Thiruparankundram Murugan Temple

The Subramaniya Swamy Temple at Thiruparankundram, a suburb of Madurai, is the first of the six abodes of Murugan named in the Sangam poem Tirumurukarruppadai. It is cut into a hillock in rock-cut style and was first built by the Pandyas in the 6th century. Legend says that after defeating the demon Surapadman, Murugan married Deivanai, daughter of Indra, here. The shrine was turned into a Jain temple under the Pandya king Koon Pandiyan and restored as a Hindu temple in the late 8th century, and the Madurai Nayaks later added its pillared halls.

Alongside Murugan, the main shrine houses Shiva, Vishnu, Vinayaka and Durga, and worship follows Shaiva tradition with six daily rituals. On top of the hill are natural caverns with rock beds bearing Tamil-Brahmi inscriptions of about the 1st century BCE and a Kasi Viswanathar shrine, and a rock-cut Shiva cave lies at the foot. Kantha Sashti in Aipasi is the main festival.