It was end October when we set out on an impromptu three day road trip from Bangalore to Thiruvamathur, Thirunallar, Mannargudi and Thirumullaivoyal in Tamil Nadu . The fantastic roads through most of the journey and the balmy weather made for a very pleasant experience even though the total driving distance was nearly 1200 kms. We hit the road at the crack of dawn taking the NH 44 through Hosur, Krishnagiri ( with a customary breakfast stop at Maiya’s ) , Thiruvannamalai reaching Thiruvamathur by 10.30 am (located about 7 km from Villupuram station).
At Thiruvamathur we visited the Abhirameshwarar and Muthambikai amman temples which are 7 th century Pallava temples. They are situated near the river Pamba which is a tributary of the Pennai River. They have numerous interesting legends attached to them . The Abhirameshwarar temple has a seven-tiered entrance tower facing east. The sanctum sanctorum of Lord Abhirameshwarar in the form a swayambu Lingam is approached through pillared halls – Mahamandapam and Arthamandapam. Lord Rama is believed to have worshipped Shiva here on his return journey to Ayodhya and hence the name of the lord. Another legend believes lord Muruga to have worshipped his parents and received the vel to fight Surapadman here. Legend also has it that the cows initially didn’t have horns and hence couldn’t protect themselves from predators. They worshipped the lord here pouring milk from their udders on the Lingam . The imprint of a cow’s hoof on the top and rivulets on the sides can be seen on this Lingam. As the cows received their horns here the place is called Thiruvamathur( referring to the mother cow). It is one of the Paadal Petra Sthalam where great tamil saint poets referred to as Nayanmars in the 7 th century wrote verses in the Tevaram praising the lord.
The Muthambigai amman temple with its three tiered gopuram is facing west and located exactly across the road to Abhirameshwarar temple . There is a tiny hole between the two temples through which the 2 idols can see each other . The idol of amman was installed by Adhi Sankaracharya . Sage Bringi worshipped the Lord in the form of a bee circumventing only lord Shiva and refusing to acknowledge the goddess mother seated next to him . This enraged Shakti and she stood opposite to the Lord and cursed the Rishi to become a Vanni Tree which is the Sthala vruksha here. There is a stone at the SW corner of the temple called Satya palakai – thiruvattaparai- any person giving a false statement standing here is believed to be punished by the amman . Legend has it the amman punished a man with a snake bite as he had cheated his younger brother and made a false promise at this place. The imprint of the snake ‘s tail can be seen on the amman ‘s chest. This place was often used to deliver justice to the villagers in past. The dhanda theertha well in the complex is believed to be the site where Rama cleansed himself after killing Ravana .
THIRUNALLAR
We proceeded via Panruti ( bought cashew nuts from small factory outlets along the highway ), Neyveli( had lunch ), Sirkali to reach Karaikkal by 5.30 pm where we paid homage to the lord at Thirunallar. The main deity here is Sri Dharbarnyeswara (a swayambu Lingam ) which is visited first and then the Sri Saneeswara Bhaghavan sannidhi ( part of the navagraha temples ) for which this temple is famous. The temple is considered as one of the Sapta vidhanga sthalam. A naturally formed Marakatha [emerald] linga known as Navagavidanga (vidanga meaning not chiseled out) which is the second out of seven such ( the others are at Thiruvarur, Thirunallar, Vedaranyam, Thiruvaimur, Thrirukaravasal, Thirukkuvalai and Nagapattinam temples) is worshipped here . It is safeguarded in an iron casket only to be removed for poojas offered five times a day and placed back. There are also separated sannidhis for Parameshwari amman and Murugan who is accompanied by Valli and Devyani. This place is referred to as Thirunallar as king Nala is believed to have got redemption from the effects of shani after bathing in the holy waters and praying here.
MANNARGUDI
We now resumed our journey to reach Mannargudi a distance of about 63 kms via Kumbakonam where we had pre-booked our hotel for the night stay ( about 200 mts from the Rajagopalaswamy temple East entrance) reaching there by 8 pm. The Paamani river flows through this place. There are bathing facilities provided at various points along the river ( not well maintained) and also in the temple tanks which are cleaner.
Sri Rajagopalaswamy temple is an important vaishnavite temple and is considered as dakshin Dwaraka along with Guruvayoor. It is surprising that the temple is not included in the divya desams as none of the alwars have praised this deity in their verses or those manuscripts are lost. The temple was probably originally facing west as the Shangu ( conch ) and chakra tirthams inside the temple are interchanged in position. It is spread over a vast area of 24 acres. It has 24 shrines, 16 towers, 18 vimanas, 7 prakaras- of which there are only 6 now, 7 mantaps including a 1000 pillared hall and 9 sacred theerthas (tanks) . Seven are within the temple complex which is enclosed by a 25 ft tall granite boundary wall for which it is famous. The prime theertham appropriately referred to as Haridra nadhi is also of 24 acres and is a little away from the temple. The sthala vruksha ( temple tree) is punnai tree but the place must have been full of champaka trees at one time as it is often referred to as Champakaranyam. The temple was first constructed during the Chola period (1070-1125 AD) and subsequent additions were made by the Hoysala kings,Vijayanagar kings, Marathas and Nayaks. The Tanjavur Nayaks considered it as their prime deity and the temple’s importance increased considerably during their time. A beautiful shrine to Garuda stands atop a 55 ft monolithic stone pillar – dwaja stamba outside the temple entrance. The entrance rajagopuram is 154 ft tall and is a 11 tier structure but the sculptures of the gods are from the 7th tier upwards .
