Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
A contrast of old and new
|
Murugan Kuntram features a newly constructed temple and ancient fort walls
|
PHOTO: author
time travel The ruined fort wall
If you thought Kanyakumari District was all about temples, beaches, forests and waterfalls, think again. You need to explore the area some more to discover lesser-known places of interest. Kanyakumari hides quite a few ruins of time-ravaged forts and
watch towers. They can all be found within a radius of three km from the main temple. I learnt about Murugan Kuntram by chance, just as I was leaving the hotel in Nagercoil. The friendly manager advised me to visit this small hillock just to catch the scenic view from the top. What excited me was that Murugan Kuntram is the last hillock on the way to the confluence of the three seas at the southernmost tip of the country.
There was quite a bit of traffic on the highway and it took me half-an-hour to cover the 17-odd km from Nagercoil to the hillock, which was earlier called “Savari Kothalam Parai” by the locals. It is just three km short of Kanyakumari.
The hillock with its sparkling white temple on the top is visible even from the highway. From the main road, I turned right on the narrow road that culminated at its base. Thirty odd steps took me to the top. Once I got there, I was glad I had made the effort, because I was instantly transported to an abode of serenity. Shade giving casuarinas neatly lined the boundary wall of the temple. All you could hear was the soughing of the casuarinas, though, barely a km away, there was ample noise caused by the work of laying the four-way National Highway, part of the golden quadrilateral that will connect the North with the South.
Indeed, Murugan Kuntram is a spot from where you can get a panoramic view of the surroundings - oceans on the one side, the Aramboly field with its whirring wind mills on the other and verdant groves of coconut and banana on the third side. In the north western direction, a series of watchtowers appear in your line of vision. These ruins are said to be part of a great fort wall that once formed the Kanyakumari-Kadukkarai Fort, which was strengthened by Marthanda Varma in early 18th Century, but later destroyed by the British army.
When the King of Travancore built the fort, he is believed to have made warrior communities settle in the nearby villages. And these sentinels helped ward off many invasions. The watchtowers also helped monitor the sea, though in this area, the shoreline is rocky and, therefore, helped keep invaders at bay. The hillock was also known as the Fort Wall because a major part of the fort’s boundary lies in a dilapidated condition here. It is said that many years ago, a dedicated life worker of the nearby Vivekananda Kendra, stumbled upon the place during the course of his “spiritual wanderings” and found it was an ideal spot for meditation.
Legend has it that the locals happened to find the ‘Divine Vel’ of Lord Muruga and fixed it at the spot where the shrine is located on a ‘Chitra Pournami Day’. From then on, spiritual offerings and social service have become the order of the day at Murugan Kuntram.
The hillock is unique for another reason as well. Both sunrise and sunset can be seen from here through the year. The locals recommend ‘Chitra Pournami’ (full moon day in the month of April), as the best day to visit the temple. Though the temple rituals are conducted daily, people do not care to even cross over to the other side to take a closer look at the ruined watch tower. The ancient and damaged watch tower against a newly constructed temple make an interesting contrast.
Murugan Kuntram can not be recommended as a stand alone outing, unless you want to spend time at the temple. It is at best a brief stop over for a lesson in history.
SOMA BASU
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
|
