Erwadi is a village in

Ramanathapuram District Ramanathapuram District, also known as Ramnad District, is one of the 38 administrative districts of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The old Ramanathapuram District consists of Present day Virudhunagar and Sivagangai districts, it touches th ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

. It belongs to Kilakarai

Taluk A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative ...

and

town panchayat A nagar panchayat () or town panchayat or Notified Area Council (NAC) in India is a settlement in transition from rural to urban and therefore a form of an urban political unit comparable to a municipality. An urban centre with more than 12,00 ...

. The village is at the location of the grave and shrine of Qutb-us-Sultan Syed Ibrahim Badshah Shaheed, a ruler of

Madurai Madurai ( , , ), formerly known as Madura, is a major city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District, which is ...

. Erwadi also belongs to Kadaladi assembly constituency, which is a part of Ramanathapuram (Lok Sabha constituency). After the delimitations in 2009, Erwadi joined the

Ramanathapuram Ramanathapuram (), also known as Ramnad, is a city Municipal Corporation in Ramanathapuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Ramanathapuram district and the second largest town (by population) ...

assembly constituency. Erwadi is the second largest contributor for the revenue of Ramanthapuram District.

History

Importance in Islam

Sultan Syed Ibrahim

Shaheed ''Shahid'' ( , , ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); the latter sense acqui ...

sent Sikandar Badusha to the Pandiyan ruler, Thiru Pandiyan in

to convert him to Islam, but he refused. Shaheed's troops won the ensuing war and Sultan Sikandar Badusha became king in

. Shaheed's troops marched towards Bouthramanickapattinam (Kilakarai). Shaheed Badusha tried to convert King Vikrama Pandiyan to Islam, who refused and asked Shaheed to leave the kingdom. Shaheed refused to leave without converting them to Islam. A war consisting of about 10 battles, each lasting around 3–4 days, was waged. All of the family members of Shaheed Badusha were killed, including his only son Syed Abu Tahir, his brother Syed Ismail, his brother-in-law Zainul Abideen and many of Shaheed Badusha's ministers. King Vikrama Pandiyan and his sons Indra Pandiyan and Chandra Pandiyan were killed and Shaheed won the war, claiming the throne of Bouthiramanickapattinam. He ruled the province for twelve years and spread Islam throughout south

. Coins struck during the rule of Sultan Syed Ibrahim Shaheed have been found by archeologists. Al Qutbul Hamid wal Gausul Majid Badhusha Sultan Syed Ibrahim Shaheed, king of

Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...

and 18th generation descendant of the Islamic prophet

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

, is said to have traveled to Erwadi, erstwhile Bouthiramanickapattinam, during his journey to India in the early 12th century to spread Islam according to Muhammad's wish.

Ervadi Santhanakoodu Festival

The annual Santhanakoodu festival is held at Ervadi dargha,

Ramanathapuram district Ramanathapuram District, also known as Ramnad District, is one of the 38 administrative districts of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The old Ramanathapuram District consists of Present day Virudhunagar and Sivagangai districts, it touches th ...

during the Islamic month of

Dhu al-Qi'dah Dhu al-Qa'dah (, ', ), also spelled Dhu al-Qi'dah or Zu al-Qa'dah, is the eleventh month in the Islamic calendar. It could possibly mean "possessor or owner of the sitting and seating place" - the space occupied while sitting or the manner of t ...

commemorating the Shahadat anniversary of Qutb Sulthan Syed Ibrahim Shahid Badhusha and is celebrated together by Hindus and Muslims.

Transport

The nearest major town to Erwadi is Kilakarai, at a distance of 10 km, which itself falls on NH 49 from

Rameswaram Rameswaram (; also transliterated as Ramesvaram, Rameshwaram) is a municipality in the Ramanathapuram district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is on Pamban Island separated from mainland India by the Pamban channel and is about from ...

is the nearest railway station, (27km) connecting the village to all major cities in Tamil Nadu. Erwadi is well connected with the border ports of

Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. Geographically it is positioned between the Indian subcontinent and the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese peninsula, located below the Bengal region. Many South Asian and Southe ...

as a junction point of fishing steamers.

Education

Schools in Erwadi include: * Panchayat Union Middle School * S.A.B.M.H Government Higher Secondary School * Elite Matriculation school * Kadaladi Union Middle School Chinna Ervadi

References

External links

*
360^o travel view of Erwadi's main dargah
published by Tamil national daily Dinamalar {{Ramanathapuram district Sufi shrines in India Villages in Ramanathapuram district Ziyarat Erwadi-related dargahs Dargahs in Tamil Nadu