When I started my journey across South India, I had made my mind up to venture into every historic city and town in the region. I was aware that in the time I had, I could only cover a handful, yet I was undeterred. Thus far, I have been to some of the most spectacular places ever. As my journey progressed, I made my way to the ancient Tamil capital, Madurai. The city has a distinct way of charming the visitor with its quintessentially Dravidian temples, with its colours and most of all, its welcoming people. The prominent towers or Gopurams of the illustrious Meenakshi Amman Temple dominate the skyline, much like how the temple itself governs the lives of Madurai’s inhabitants. It testifies to the city’s antiquity and to the legends about it.

Siva, my kamalan advisor, who hails from the city, made me privy to one of the great legends about Madurai and her matron goddess Meenakshi. She is a manifestation of Lord Shiva’s consort, Parvati or Shakti, the primordial energy. The tale about the goddess’ manifestation as Meenakshi reveals that she was born as the result of a sacrifice to beget progeny, performed by the Pandya king of Madurai. The story narrates her journey of self-realization that she is the Mother Goddess Shakti and her ultimate union with Shiva. I found the story to be fascinatingly female-centric, which was a reflection of the region’s underlying cultural motifs. As a woman, to me personally, that the principal deity of the temple is not the ‘God’, but the ‘Goddess’, was even more appealing.