Arunachalam Temple
Arunachalam is one of the 5 Panchabhoota Linga temples which are Srikalahasthi, Jambukeshwarar, Arunachaleswarar, Ekambaranathar and Thillai Natarajar(Chidambaram) Temples. These are Siva temples in South India dedicated to each of the 5 prime elements of nature which are Air, Water, Fire, Earth and Sky. Arunachalam Temple, also called Annamalaiyar Temple is dedicated to the element of Fire and is also called Agni Lingam. It is located at Thiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu around 185 kms from Chennai.
Arunachalam is considered to be one of the most powerful of the 5 lingas and very crowded throughout the year. This is surrounded by Hills and devotees go around(Giri Valam or Giri Pradakshina) the main Hill which is called Arunachalam and on which the main temple is located. The temple complex is spread across 25 acres and is one of the largest in India. It has four gopurams and the tallest is the eastern tower at a height of 66 metres. The temple has numerous shrines and those of Arunachaleswara and Unnamalai Amman are the most prominent. It was built by Chola Kings and later during the Vijayanagara Empire rule.
Arunachalam Giri Pradakshina: The total distance of the Giri Pradakshina path is around 14 kms and one can go by foot or vehicle. There are auto rickshaws available for the same and can be hired. Giri Pradakshina time is around 4 hrs by walk and around 1.5 hr by vehicle. There are six lingas with small temples along the path and the lingas are Indra lingam, Agni lingam, Yama lingam, Varuna lingam and Vaayu lingam and Kubera lingam. There are also 2 more lingas, Niruthi lingam and Esanya lingam in between.
On the way, there is Sri Ramanasramam, the ashram of Sri Ramana Maharshi which houses his Samadhi and lot of foreigners visit this place which has a meditation hall. Also, there is Moksha Margam where one has to traverse through a small place in between two walls and it is considered sacred doing so.
Giri pradakshina timings: Giri Pradakshina can be done through out the day and there are no specific timings for the same. Most pilgrims start in the early evening and try to finish by night or in the early mornings. There is a lot of crowd on full moon days(Pournami).
Arunachalam temple timings : 5:00 am to 12:30 pm and from 3:30 pm to 9:30 pm
Arunachalam Giri pradakshina map or Arunachalam Giri pradakshina route map :
