Kanyakumari is a popular tourist destination andpilgrimage centre in India. Notable tourist spots include its unique sunrise and sunset points, the 41-metre (133 ft)Thiruvalluvar Statue, andVivekananda Rock Memorial off the coast.[5] Lying at the tip of peninsular India, the town is bordered on the west, south, and east by theLaccadive Sea.[6] It has a coastline of 71.5 kilometres (44.4 mi) stretched along these three sides.[7]
According to aHindu legend,Kanya Devi, anavatar ofParvati, was to marryShiva, who failed to show up on his wedding day. Rice and other grains meant for the wedding feast remained uncooked and unused.[15] The uncooked grains turned into stones as time went by. Some believe that the small stones on the shore today, which look like rice, are indeed grains from the wedding that was never solemnised. Kanya Devi is now considered a virgin goddess who blesses pilgrims and tourists who flock to the town. Her temple in Kanyakumari is aShakta pitha: a holy shrine in theShaktism tradition of Hinduism.[16][17][18][19]
According to another Hindu legend,Hanuman dropped a piece of earth near Kanyakumari as he was carrying a mountain with his life-saving herb, Mrita Sanjivani, from the Himalayas to Lanka (Sri Lanka) during theRamayana War. The fallen earth formed an area calledMarunthuvazh Malai, literally "hills where medicine lives". This legend explains the abundance of unique native medicinal plants in the area.[20][21] Marunthuvazh Malai is located near Kottaram, about 7 km (4 mi) from Kanyakumari town on the Kanyakumari–Nagercoil highway. The sageAgasthya, who was an expert in medicinal herbs, is believed to have lived around this site in ancient days.[22][by whom?] There is anashram on the middle of the hillside; tourists trek up to visit the ashram and to glimpse the sea near Kanyakumari town, a few kilometres away.[15]
As per the2011 Census, Kanyakumari town consisted of 61.16%Christians, 32.97%Hindus, and 5.47%Muslims.[23] It had a population of 19,739, comprising 9,884 males and 9,855 females, making the sex ratio (number of females per thousand males) of the town 997. A total of 2,403 people were under six years of age and the child sex ratio (number of females per thousand males under six years of age) stood at 1,024. The town had an average literacy of 88.62%, higher than the national average of 59.5%. There were a total of 4,236 households in the town.
As of 2001, Kanyakumari had a total of 5,929 main workers: 11 cultivators, 78agricultural labourers, 66 in household industries, and 5,774 other workers. There were a total of 119 marginal workers: 4 marginal cultivators, 3 marginal agricultural labourers, 11 marginal workers in household industries, and 101 other marginal workers.[24]
Kanyakumari is at the southern tip and is the southernmost point of the contiguousIndian Subcontinent. As such, it is part of the commonHindustani phrase used to describe the length of India: "Kashmir se Kanyakumari"; before the partition, the phrase inundivided India was "Khyber se Kanyakumari".[26] However, the southernmost point ofRepublic of India is atIndira Point onGreat Nicobar Island, at 6°45’10″N and 93°49’36″E.
TheThiruvalluvar Statue is a 7,000-ton stone statue of poet and philosopherValluvar. It has a height of 29 metres (95 feet) and stands upon an 11.5-metre (38 ft) rock that represents the 38 chapters of virtue in theThirukkural. The statue standing on the rock represents wealth and pleasures, signifying that wealth and love be earned and enjoyed on the foundation of solid virtue.[30] The combined height of the statue and pedestal is 133 ft (40.5 m), denoting the 133 chapters in theThirukkural.
The statue is reminiscent of a dancing pose ofNataraja. It was sculpted by the Indian sculptorV. Ganapati Sthapati, who also created theIraivan Temple, and its opening ceremony was on 1 January 2000.[31] The monument was hit by theIndian Ocean tsunami on 26 December 2004,[32] but stood unaffected. The statue is designed to survive earthquakes of high magnitude.[citation needed] During maintenance work, as well as during rough sea, entry is restricted for tourists.[33][34]
TheVivekananda Rock Memorial is a popular tourist monument in Vavathurai, Kanyakumari, India. The memorial stands on one of two rocks in the Laccadive Sea, located about 500 metres (1,600 ft) east of the mainland of Vavathurai. It was built in 1970 in honour ofSwami Vivekananda who is said to have attained enlightenment on the rock.[35] According to local legends, it was on this rock that Goddess Kumari performed austerity. A meditation hall (Dhyana Mandapam) is also attached to the memorial for visitors to meditate. The design of themandapa incorporates different styles of temple architecture from all over India. It houses a statue of Vivekananda.[36] The memorial consists of two main structures: the Vivekananda Mandapam and the Shripada Mandapam.
Bhagavathy Amman Temple is a 3,000-year-old temple dedicated to GoddessKumari Amman located at Kanyakumari on the shore of the Laccadive Sea. Kumari Amman is one of the forms of Devi, popularly known as "Kumari Bhagavathy Amman". The temple is the first Durga temple created by Lord Parasurama and one of the 108 Shakthi Peethas. It is mentioned in theRamayana,Mahabharata, andPurananuru.[37][38]
The Gandhi Memorial Mandapam has been built on the spot where the urn containingthe Mahatma's ashes was kept for public viewing before immersion. Resembling central Indian Hindu temples in form,the memorial was designed such that on Gandhi's birthday, 2 October, the first rays of the sun fall on the exact place where his ashes were kept.[36]
Kanyakumari Pier or Sunset View Point is considered one of the iconic locations in Kanyakumari. It is situated at a point where three oceans meet: theBay of Bengal, theLaccadive Sea, which is connected to theIndian Ocean, and theArabian Sea.[39]
Kamarajar Mani Mantapa Monument was raised and dedicated toK. Kamarajar, a freedom fighter, former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, and President of Indian National Congress. He is also popularly known as "Black Gandhi" among the masses. Like the Gandhi Memorial Mandapam, this monument is where Kamarajar's ashes were kept for the public to pay homage before immersion into the sea.[40]
Near Kanyakumari's southern shore stands a monument to the memory of those who died in the2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, an underwater megathrust earthquake that claimed around 230,000 lives in many countries, including India, Sri Lanka, Somalia, Thailand, Maldives, and Indonesia.[41]
Ferries transport tourists from the mainland to Vivekananda Rock Memorial andTiruvalluvar Statue (where this photo was taken).
The state-ownedPoompuhar Shipping Corporation runs ferry services between the town and the Vivekananda Rock Memorial andThiruvalluvar Statue, both situated on rocky islets off the coast. The operation of the ferry service began in 1984. Two ferries were used until June 2013, after which a third ferry was added to the service on the occasion of 150th birth anniversary ofSwami Vivekananda.[42]
^abGopal, Madan (1990). K.S. Gautam (ed.).India through the ages. Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. p. 179.
^Goff, James; Dudley, Walter (March 2021). "Boxing Day: The World's Worst Disaster of the 21st Century".Tsunami:189–202.doi:10.1093/oso/9780197546123.003.0016.
