Thirumayam is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

located in

Pudukkottai district Pudukkottai District is one of the List of districts of Tamil Nadu, 38 districts of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The city of Pudukkottai is the district headquarters. It is also known colloquially as ''Pudhugai.'' The city is also known ...

of the

Indian state India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, for a total of 36 subnational entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into 800 districts and smaller administrative divisions by the respe ...

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 is a place of historical importance located about 22 km from the capital city of

Pudukkottai Pudukkottai Municipal Corporation is the administrative headquarters of Pudukkottai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is one of the oldest Heritage city located on the banks of the Vellar River. It has been ruled, at different t ...

as well as from the city of

Karaikudi Karaikudi is the largest city of Sivaganga district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the centre of the Karaikudi Metropolitan Area, the 21st largest urban Agglomeration of Tamil Nadu based on 2011 census data. It is part of the area ...

. The noted

India India, officially the Republic of India, 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 by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n independence activist

Sathyamurthy Sundara Sastri Satyamurti (19 August 1887 – 28 March 1943) was an Indian independence activist and politician. He was acclaimed for his rhetoric and was one of the leading politicians of the Indian National Congress from the Madras Presidenc ...

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 Pudukkottai, on the road from that town to Karaikudi. This is actually National Highway NH-210, which connects

Tiruchirapalli Tiruchirappalli (), also known as 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 being the best livable and the cleanest city of Ta ...

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

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 ...

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 Pudukkottai, Karaikudi,

Thanjavur Thanjavur (), also known as Thanjai, previously known as Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 12th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of southern Indian religion, art ...

, Madurai 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 Veerapandiya Kattabomman was an 18th-century Palayakarrar and king of Panchalankurichi in present-day Tamil Nadu, India. He fought the British East India Company and was captured by the British with the help of the ruler of the kingdom of Pu ...

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 (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

and

Thirumal Perumal () or Tirumal ( ) is a Hindu deity. Perumal is worshipped mainly among Tamil Hindus in South India and the Tamil diaspora, who consider Perumal to be a form of Vishnu. Some of the earliest known mentions of Perumal, and the Tamil devoti ...

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 (, ), or Kāla Bhairava, is a Shaivite and Vajrayāna deity worshipped by Hindus and Buddhists. In Shaivism, he is a powerful manifestation, or avatar, of Shiva.Kramrisch, Stella (1994). ''The Presence of Śiva''. Princeton, NJ: P ...

(the ''Bhairavar-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 Vijayaraghunatha Sethupathi I (died 1725) ruled from 1713 to 1725 the ''" Ramnad Kingdom"'', also known as ''"Maravar Kingdom"''. He was an adopted son of Raghunatha Kilavan, the founder of the ''"Ramnad Kingdom"''. Sethupathi was the title ...

, ruler of

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) ...

in 1687 CE.

Sethupathi The Sethupathis are a Tamils, Tamil clan of the Maravar community native to the Ramanathapuram district, Ramanathapuram and Sivaganga district of Tamil Nadu, India. They were from the 12th century considered independent kings in 16th century wh ...

is the name of the ruling dynasty of Ramanathapuram. Another fact of historic interest is that the founder of the princely state of Pudukkottai 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 Shiva and the other for Thirumal, adjacent to each other. These are located at the foot of a hillock on the south side of the town. The Sathyagirisvarar Temple, Thirumayam, a 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. The inscriptions are of particular interest since they deal with

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

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

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

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. ''Anantasayi'' groups have Thirumal reclining on ''Anantha (Seshanaaga)'' as the central figure. The Thirumal temple contains an octagonal sacred tank called ''‘Satya-pushkarani’'' (சத்திய புஷ்கரணி).

Jallikattu, a Bull Taming Festival

Every year during the time of Tamil New year and Pongal festival, a statewide popular Jallikattu will be going on the areas around Thirumayam. Villages like Neivaasal, Edayathur, Vembanoor will have these bull taming festivals on occasions like maha sivarathri, welcoming tamil months, et cetera.

Politics

Thirumayam assembly constituency is a part of the

Sivaganga Lok Sabha constituency Sivaganga Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 39 Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in Tamil Nadu, a state in southern India. Its Tamil Nadu Parliamentary Constituency number is 31. Assembly segments From 2009 Before 2009 # Thi ...

References

External links

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