Research Paper on Unknown Temples Ramanathapuram District in Tamil Nadu

Ramanathapuram District in Tamil Nadu is famous for the Ramanathaswamy Temple (Rameshwaram Temple). But there are over 50 ancient temples in the district that are famous for various reasons. R. Usha Manivasagam, a primary school teacher, did a research paper on the Unknown Temples Ramanathapuram District in Tamil Nadu and she was awarded a doctorate from the Madurai Kamaraj University.

The Hindu writes 

After five years of strenuous efforts, she came out with a 456-page thesis on five ancient temples which had ‘sthala puranams’ and 47 temples built by the Sethupathy Kings with no ‘sthala puarnam.’ 

The Veyil Ugandha Vinayagar Temple at Uppur should have been a temple dedicated to Sun God before it became a temple for Lord Vinayagar, she says. The legacy has it that Lord Ram visited the temple before proceeding to Rameswaram. Some 400 years ago, devotees visiting Rameswaram began the ‘theerthavari’ from this temple.

The Kariamanickam Perumal Temple at Alambadi in Tiruvadanai taluk has another interesting facet. The 14-foot-tall Perumal granite statue was kept in a tiled-roof shed as it was said to “grow every year.” This myth was buttressed by a story that a Sethupathy king had tried in vain to build a temple. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) could explore the site, she suggests.