Tourists and locals have an interesting option to learn about the history of Sri Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple.In keeping with the changing times, the temple has recently released a DVD of video guide in Tamil, Hindi and English. “We had shot a detailed video documentary a couple of years ago which ran to almost two hours. Realising the need for an effective guide for tourists to know about the temple, we edited it to a half-an-hour video guide and added a voiceover,” said a temple official.
The guide traces the history of how and why the temple was believed to have been built through local legends, mythological stories and holy scriptures. The video guide also shows different things in the temple such as paintings, murals, pillars and sculptures while throwing some light on their significance.
Booksellers selling the DVD inside the temple say there has been a steady demand for the Tamil and English versions. “The Tamil version sells more. Our customers are not only tourists. Many locals who are interested in knowing the history and interesting facts about the temple are buying the video guide,” said a bookseller.
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While the layout of the temple is described in detail with segments on the four main gopurams, there are also segments describing the art museum, the 1000-pillar Mandapam and the temple tank. Interesting nuggets of information are also included.
For instance, the guide explains how the famous 8-foot-high ‘Mukkurini Vinayagar’ was discovered when the Vandiyur Teppakulam was dug.