One of the most famous temples of Tamil Nadu is Meenakshi Amman Temple, Madurai. It is the abode of Goddess Meenakshi, and avatara of Devi Parvati and her consort, Lord Sundareshvara, an avatara of Lord Shiva. The divine couple married each other in the Tamil Month of Chitthirai (Sanskrit: Chaitra), and their marriage festival is celebrated grandly till date as the Chittirai Thiruvizha.
In a work called Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam by Paranjothi Munivar, are described 64 Divine Leelas of Lord Sundareshvara, from the time he ruled the city of Madurai and the Leelas he subsequently enacted for his descendants. These Leelas describe a series of Kings who ruled Madurai and performed heroic acts, including conquering Indra himself.
Devi Meenakshi's father was King Malayadhvaja of the Pandya Dynasty. Incidentally, there are references in the Mahabharata that King Malayadhvaja fought in the Battle of Kurukshetra, including this chapter from the Drona Parva which describes the valour of King Malayadhvaja. This would place the Leelas of Meenakshi-Sundareshvara in the early Kaliyuga.
But in Srimad Bhagavatam, Dasama Skandha, Chapter 79, Lord Balarama's pilgrimage is described, and in the 15th verse, it is said, "Dakshinam Mathuram Tatha", or that Lord Balarama visited Southern Mathura (Madurai). So is this a reference to the temple of Meenakshi Devi (thereby placing her further back in time) or is it a reference to Lord Kallazhagar (Lord Vishnu and the brother of Devi Meenakshi), who resides near Madurai?
And would the above information mean that the Pandya Kings who succeeded Sundareshvarar were contemporaries of the Azhvars, who also lived during that period?
