resource, follow or evolve his or her personal beliefs, and still identify as a Hindu. In 1995, Chief Justice P. B. Gajendragadkar
24613-616: The winter season. Being equidistant from mountains and the sea, it experiences similar monsoon pattern with Northeast monsoon and Southwest monsoon , with the former providing more rain during October to December. The average annual rainfall for the Madurai district is about 85.76 cm. Temperatures during summer generally reach a maximum of 42 °C or 107.6 °F and a minimum of 26.3 °C or 79.3 °F, although temperatures up to 43 °C or 109.4 °F are not uncommon. Winter temperatures range between 29.6 °C or 85.3 °F and 18 °C or 64.4 °F. A study based on
24776-479: The world's third-largest religious group after Christians and Muslims. The vast majority of Hindus, approximately 966 million (94.3% of the global Hindu population), live in India , according to the 2011 Indian census. After India, the next nine countries with the largest Hindu populations are, in decreasing order: Nepal , Bangladesh , Indonesia , Pakistan , Sri Lanka , the United States , Malaysia ,
24939-564: The world. Most Hindus are found in Asian countries. The top twenty-five countries with the most Hindu residents and citizens (in decreasing order) are India , Nepal , Bangladesh , Indonesia , Pakistan , Sri Lanka , United States , Malaysia , Myanmar , United Kingdom , Mauritius , South Africa , United Arab Emirates , Canada , Australia , Saudi Arabia , Trinidad and Tobago , Singapore , Fiji , Qatar , Kuwait , Guyana , Bhutan , Oman and Yemen . The top fifteen countries with
25102-466: Was 81.95%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. The urban agglomeration of Madurai had a population of 1,465,625, and is the third largest in Tamil Nadu and the 31st in India. According to the religious census of 2011, Madurai had 85.83% Hindus , 8.54% Muslims , 5.18% Christians and 0.47% others. Tamil is the main language, and the standard dialect is the Madurai Tamil dialect, and
25265-402: Was an ancient Jain temple converted into Shaiva temple in the 7th century and expanded in the 13th century. Some Hindu pilgrims circumambulate around the entire Thiruparankundram hill given the many religious monuments and history here. A steady flight of stone stairs and walkway from the north end, as well as another from the south end, lead to the top of the hill on the western side where there
25428-449: Was believed that a divine force would cause the work of superior merit to float on the surface, while the inferior ones would sink. The American College is the oldest college in Madurai, and was established in 1881 by American Christian missionaries. The Lady Doak College , established in 1948, is the oldest women's college in Madurai. Thiagarajar College (established in 1949), Madura College (established in 1889), Fatima College
25591-635: Was codified by Savarkar while he was a political prisoner of the British colonial authorities. Chris Bayly traces the roots of Hindu nationalism to the Hindu identity and political independence achieved by the Maratha confederacy , that overthrew the Islamic Mughal empire in large parts of India, allowing Hindus the freedom to pursue any of their diverse religious beliefs and restored Hindu holy places such as Varanasi. A few scholars view Hindu mobilisation and consequent nationalism to have emerged in
25754-664: Was constructed by these orientalists to imply people who adhered to "ancient default oppressive religious substratum of India", states Pennington. Followers of other Indian religions so identified were later referred Buddhists, Sikhs or Jains and distinguished from Hindus, in an antagonistic two-dimensional manner, with Hindus and Hinduism stereotyped as irrational traditional and others as rational reform religions. However, these mid-19th-century reports offered no indication of doctrinal or ritual differences between Hindu and Buddhist, or other newly constructed religious identities. These colonial studies, states Pennigton, "puzzled endlessly about
25917-435: Was later used occasionally in some Sanskrit texts such as the later Rajataranginis of Kashmir (Hinduka, c. 1450 ) and some 16th- to 18th-century Bengali Gaudiya Vaishnava texts, including Chaitanya Charitamrita and Chaitanya Bhagavata . These texts used it to contrast Hindus from Muslims who are called Yavanas (foreigners) or Mlecchas (barbarians), with the 16th-century Chaitanya Charitamrita text and
26080-442: Was quoted in an Indian Supreme Court ruling: Although Hinduism contains a broad range of philosophies, Hindus share philosophical concepts, such as but not limiting to dharma , karma , kama , artha , moksha and samsara , even if each subscribes to a diversity of views. Hindus also have shared texts such as the Vedas with embedded Upanishads , and common ritual grammar ( Sanskara (rite of passage) ) such as rituals during
26243-590: Was started on 15 August 1975. Direct-to-home cable television services are provided by DD Direct Plus and other private service providers. Electricity supply to the city is regulated and distributed by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB). The city is the headquarters of the Madurai region of TNEB and along with its suburbs, forms the Madurai Metro Electricity Distribution Circle, which
26406-407: Was the publication in 1649 by Sebastio Manrique . In the Indian historian DN Jha 's essay "Looking for a Hindu identity" , he writes: "No Indians described themselves as Hindus before the fourteenth century" and that "The British borrowed the word 'Hindu' from India, gave it a new meaning and significance, [and] reimported it into India as a reified phenomenon called Hinduism." In the 18th century,
26569-499: Was to secure a bride for Prince Vijaya. The Pandyan King of Madurai agreed to the proposal. He not only sent his own daughter to marry Prince Vijaya but also requested other families to offer their daughters to marry the prince's ministers and retainers. So, along with the Princess and hundreds of maidens, craftsmen and a thousand families from the eighteen guilds were also sent to Sri Lanka. Madurai has been inhabited since at least
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