THEN – Rama, Lakshmana and the vaanara sainya (army of monkeys) reached Rameshwaram, in the southern tip of India, from where the land of Lanka could be seen across the ocean. The Ramsethu (Rama's bridge) was built by the army from rocks found near the shore, & Rama crossed on this bridge to reach Lanka.
NOW
– The Ramanathaswamy Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, is one of the most
visited temples in this area. It is said that Rama, after the war with Ravana,
worshiped Lord Shiva at this temple to be cleared off the sin of killing
Ravana. This temple is also remarkable because it has two lingams - one brought
from the Himalayas by Hanuman upon Rama's request, and the other created out of
sand by Sita when the arrival of that lingam was delayed. It has a magnificent
hall of more than 1,200 carved sandstone pillars, which forms the outer
corridor. The ceiling is covered in colorful lotus art.
Around
the temple are 23 theerthams (holy water bodies), and devout worshippers bathe
in all the theerthams before worshiping the deity, starting at Agnitheertham -
believed to be the spot where Sita bathed in the sea before offering prayers to
Lord Shiva. It is also here that Lord Agni appeared before Rama during Sita's
agnipariksham and testified that Sita had been faithful to him while held
captive by Ravana.
Rama
sethu can be seen as a path made of
limestone shoals stretching between Pamban Island, which is on the southeast coast
of Tamil Nadu and Mannar Island on the northwest coast of Sri Lanka.
The
Kodandarama Swamy Temple is said to be the place where Ravana's brother
Vibheeshana surrendered himself to Rama and also the place where Rama declared
to make Vibheeshana the king of Lanka.
