Thirumayam is a place of historical importance located about 22 km from the town of

Pudukkottai Pudukkottai is the administrative headquarters of Pudukkottai District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a large city located on the banks of the Vellar River. It has been ruled, at different times, by the mutharaiyar dynasty , Cholas, ...

& 22 km from the town of

Karaikudi Karaikudi is a Greater municipality in Sivagangai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 21st largest urban agglomeration of Tamil Nadu based on 2011 census data. It is part of the area commonly referred to as " Chettinad" and has ...

. The noted Indian independence activist Sathyamurthy was born in Thirumayam in 1887.

Etymology

Thirumayam is from the word Thiru-meyyam which means Place of truth in Tamil. The Lord Thirumal is also called by the name of Meyyar. Since he stayed in that village it is called by the name Thirumeyyam. Tiru means 'holy' or 'sacred' and is traditionally used in front of names in many parts of Tamil Nadu.

Approach

Thirumayam, a town panchayat and also the Taluk headquarters of the eponymous ''Vattam'' (sub-district), lies 20 km south of

, on the road from that town to

. This is actually National Highway NH-210, which connects

Tiruchirapalli Tiruchirappalli () ( formerly Trichinopoly in English), also called Tiruchi or Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with bein ...

and Rameshwaram. Thirumayam is the first main junction on this road; the

Madurai Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration i ...

road takes its diversion from Thirumayam. Thirumayam is well connected by road and rail. The nearest railhead is at Pudukkottai. Bus facility is available from

Thanjavur Thanjavur (), also Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is the 11th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian religion, art, and architecture. Most of the ...

and many other places. The nearest airport connected is at Trichy, 59 km away. Accommodation is also available at nearby Pudukkottai. Famous freedom fighters Veerapandiya Kattabomman and his brother Umathaiturai hid in a fort at Tirumayam, after their fight against the British during 17th Century.

Attractions

Thirumayam is a much-frequented picnic spot and affords much to the discerning tourist who ventures a little beyond the beaten track. The main attractions of the place are the fort, and the

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one o ...

and

Thirumal Perumal ( ta, பெருமாள் , translit=Perumāl) or Tirumal ( ta, திருமால், translit=Tirumāl) is a Hindu deity. Perumal is worshipped mainly among Tamil Hindus in South India, Sri Lanka, and the Tamil diaspora, who ...

temples.

Thirumayam fort

Miles before reaching the town, one can see a fort atop a large hill. In past centuries, the fort was much larger than what now obtains; this is affirmed by the fact that the main entrance to the old fort lies about one kilometre south of the present-day fort. This entrance to the old fort still stands, it has a courtyard with pillared corridors and shrines of various deities. The sculptures on the pillars are truly beautiful. As one enters the town through the road which connects it with the highway, one finds a small temple dedicated to

Bhairava Bhairava ( Sanskrit: भैरव ) or Kala Bhairava is a Shaivite and Vajrayāna deity worshiped by Hindus and Buddhists. In Shaivism, he is a powerful manifestation, or avatar, of Shiva associated with annihilation. In Trika system ''B ...

(the ''

r-koil'' - பைரவர் கோயில்). This temple, which faces the main road, is a favourite with vehicle-owners who traditionally halt and pray there for a safe journey. This temple was actually built on the outermost wall of the old fort. The Thirumayam fort, set in , is of great historical importance. It was built by Kizhavan Sethupathi Vijaya Raghunatha Sethupathi, ruler of Ramanathapuram in AD 1687. Sethupathi is the name of the ruling dynasty of Ramanathapuram ( Ramnad). Another fact of historic interest is that the founder of the

princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, subject to ...

had served as governor of Thirumayam fort before founding his own kingdom.

Temples

There are two famous rock-cut shrines Sathyagirisvarar and Sathyamoorthi, one for Siva and the other for

, adjacent to each other. These are located at the foot of a hillock on the south side of the town. The rock cut

temple is situated on a hill amid the relics of another ancient and ruined fort. Near this temple stands one of the largest rock inscriptions in

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

. The inscriptions are of particular interest since they deal with

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

, a rare subject for inscriptions. The Sathyamurthi Perumal Temple, a

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...

temple is located on the foot of the hill; it is much a much-venerated temple and is considered second in importance only to the temple at

Srirangam Srirangam, is a neighbourhood in the city of Tiruchirappalli in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. A river island, Srirangam is bounded by the Kaveri River on one side and its distributary Kollidam on the other side. Considered as the first among ...

(ஸ்ரீரங்கம்). It contains one of the largest ''Anantasayi'' group icons in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. ''Anantasayi'' groups have

reclining on ''Anantha (Seshanaaga)'' as the central figure. The

temple contains an octagonal sacred tank called ''‘Satya-pushkarani’'' (சத்திய புஷ்கரணி).

Politics

Thirumayam assembly constituency is part of

Sivaganga (Lok Sabha constituency) Sivaganga Lok Sabha constituency ( ta, சிவகங்கை மக்களவைத் தொகுதி) is one of the 39 Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in Tamil Nadu, a state in southern India. Its Tamil Nadu Parliamentary ...

References

External links

{{commons category, Thirumayam
About Tamilnadu other placesThirumayam Photo Gallery
Cities and towns in Pudukkottai district