It takes your breath away

    

NAMMA MADURAI It is an arduous trek to Siddhar Malai:

O ff the beaten path, there are innumerable places to see in and around Madurai. Since Tamil Nadu is blessed with good roads to even sparsely populated places, veering off any highway into the hinterland throws up surprises.

One such revelation is Siddhar Malai at Kalyanipatti. To reach this hill on the westernmost fringes of Madurai district, one has to first reach Melakkal (18 km) via Thuvariman or Chekkanoorani. From Melakkal, take the Vickramangalam road, awash with coconut orchards on either side. At the intersection after three km, take a left turn.

At Vickramangalam turn left and immediately after 100 yards turn right into a road that doesn't look like one. But eventually leads to one. If in doubt, ask directions for Kalyanipatti (21 km) where the hill is and take the Usilampatti/Uthappanaickanur road.

It snakes between two mountain ranges of Nagamalai and all of a sudden you find yourself passing through people and places straight out of Bharathiraja films. Soon the landscape becomes rugged and desolate.

You know you are nearing the hill when smell of jasmine wafts in the air, because these villages lie on the Nilakottai-Uthapanaickanur ‘gundu malli' belt. Anyway, the towering hill can be seen from miles away.

At the three-road intersection at Kalyanipatti, take a left turn and after 100 yards or so again take a right turn into a kuchcha road that leads to the bottom of the hill.

Reaching this hill is easy. The difficult part is climbing it. It is so steep that you fall short of breath for most part of the climb. But the view from the top is worth all the huffing and puffing.

A local, P. Jeyachandran of Kalloothu Perumalpatti said, “People from villages nearby pooled some money and started laying steps so that devotees could reach the Mahalingam Temple atop the hill with ease. But the Forest Department got wind of it and stopped the work.”

Unlike many other granite monoliths of this kind, Siddhar Malai has some landings where you can rest a while on the way up. The first landing is near a sheer drop. At places that are steep and risky, there are handrails to hold on to your dear life.

Jain caves:

Your next pit stop can be the Jain cave with engravings on the floor. The Jains' presence can be guessed from the neatly chiselled steps, though only a foot wide, up the vertical climb. There is ‘Ramar Padham' nearby where footprints are on a raised surface.

According to Mr. Jeyachandran, legend has it that Ramar rested here for some time and this is the place where Sita untangled her hair.

Another hard climb takes you to Mahalingam Temple, on other side of the hill. Devotees converge here on Amavasais (new moon) and Chitra Pournami and cook food using water available throughout the year in a nearby spring.

From this spot, Vaigai river, meandering through the wilderness like a python, is visible. Nilakottai, parts of Batlagundu and some hamlets, besides settlements on Kodaikanal hills and the Varushanadu end of the Western ghats in Theni district, can be seen from here.

But it is not the end of the climb. If you crane your neck you will see a lingam-like rock atop the hill, where a lamp is lit on auspicious days. A vertical ladder that takes you to the top of the rock is meant only for the daring people not scared of heights. For the rest, best option is to trace the way down the hill through a different route, right opposite the temple.

Steps have been chiselled to have a foothold, rather toehold, through a steep descent beside a massive Nandi figure that could be better seen from the opposite hill. This route joins the old route on the first landing.