KanyaKumari - One of the Natural Wonders

Kanyakumari is the place where India’s land surface ends and three seas namely Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean confluence. It was also called as Cape Comorin.

Kanyakumari is the place that offers you the essence of romance, spiritual grace and scenic beauty. It is a great tourist destination which no one wants to miss. Kanyakumari comprises many beauties within itself.

The beauty of Sun rise over the Bay of Bengal and Sun set on the Arabian Sea are the eye catching events. In fact Sunrise can be viewed throughout the year and sunset can be seen from October to March. On full moon evenings Sunset and Moon rise can be seen simultaneously.

According to Hindu legend, Kanya Devi, an avatar of goddess Parvati performed penance in order to marry Lord Shiva. But due to some unavoidable reason she could not marry Shiva and remained a virgin. Kanya means Virgin and Kumari means “Miss”. Thus the place got its name Kanyakumari.

This temple is devoted to goddess Bhagavathy Amman. The goddess in the sanctum is Durga Devi. This temple is the first amongst the 108 Sakthi Peedas. This temple is situated on the sea shore. Devotees can reach the temple and worship the goddess everyday from 4.30 A.M -11.30 A.M and from 5.30 P.M – 8 P.M.

Mahatma Gandhi Memorial or Gandhi mandapam is a very important tourist destination. Mahatma Gandhi’s ashes were brought to Kanyakumari for the public to view. It was then immersed into the Sea. In memory of that a monument was built on 1952.

Gandhi mandapam earns the fame of historical significance because it was designed in such a way that on October 2^nd which is the birth anniversary of Gandhi, rays from the Sun directly falls on the place exactly where the ashes were kept. This is really a magical sight.

Gandhi mandapam remains open every day from 7.30 A.M – 6.30 P.M.

One fine day dated 24/12/1892 Kanyakumari welcomed a great man named Swami Vivekananda. His arrival made Kanyakumari a much more beautiful place enriched with spiritual glory. He swam across the sea and reached an isolated rock. He meditated there for three continuous days. It was said that Swami Vivekananda attained the supreme glory by meditating here

In 1970 a fort was built in those rocks in memory of Swami Vivekananda known as Vivekananda Rock or memorial. Boat services are provided for tourists to reach the fort. The fort will be opened from 7 A.M – 5 P.M except on Tuesdays.

Thiruvalluvar was one of the most famous Tamil poets who lived many thousands of years ago. He composed the world renowned “Thirukkural”. Thirukkural comprises of three parts. There are 133 sub-parts within these 3 parts. Each sub-part consists of ten poems. As a whole there are 1330 poems in Thirukkural. Thirukkural was translated in many other languages.

As a tribute to Thiruvalluvar, a huge statue of 133ft was raised.

By air: The nearest airport is Trivandrum which is at a distance of nearly 70kms from Kanyakumari. By Train: Kanyakumari has its own railway station and it is linked with all major cities of India. By Road: Public transports are available from all major cities from South India to Kanyakumari.