Pooja procedure at the main temple

It is very important for you to know the correct procedure to offer Pooja at the main
temple. Temple management allows only Hindus to perform this pooja. It is best to hire a
guide a day in advance, generally around Rs 400-500 for everything. Pooja at the main
temple is a 4 step process:

Mani Darshanam - You should watch the Sphatic (Emerald) mani first thing in the
morning at main temple. Darshan timings are 4:00 - 5:00 a.m. You should not take
a bath before. There is a special entrance for Rs 50- but it's better to stand in the
general queue for Rs 10 which, counter-intuitively, moves faster.

Samudra Snanam - Next, you should walk down to Samudram(Sea) for Snanam
(bathing). The sea, 500m away from the temple, is very peaceful and shallow here
without any tides at all. Mythology says that Samudram surrendered to Lord Rama
during his attack on Lanka and since then it is calm.

Teerth Snanam - Proceed to the temple for Teerth snanam (Holy bath). The temple
has 22 wells that are said to contain holy water from different places. You need to
sequentially take bath at each place. The markings are good and you can easily
make out the next well.The government rate for this is Rs 25 per person. Attendants
are there at each well and they will pour water on you. They splash a bucket of
water on a group of pilgrims. You may need to go in queue. You can also hire
attendants out side the temple for this process. But they will charge 150 rs per
person. Plenty of these attendants can be found at the temple entrances with a
bucket and rope in hand. If you feel like getting drenched with one full bucket of
water at each well, you need to hire an attendant; otherwise, this is not required.

Main Pooja - Now you can change your clothes and dry yourself. There are
different prices for different kinds of pooja. The basic one starts at Rs 111. Your
guide will arrange for the Pujari (priest), who will do some rituals. Then he will
offer milk, grass, leaves, etc. to Lord Shiva on your behalf in main temple. You can
view all this sitting in front at a price of Rs 500. Afterwards, he will tell you the
story of Rameswaram. He will also ask you to recite some shlokas after him. Pujari
charges around Rs 500-600 for his services.

You can also enjoy sumptuous prasadam at 12 noon. It is offered near inner door of Lord
Shiva temple.

Sri Ramanathaswamy Temple - this temple situated near the sea on the eastern side
of the island is renowned for its magnificent prakaras or corridors with massive
sculptured pillars on either side. The longest corridor in the world is here and it is 197
metres long from East to West and is 133 metres wide from South-North. The temple
has a Gopuram 38.4 metres tall. Different rulers built the temple as it stands today, at
different periods from the 12th century A.D. Pooja is performed for an hour early
morning daily to the Spadikalingam that was given by the Shankaracharya to this
temple. There is a popular belief that one needs to take bath in 22 theertha kundams
with in the temple premises before having darshan. There many guides who will
approach us as soon as we enter the temple premises. One needs to negotiate the deal
of how much to pay them if we need their services. It is believed that the water from
these kundams have some medicinal properties. The history of the temple is linked
with "Ramayan" and it is believed the the diety was installed by Lord Rama after the
war with Ravana at the instance of the great saints to get rid of the "Brahma Dosham".

Agnitheertham - Sri Ramanathaswamy temple faces east. The seashore, about 100
metres from the main entrance of the temple, is very calm and therefore ideal for
bathing. The water at this place is considered sacred and known as Agni theertham.
Pilgrims perform poojas in honour of their ancestors at this seashore.

Gandamadana Parvatham - is a hillock situated 3 km away and is the highest point

in the island. Here one can see the imprint of Lord Ramas feet on a chakra. The entire
island of Rameswaram is visible from this point.

Sugreevar Temple/Theertham - is situated on the way to Gandamadana Parvatham

near the Doordarshan Kendra.

Satchi Hanuman Temple - is considered to be the place where Hanuman delivered

the good news of finding Sita to Rama with satchi or evidence, Choodamani or the
jewel that belonged to Sita. Situated 3 km from the main temple, on the way to the
Gandamadana Parvatham.

Badrakaliamman Temple - is a temple for Devi Durga, situated 2 km from the main
temple on the way to the Gandamadana Parvatham.

The Five-faced Hanuman Temple (2 km from the main temple) - the deity of
Hanuman drawn withsenthooram. Idols of Lord Ram, Sita and Hanuman brought
from Dhanushkodi during the 1964 cyclone were placed here. The floating stone, used
to build theSethuBandanamor the bridge between India and Lanka can be found in
this temple.

JadaTheertham (about 3.5 km from Rameswaram on the Dhanushkodi road) legend has it that Lord Rama, on his way back after killing Ravana, Worshipped
SriRamalinga (believed to be installed by him). Before doing so, he washed his
hair(Jada) in this theertham to purify himself.

