Agastheeswaram
| Author:Laxman Burdak, IFS (R) |
Agastheeswaram (अगस्तीश्वरम) is a town in Kanniyakumari district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
Origin
Agasteeswaram is named after Sage Agastya who had visited this place to teach Ramayana.
Variants
- Agastiswaram (अगस्तीश्वरम)
- Agasteeswaram (अगस्तीश्वरम)
- Agastyeshvara (अगस्त्येश्वर, दे. अगस्त्यतीर्थ) (AS, p.10)
- Agastyeshwara (अगस्त्येश्वर) (AS, p.10)
- Agastyatirtha (अगस्त्यतीर्थ) (AS, p.9)
Location
The location code or village code of Agasteeswaram village is 643182. Agasteeswaram village is located in Agastheeswaram Tehsil of Kanniyakumari district in Tamil Nadu, India. It is situated 23km away from Nagercoil, which is both district & sub-district headquarter of Agasteeswaram village. As per 2009 stats, Kovalam is the gram panchayat of Agasteeswaram village. [1]
History
Along with the talukas of Thovalay, Kalculam, Eraneel and Velavancode, Agasteeswaram was a part of the southern division (aka Padmanabhapuram division) of the erstwhile Kingdom of Travancore[2] until its union with Cochin in 1949 and continued to be a part of the state of Travancore- Cochin until November 1, 1956.
Below are the words extracted from the Travancore state manual about the Agastisvaram Nadan rich chieftain who enjoyed special benefits from the Trovancore Rajah, that family belonged to the sub-caste Nadan an endogamous group among the Nadars.
The Travancore state manual says "This is also the headquarters of the Shanar tribe, where their Nadan or chieftain resides, who was formerly allowed the privileges of having a fort, of riding in a palanquin and of retaining a hundred armed attendants."[3]
One of the principal devil temples in Travancore is that represented in the annexed engraving situated at Agastispuram, near cape comorin; which is also the headquarters of the Shanar tribe where their Nadan, or Chieftain, resides, who was formerly allowed the privileges of having a fort, riding in a palankeen, and retaining 100 armed attendants, which he is too reduced to support now . 1[4]
अगस्त्यतीर्थ
विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर[5] ने लेख किया है ... अगस्त्यतीर्थ (AS, p.9) 'अगस्त्यतीर्थ सौभद्र' पौलोमं च सुपावनम्, कारंधर्म प्रसन्नं च हयमेधफलं च तत'। (महाभारत 1,215,3) अगस्त्यतीर्थ दक्षिण-समुद्र तट पर स्थित था- 'तत: समुद्रे तीर्थानि दक्षिणे भरतर्षभ'। (महाभारत 1,215,1) इसकी गणना दक्षिण-सागर के पंचतीर्थों (अगस्त्य, सौभद्र, पौलोम, कारंधम और भारद्वाज) में की जाती थी- 'दक्षिणे सागरानूपे पंचतीर्थानि सन्ति वै'। (महाभारत 1,216,17) महाभारत के अनुसार अर्जुन ने इस तीर्थ की यात्रा की थी। वन पर्व (118,4) में अगस्त्यतीर्थ का नारीतीर्थ के साथ द्रविड़ देश में वर्णन है- 'ततो विपाप्मा द्रविडेषु राजन् समुद्रमासाद्य च लोकपुण्यं, अगस्त्यतीर्थं च महापवित्रं नारीतीर्थान्यत्र वीरो ददर्श।' अगस्त्यतीर्थ को 'अगस्त्येश्वर' भी कहते थे।
अगस्त्याश्रम इससे भिन्न था और इसकी स्थिति गया (बिहार) के पूर्व में थी।
External links
References
- ↑ https://villageinfo.in/tamil-nadu/kanniyakumari/agastheeswaram/agasteeswaram.html
- ↑ Shungoony Menon, P. (1878). A History of Travancore from the Earliest Times (pdf). Madras: Higgin Botham & Co. p. 171.
- ↑ The Travancore state manual, Volume 2 Page 57
- ↑ 871 Samuel mateer-The Land of Charity- page 219
- ↑ Aitihasik Sthanavali by Vijayendra Kumar Mathur, p.9