On the 14-kilometer-long pradakshina around the sacred Arunachalam hill in the South Indian city of Tiruvannamalai, you’ll find a multitude of temples. Planning which temples to visit in your Girivalam is a crucial aspect of this sacred journey. As the choice of temples can vary from person to person, I will guide you through different groups of temples and their respective significance. Ultimately, you have the freedom to select the ones that resonate most with your spiritual journey. 🙏🏼

If you find yourself yearning to visit more temples than time allows during your initial Girivalam, don’t worry. You can plan your temple trail across multiple Girivalams (should you have the privilege of embarking on this pilgrimage more than once). With each new Girivalam, your selection of temples to visit may evolve. Feel free to revisit this list whenever you embark on your spiritual journey.

Another important aspect to consider is how you want to visit each of these temples – a long meditative visit or a short darshan only. Read about How to Visit these Temples here.

To know more about What the Girivalam is and How to Plan Your Trip, read this blog.

Temples of Girivalam

Ramana Maharshi’s Stops

Many devotees flock to Tiruvannamalai driven by their connection with Ramana Maharshi. This connection often shapes their pradakshina route and temple visits, guided by books or info shared by fellow pilgrims. Here are several temples and significant locations you can choose to explore with some connection with Ramana Maharshi:

Pachi Amman Kovil: Ramana Maharshi resided here for six months during the 1918 plague outbreak in Tiruvannamalai. In 2023, this temple underwent extensive renovation, preserving its historical significance.

Adi Annamalai: The temple where Ramana Maharshi heard Sama Veda chants by celestial beings in the morning. There is also the story of a tunnel going into the heart of the mountain from this temple. Read all about this temple on my detailed blog.

Arunachaleswarar Temple: As the most prominent temple in the region, it’s almost a rite of passage for Girivalam pilgrims. Additionally, there are significant locations within this temple complex where Ramana Maharshi spent considerable time. Authorities have even installed a board detailing Ramana’s connection to this temple, offering valuable insights.

Gautama Rishi Temple: Gautama, one of the sapta rishis, is said to have resided at Tiruvannamalai. Ramana Maharshi spent some time at this temple during some of his girivalam. Almost diametrically opposite, on the other side of the hill is Pavalakunru, where Gautama’s ashram is said to have been located. There too Ramana has spent much time. There is a line in Ramana Maharshi’s epic Aksharamanamalai bhajan on the glory of Arunachala. The stanza is “Glorious Mountain of Grace celebrated by Gautama, save me with thy glance, O Arunachala!” So, these are two good places to visit.

Sri Esanya Desikar Ashram: Here Sri Ramana Maharshi once gave a discourse on the Bhagavad Gita. This was the first and the last time he gave a public discourse.

Skandasramam & Virupakshi Cave

These don’t fall on the traditional Girivalam route. Both these spots are on Arunachala Hill. However, many Ramana devotees do an alternate Girivalam which includes both these spots. Know more in my detailed guide on the Girivalam.

Note, this is not a comprehensive list. I will keep adding to it, so someday it may be comprehensive 🙂

3 Oldest Temples on Girivalam

The 3 Oldest Temples in this route are,

Arunachaleswarar Temple: Iconic and highly revered Arunachaleshwarar temple in the town of Tiruvannamalai is a great stop. The white towering Gopurams are something else. The feeling of entering through them into the temple is beautiful.

Adi Annamalai temple: Many traditions claim this to be the oldest temple in the region. Moreover, it is placed on exactly opposite side of the Hill from Arunachaleswarar, which is quite intriguing. I have written a detailed blog post on this temple.

Arunagirinathar Temple: Located close to the Arunachaleshwarar temple, this is the only one that I haven’t visited yet. I am curious to visit the next time I am in Tiruvannamalai.

Ashta Dikpalas: Guardians of the 8 Directions

In traditional indic wisdom, there are 8 directions. Each of them have a specific name and specific deities associated with them. Simple day-to-day routines have preferred directions like not sleeping with the head to the north.

The Girivalam route has individual temples for the 8 directions. I haven’t explored these in detail, but if they hold significance for you then you can visit those.

Ramalinga Swami Temple: while not part of the above ashta dikpalas, this temple has a shrine to 9 directions including the Upwards direction as the 9th one.

Surya and Chandra Lingams: There are also 2 lingams for the Sun and Moon. People may visit those also with the 8 directions too.

Devi Temples

The first name that comes to mind is the Pachi Amman Koil which I wrote about earlier in this post. The Arunachaleshwarar temple also has quite a large Devi temple of His consort Unnamalai within the large temple complex.

There is a Draupadi temple and a Sapta Kannika temple which seem to me mostly defunct now. There is a Gayatri Devi shrine.

Durga Temple: This temple is the only temple in Tiruvannamalai that participates in functions with the big Arunachaleswara Temple during the Karthagai Deepam festival, because Durga is recognized in ancient scripture as the guardian of Arunachala.

Rajeswari Temple: pure Dravidian style temple. Small but quite striking as you pass by.

Apart from these there are other smaller Devi shrines around the Girivalam. Since I haven’t found anything significant in their history or connection with Ramana, I have not mentioned them here. But if you feel so inclined, do explore the devi shrines on this route better and let me know if any other temples should be mentioned here.

Ancient Spots

A few ancient spots that I come across. Not including the spots already mentioned above.

Agasthya tirtham, considered very ancient. So, we can take a stop and meditate for a bit 🙂

How to Visit Girivalam Temples for a Deeper Experience?

As you plan out which temples you wish to visit, it is important to consider HOW you want to experience these temples and sacred spaces. A little bit of reflection on how these temples actually benefit us as sadhakas would be useful. (Here is an old video from Sadhguru on what temples were made for and gives some insights on how we should experience it Temples, Not a Place of Prayer | Sadhguru)

I would suggest taking immersive stops at one or two temples. This would be a way for your body to rest, while you can meditate and take support of these energy spaces. A longer stop also lets you explore the temple, since a lot of them would have interesting architecture, sculptures to offer… You might strike up a conversation with any of the sadhus, pujaris or fellow devotees for some inspiration.

Along with this, if you wish to visit more temples, then add a few quick visits to other temples with the cursory darshan, namaskara, vibhuti application and some donation.

This is my overall recommendation. However, this kind of a pilgrimage is deeply personal. So, you must of course go with your own flow. Maybe you feel enthused to passionately visit each shrine and do a namaskara, then so be it. Or conversely you may not wish to visit any temple, as you are walking immersed in the presence of Arunachala deep into your inner reflection and awareness.

Acknowledgements:

A large part of this blog post was written after referring to this eGuide from Ramana Ashramam http://www.sriramana.org/eguide/index.html. You can also refer to it and browse through more of the 101 points of interest they have highlighted in it. I have also referred to the book called Guide to Giripradakshina. This book is available here on Ramamasramam Online Shop or also on Amazon.

I hope you find this blog post useful. Let me know about your experience if you have done the Girivalam.