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pilgrimage to tiruvaheendrapuram

From the Bhakti List Archives

Sadagopan • April 6, 1999 


>
Dear Srimathi Smita Ajay,
>
>Wish you best of luck and God speed in your pilgrimage. From here in 
>Kuwait I quite envy you.
>
>adiyEn,
>Sudarshan

I join with Sriman Sudarshanin wishing you a delightful
visit to ThiruvahIndrapuram . It is a temple town and has no
hotels or places for stay unless you know some families there
to stay with .For convenience and proximity , either Cuddalore 
or Chidhambharam are better places with hotels . Chidhambharam 
has few more choices .PondichEry is a lovely place
to use as a base , since it is more used to " tourists 
from West". 

As Sriman Sudarshan suggested , you should enjoy every sannadhi there 
and pray to Sri Bhagavaan HayagrIvan for JnAnaanandham . Sriman Mani 
VaradarAjan 's lovely Home pages on this divya desam is a wonderful guide
to this sthalam . His recent assembly of the sthOthrams of Swami
Desikan and the references therein by Sri N.Krishnamachari , who
is doing yeoman service are important background materials to
browse and keep in mind . 

Regarding KshEthrams near by , there are quite  a few with in 40
mile radius . The extent of coverage of them depends on your time 
availability . At Chidhambharam is the Sannidhi of Thillai 
Thirucchitthira Kudam Govindha Raajan about whom Thirumangai
has sung about . Sri Murali Rangaswamy has summarized the 
Kulasekara AzhwAr's SampUrNa RaamAyaNa paasurams on
this Emperuman . This KshEthrem is not toofar
from ThiruvEndhipuram . Between Chidambharam and Mayavaram
( ThirumaiylAduthuRai)is TherazhundUr ( Sri Gosakan ) 
and SeerkhAzhi . In and around the town of SeerkhAzhi are 
twelve divya desams celebrated by Thirumangai . Sri TaadALan 
at SeerkhAzhi and the 12 sthalams known collectively as 
ThirunAngUr divya desams are there .You have to take  a local 
Bhattar with you to make sure that you get to these temples 
in the appropriate pujA Kaalams .A whole day would  be needed 
at minimum. You can return to Chidhambram for rest .A rented taxi 
would be the most appropriate transport .

The next stop after SeerkhAzhi would be the temple town of
KumbhakONam to visit the shrines of AarAvamudhan , Oppiliappan ,
NacchiyAr Koil , AdhanUr , PuLLambhUthangudi , ThirucchERai ,
ThiruveLLiyangudi et al . Excellent accomodations are 
available at KumbhakONam .

Hope this helps ,
V.Sadagopan