Madurai to Sathyamangalam
About Madurai
Vivegam Travels takes to the Madurai is one of the oldest cities of India, with a history dating all the way back to the Sangam period of the pre Christian era. The glory of Madurai returned in a diminished form in the earlier part of this millennium; it later on came under the rule of the Vijayanagar kingdom after its ransack by the ravaging armies of Delhi (Malik Kafur). During the 16th and 18th centuries, Madurai was ruled by the Nayak Emperors, the foremost of whom was Tirumalai Nayakar. The Sangam period poet Nakkeerar is associated with some of the Tiruvilayaadal episodes of Sundareswarar - that are enacted as a part of temple festival traditions even today.
The Sangam age or the Golden age of Tamil literature – produced masterpieces way back in the Pre christian era and in early 1st millennium . Madurai was the seat of the Tamil Sangam or Academy of learning. The entire city of Madurai, is built around the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple – the temple par excellence. Concentric rectangular streets surround the temple, symbolizing the structure of the cosmos. Vivegam Travels makes possible to visit the place.
As early as the 3rd century BC, Megasthanes visited Madurai. Later many people from Rome and Greece visited Madurai and established trade with the Pandya kings. Madurai flourished till 10th century AD when it was captured by Cholas the arch rivals of the Pandyas.
The Cholas ruled Madurai from 920 AD till the beginning of the 13th century. In 1223 AD Pandyas regained their kingdom and once again become prosperous. Pandian Kings patronised Tamil language in a great way. During their period, many master-pieces were created. "Silapathikaram", the great epic in Tamil was written based on the story of Kannagi who burnt Madurai as a result of the injustice caused to her husband Kovalan. In April 1311, Malik Kafur, the general of Alauddin Khilji who was then the ruler of Delhi, reached Madurai and raided and robbed the city for precious stones, jewels, and other rare treasures. This led to the subsequent raids by other Muslim Sultans. In 1323, the Pandya kingdom including Madurai became a province of the Delhi empire, under the Tughlaks.Vivegam Travels can help to make a visit on Madurai.The 1371, the Vijayanagar dynasty of Hampi captured Madurai and it became part of the Vijayanagar empire. Kings of this dynasty were in habit of leaving the captured land to governors called Nayaks. This was done for the efficient management of their empire. The Nayaks paid fixed amount annually to the Vijayanagar empire. After the death of Krishna Deva Raya (King of Vijayanagar empire) in 1530 AD, the Nayaks became independent and ruled the territories under their control. Among Nayaks, Thirumalai Nayak (1623-1659) was very popular, even now he is popular among people, since, it was he who contributed to the creation of many magnificent structures in and around Madurai. The Raja Gopuram of the Meenakshi Amman Temple, The Pudu Mandapam and The Thirumalai Nayakar's Palace are living monuments to his artistic fervor.Madurai started slipping into the hands of the British's East India Company. In 1781, British appointed their representatives to look after Madurai. George Procter was the first collector of Madurai.
Madurai is famous for its temples.The Aappudaiyaar Koyil Tevara Stalam and the Koodalazhagar Divya Desam are the most important temples one should rarely miss to go. In the vicinity of Madurai is Tirupparamkunram, one of the 6 padai veedu shrines of Murugan (glorified in Madurai Sangam Nakeerar’s Tirumurugaatruppadai). Also in the vicinity of Madurai is Alagar Koyil, one of the prominent Divya Desam shrines of the Sri Vaishnavite faith.Vivegam Travels takes to this beautiful place.
Vivegam Travels are safe to use. There are also specific services available at night. Remember that in India everyone lives by asking each other for directions. The friendly people are often more than happy to help a foreigner find his/her way by giving directions. Most people speak the working national Language "English" , at bus stops don’t form a queue. Choose to wait and travel comfortably. Travel at night is also safe. So relax, forget your travel guide and discover a whole new culture of friendliness.
