Meenakshi Temple, Hindu temple in Madurai, India
The Meenakshi Temple is a Hindu temple at the center of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, with 14 gateway towers covered in painted stone figures. The shrine of the goddess sits at the heart of the complex, surrounded by a series of concentric corridors and open courtyards enclosed within thick outer walls.
The site is first mentioned in Tamil texts of the 6th century, and the early structures were built under the Pandyas in the 12th and 13th centuries. After the Delhi Sultanate's armies destroyed the temple in the 14th century, the Vijayanagara Empire rebuilt it, and the Madurai Nayaks expanded the complex in the 16th and 17th centuries.
Devotees gather daily in the courtyards to take part in rituals led by Brahmin priests in white robes. Those who enter the inner shrine walk clockwise around it, offering flowers while chants echo through the stone corridors.
The temple opens early each morning and closes after dark, and certain inner areas are open to Hindus only. Visitors should wear modest clothing and remove their shoes before entering, keeping in mind that the busiest moments happen during the prayer hours spread throughout the day.
The Aayirankaal mandapam, the hall of a thousand pillars, is named for its columns, but the count falls short of a thousand. The temple's west gopuram served as the model for the state emblem of Tamil Nadu. In October 2017 the temple was judged the best Swachh Iconic Place in India under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
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