The presiding deity is SrividhyaRajagopalaswamy . The Moolavar is Paravasudeva and the Utsavar is Rajagopala the 32 nd Leela of the Lord as a shepherd boy of Gokulam standing seven feet high with Rukmini and Satyabhama on either side . He is slightly leaning on the cow behind him and the 2 calves in front look up at him adoringly. This mesmerizing statue of the lord is draped with a single cloth around his loin which extends up as a turban on his head. He is holding a golden staff with three coils on one hand and butter on the other. He is adorned with child’s ornaments – girdles around the hip and a bunch of keys , bangles in his hands and anklets on his feet . He is wearing different ear rings on both ears- girl’s stud ( thadagam) in one ear and boy’s kundalam in the other. A small golden navaneetha gopal seated on Garuda and a bewitching santhanna Krishna which can be carried in one’s arm on requesting the priest are also in the sanctum. The processional deity is Rajagopala or Rajamannar , hence the name Mannargudi to the place. The 18 days brahmotsavam during the Tamil month of Panguni (March / April) is the main festival here when the lord is taken out in a procession beautifully adorned with jewels and flowers – blessing the people each day in a different leela ( Sevai).
Sengamalar thayar in a sitting posture on a lotus has a separate sannidhi with Garuda in a female form ( Suparni) standing attendance outside. The thayar never leaves the temple premises even during the annual festivities. Another speciality of this temple is Maya ( who was born before Krishna) and is worshipped here as VishnuDurgai.๏ฟผ
A friendly temple elephant with a funky hair cut readily blesses the devotees with its trunk . An elephantine shower in the premises is where it cools off everyday. The elephant and cow participate in the early morning 5 am puja of the Lord everyday.
After a most satisfying , quiet and peaceful darshan ( no crowds here) we visited the Pamani Naganathar temple just 2 kms away. The main diety Naganathar is a swayambu Lingam and the goddess is Amritanayaki. The temple was built in the 7 th century and the special features here are the separate Adhisesha shrine ( human face and serpent body) where the devout offer ghee lamps to remove Sarpa Dosha , Simha Dakshina Murthy shrine and the vilvam ( Indian Bael) tree with 9 leaves instead of the usual 3. 
We now headed towards Chennai a distance of about 600 kms which was our halt for the night. We booked our air b&b accommodation online enroute to the place. It was a sprawling apartment fully furnished with even a functional kitchen and was very reasonably priced.
Day 2
After a good night’s sleep we started early to the very famous Kapaleeshwarar temple in the Mylapur area of Chennai. It is Shiva temple built by the Pallavas around the 7 th century and is a paadal petra Stalam. The goddess here is Karbagambal who first entered the temple in the form of a peahen. There are some peahens and cattle in the temple complex. The majestic east gopuram with eye catching colorfully painted stuccoes was built in 1906 and is taller than the one on the west. Brahmotsavam in this temple is held for 9 days in March – april( tamil month of panguni ) which is now in my bucket list of must see. 
The bustling bazaar on all four sides of the temple with its motley of small, big , quaint shops and carts is the soul of the place and has everything which is quintessentially Chennai.
Stalls selling fresh , fragrant flowers like the jasmine, rose. champak beautifully strung into garlands for offering the lord as well as those for decorating the plaits of women stand hand in hand with those selling garish plastic flowers and decorations.
Hawkers sell farm fresh vegetables and fruits shouting out loud to entice their customers above the honking horns and screeching brakes of the numerous scooters, cars and autos jigsawing their way among the innumerable shoppers ambling along.
There are tiny stores laden with items needed for pooja like kumkum , vibhuthi , agarbattis , wicks , utensils used in pooja and small kitschy gifts items and those selling clothes, bags, home decor displayed appealingly in every hue and color .
Street vendors selling attractive traditional clay toys of Gods , goddesses, animals, people , everyday scenarios brightly painted in a riot of colors arranged precariously on wooden steps on the pavements are a very arresting sight indeed.
There are shops packed to the brim with traditional and modern utensils occupying every square inch of the available space with many even hanging from the ceiling that you actually feel claustrophobic on entering to those selling traditional eats like pickles,spice powders , papads ,coffee powder etc. All of this is quite a virtual treat to the senses that you are tempted to purchase even when you had no intention at all to do so.
The air is redolent with the aroma of food and coffee wafting from the numerous restaurants that dot this place. We visited one such hidden gem called Rayal’s mess . It is a non descript hole in the wall kind of restaurant tucked away in one of the tiny lanes close to the temple . The lip smacking hot breakfast of idli, pongal , vadai , dosas and filter coffee was served steaming hot on banana leaves laid on no fuss straight wooden tables and benches.
We commenced our return journey to Bengaluru after visiting Masilamuneeswarar temple at Thirumullaivoyal ( 16 kms from Koyumbedu bus terminal). The big swayambu Lingam is believed to have been found among the mullai ( jasmine) creepers which were abundant here. The Lingam is always covered with sandalwood paste and abhishekam is done only to the base. The temple vimana (roof) of the sanctorum is built like the rear of a sleeping elephant – Gaja brishtam by the Pallavas. The Nandi is not facing Lord but instead looking in the opposite direction.The elegant goddess referred to as Kodiyidai Nayagi( as her waist is slender like a mullai creeper) is one of the Tri-Shakti representing Kriya Shakti (Power of Activity). We had lunch at the highly recommended Murugan idli kadai on the highway at Krishnagiri and reached home turf by 8 pm.
The common man's travel guide 