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About Sathyamangalam
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Sathyamangalam or Satyamangalam or Sathy is a city and a municipality in Erode district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It lies on both north and south banks of the Bhavani River, a tributary of the Kaveri. Sathyamangalam forms a taluk (subdistrict) of Erode District. Sathyamangalam was formerly part of Coimbatore District, but became part of Erode District when the district was constituted in 1979.
The temple of Bannari Amman (a Hindu deity) is located in Bannari,12 km from Sathyamangalam town. The temple draws huge crowds during the annual festival and through out the year.
Sathyamangalam town is situated on the southern side of Western ghats which extends towards the east from The Nilgiris. The town is located at 11 degree 14 minutes East longitude. It is located at a distance of 7 km, from the ghats in Sathyamangalam Taluk of Erode district. The town lies close to the border of the adjoining Karnataka State. The nearby Bhavanisagar Dam, a picnic spot and Bannari Mariamman Temple, a Pilgrim Centre, both attract people and tourists all the year round. There is also a heavy movement of people to Karnatake State, especially to Mysore and Kollegal through this town. You can visit this kind of places with Vivegam Travels and the town is situated at a distance of 65 kms.from Erode. The Head Quarters of Erode District is linked with State Highways (SH 15) .The Coimbatore Mysore National Highways ( NH 209) passes through this town. The nearest Railway Station is Mettupalayam in Coimbatore District, at a distance of 43 Km. The Erode Railway Junction is serving as an out agency for Sathyamangalam. The town is also linked with Gobichettipalayam, Bhavani Sagar, Mettupalayam and Bhavani Town with District roads, and links the towns of Samraj Nagar and Mysore in neighbouring Karnataka State, through National Highway Roads. The nearest Airport is located at Coimbatore, 68 kms, away.
A portion of the sathyamangalam forests was declared as sanctuary in 2008. Sathyamangalam is also the name of a Reserve Forest under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1973. It is contiguous with the Biligirirangan Temple Wildlife Sanctuary to the north in neighbouring Chamarajanagar District of Karnataka, and together forms a vital corridor for faunal movements, mainly elephants. The Sathyamangalam forest is tropical dry forest, part of the South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests ecoregion. It includes thorn forest, dry deciduous forest, and tropical hill forest. Many of the higher elevations of the Bilgirirangan range have shola, or dwarf moist deciduous forest, and montane grassland habitats. These forests also harbour indigenous tribal people belonging largely to the Irula (also known as the Urali) and, Soliga communities. Southwards, the heights decrease into the arid Coimbatore plains before rising again into the Nilgiris and Anamalais. The forests are home to Asian Elephants, and the herd that ranges between the Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats through the Sathyamangalam forests numbers 6000 animals, the largest herd in India. Elephant movements in this corridor were the subject of one of the first studies on the Asian Elephant by the Indian elephant scientist R. Sukumar in early 1980s. The Sathyamangalam elephants were also the subject of Indian elephant expert Vivek Menon's book Tusker — The Story of the Asian Elephant.
The forests were also the home of the legendary Indian bandit Koose Muniswamy Veerapan, who made a living exploiting ivory and sandalwood from the forests and selling them on the black market. Veerapan was killed by police in October 2004. After Veerapan was killed, people reported paranormal activities occurring in the forest such as screaming in the middle of the night and unattended lanterns seen deep in the forest. The forest of Sathyamangalam is also known for its ghost sightings and is referred to "The most haunted place in Tamil Nadu".
A major National highway NH 209 connecting Erode & Coimbatore to Mysore via Sathyamangalam passes through the forests. This route is best for vehicles from Coimbatore, Erode bound for Bangalore as it has lesser traffic when compared to NH 47 (via Salem). But one must be sure about the driving skills required for a hilly terrain because it has got 27 hairpin bends and some of which are really dangerous.
You can easily book the online bus tickets through Vivegam Travels