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The
island temple of lord Siva called Ramanathaswamy Alayam embodies a kind of
charm iresistible; glory ineffable: and appeal inexhaustible that very few
temples come nearer to it, either in spiritual wealth or cultural opulence
Situated at the extreme south eastern point of the peninsula this temple of
Rameswaram occupies geographically, culturally and spiritually a much coveted
place among the temples of our Punya Bharat. It is the only Saivate Temple,
among the four reputed Dhams - Badari, Puri, Dwaraka and Rameswaram, the first
three being Vaishnavate temples dedicated to the incarnation of Lord Maha
Vishnu. It is one of the most highly venerated pilgrim centres of India for
numerous reasons. It possesses one of the twelve Jyotirlingas installed here by
Sri Rama. the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu and worshipped to purge of the
sin of killing Ravana, king of Srilanka, just 45 km away, it contains the Sethu
Madhav shrine inside the precincts, testifying to the spirit of universality
permeating in the thirtha keshetra; it is encircled by the holy waters of
Ratnakara Indian Ocean and Mahodathi-Bay of Bengal, blessing it with ever green
verdure and gorgeous scenery in addition to enshrining sacred thirthas famous
for absolving one of sins; and finally its visit alone, tradition says rounds
off the art of pilgrimage.
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