Nambu Nayagiamman Temple - is greatly venerated by the people of Ramnad

District. It is situated 8 km from the main temple in Rameswaram on the way to
Dhanushkodi.

Kothandaramaswamy Temple - is located 12 km away from Rameswaram. A

popular belief is that Vibishana, brother of Ravana, surrendered before Rama here.

Dhanushkodi (18 km) - the southern tip of the island, Dhanushkodi was completely
washed away by the 1964 cyclone. This is a strip of land about one km wide and 18
km long on the eastern end of Rameswaram island. On one side are the waters of the
Indian Ocean and on the other the waters of the Bay of Bengal. The two seas
otherwise known as Ratnakaran and Mahodadhi with their confluence is shaped like a
bow while the strip of land resemble an arrow poised for release. Devout Hindus
consider the Adi Sethu or the arrowhead, a sacred place to perform religious rites. It is
also place worth visiting for its scenic beauty and bird life.

Villoondi Theertham - is situated 7 km from the main temple on the way to Pamban.

Annai Indira Gandhi Road Bridge (12 km) - is also known as the Pamban Bridge
that connects the Rameswaram island with the main land. It is the longest sea bridge
in India and its length is nearly 2.2 km and stands as a fine example for Indian
architecture. The bridge was constructed with sufficient elevation. The islands near by
and parallel rail bridge below can be viewed from this bridge.

Glass boat ride at Pamban Bridge: [Update(April 2014): THIS RIDE HAS BEEN
STOPPED BY THE TOURISM DEPARTMENT, HOWEVER LOOK FOR
UPDATES WHEN YOU REACH PAMBAN BRIDGE. There is only one glass boat
at the govt. boating center on the other end of the bridge now. That boat too is not in
order, as water has entered between the two layers of glass through which you are
supposed to see the corals. The boatman will tell you that the glass is not in order only
when you reach the point where you are supposed to see the corals. The water is
shallow there, but you won't be able to see the corals with the glass in that condition.
As such, it is an utter waste of money till the govt. officials fix the boat. Even if you
go there with the hope that the boat would be repaired, before boarding that single
boat check the glass and ask the boatman if it is in proper condition].

One can enjoy the wonderful glass boat ride near pambanbridge to see coral reefs in the Sea.
Boat has a glass bottom which enables you to see corals through it. To reach this place, you
need to catch local bus from Rameswaram bus stand to Pamban bridge. From there you have
to take an auto to boat center (Rs 40 - 50)(minimum 400 per boat of 8 persons), it is almost
halfway on the bridge. Boat is run by Government officials and you don't have to bargain.
They provide good service and don't even expect a tip from tourists. If you want to have a
good view, be there between 12 noon - 1 pm on a good sunny day. Always carry an umbrella
with you and watch the coral reef in umbrella shade, otherwise you'll see your own reflection
on the glass instead of corals(imp: try to go for glass boat ride with a group because some
days there might be no tourists there and you might end up paying more as there is no one to
share glass boat ride with you) :) '

Visit Dhanushgodi: Apart from the temple this certainly is one of the best things to
see and do in Rameshwaram. There are two ways of getting to Dhanushgodi , hire a
jeep (Rs 1,300 is the going rate) or hire an auto or by bus till the Mini truck stand
from where you could travel by the Mini Truck (Rs 150 per passenger) just like the
locals do. The lands end of Dhanushgodi is about7 -8 kilometers from where the Mini
Truck stand and is amazing experience.Its peferable to take Jeep if you can share it
with others because the mini truck operators usually have a tendency to fool tourists
by bringing them back from half the journey and not taking them to the ending point
of Dhanushgodi. Do not venture by your own car as only jeeps and 4 WD vehicles
can negotiate thru the slush and sand road till lands end , though its possible to reach
there by bike , but you need to be ready to push and struggle in case you get struck.
The view is amazing with sea on both sides , on one side the Bay of Bengal and on the
other the Indian Ocean , the Bay of Bengal side is relatively calm and hence goes by
the name (Penn Kadal , Lady Sea) and the India Ocean is rough with waves lashing
and is called ( Aaan Kadal, Male Sea). The travel by Mini truck is an experience in
itself and you have the option of either sitting inside , hanging outside or travelling on
top of the minitruck , its best to sit on the top which gives you amazing views. The
mini truck will take you to lands end , give a break of about 15 mins to play in the sea
or do religious ceremonies , and the take you to the ghost town which was destroyed
in the 1964 cyclone after which the city was deserted ,you can see the post office ,
railway station , church and rail tracks in ruins. The whole trip takes about 2 hours
and its best to go in the evening or early morning to avoid the scorching sun , the mini
truck start plying as early as 7 AM and ply till sundown 6 PM. The minitruck would
start only after its packed to capacity which is about 20 passengers at the minimum ,
majority of your copasssengers would be fishmen and local folks.