As the day breaks, the aurora over the Agnitirtham, a stretch of the shallow sea that extends in front of the temple, lightens up the soul as it does the temple. A quaint, cloistered village by the sea Rameswaram’s is a sea-side village where the sea is gentle and calm as it would have been in the times of Rama. Marked by intricate carvings and the large ramparts, Rameshwaram Temple, the Jyotirlinga Temple, is as senescent as Ramayana. Rameshwar’s ethereal hallow seeps deep down the soul and the dusk evidences Lord Rama’s omniscience, not just at the ocean and temple surroundings, but even to the side where sunrises after dusk at Ramanathaswamy.

Location

This conch-shaped sacred island of Rameshwaram straggles out on 61.8 sq km of narrow sea in Tamil Nadu. Ramanatha Swamy Temple is located on Rameshwaram Island. The temple lays too close the confluence of Ratnakara (India Ocean) and Mahodadhi (Bay of Bengal), which also accredit the sacredness of Rameswaram and its name.

Legend and Mythology

As the legend goes, the main Shiva-lingam inside the temple was hallowed by Rama on his return from Lanka after killing the demon Ravana. Rama asked his most dedicated devotee Hanuman to fetch him Shivalingam from Kailash, but as Hanuman couldn’t bring it on time, Sita, Rama’s consort, built a small lingam out of sand. However, on on Hanuman’s return with the actual Viswa Lingam from the mount of Kailash, Rama, to appease his disciple, said it would be worshipped first Sita’s Lingam to be placed on the altar.