Page 654 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - India

652  SOUTH INDIA

e Munnar Less than 2 km (1 mile) from
the town is the quaint High
Idukki district. 130 km (81 miles)
E of Kochi. @ n Tourist Information Range Club. Made of wicker
Centre, Munnar, (04865) 231 516. and teak, it still serves as a
( daily. social centre for Munnar’s
planters and retains a refined,
The picturesque little town old-world atmosphere.
of Munnar lies at a height of Munnar remains a popular
about 1,800 m (5,906 ft), in destination for visitors from
a part of the Western Ghats Tamil Nadu and Kerala. As a
known as the High Ranges. result of this, the town and
The name Munnar (which its environs have witnessed
means “Three Rivers” in Tamil) a proliferation of hotels,
is derived from its location restaurants and shopping
at the confluence of three centres. However, areas further
mountain streams – Kundala, away from the city centre
Mudrapuzha and Nallathanni. remain relatively unspoilt, and
Located in some 24,000 ha the gentle hills offer excellent
Nine-tiered tower dedicated to (59,305 acres) of sprawling tea cycle rides and walks.
Shankaracharya, Kaladi estates, first established by the
British in 1878, Munnar was Environs
w Kaladi once a summer resort for the Mattupetty Lake, 13 km
British government in South (8 miles) north of Munnar,
Ernakulam district. 35 km (22 miles)
NE of Kochi. @ India. The most important is surrounded by semi-alpine
plantation in the High Ranges scenery. A cattle-breeding
This quiet town on the banks today belongs to Tata Tea, centre is located nearby, and
of the beautiful Periyar river is which oversees almost every it is also possible to go boating
celebrated as the birthplace of public facility in the vicinity. or to ride elephants.
the great saint and philosopher,
Shankaracharya. Two shrines,
built in 1910 on the riverbank,
honour his memory. One is
dedicated to him and the other
to the goddess Sharada, and
both are maintained by the
Sringeri Matha (see p531).
Nearby is a spot known
as Brindavan, where the
Shankaracharya’s mother,
Aryamba, was cremated. The
old Shri Krishna Temple, near
the Sharada Temple, has an
image of the deity, said to
have been installed by
Shankaracharya himself. On the
road to the Krishna Temple is a Tea plantations around Munnar
46-m (151-ft) tall, nine-tiered
octagonal tower, the Shri Adi
Shankaracharya Kirti Stambha Adi Shankaracharya (AD 788–820)
Mandapa. Each of its floors Adi Shankaracharya, only 32 when he died, travelled the
commemorates the life and length and breadth of India, wrote erudite
works of Shankaracharya. commentaries on Hindu scriptures, and
composed devotional poems and prayers.
Environs The core of his monist philosophy is
The Malayattor Church, 8 km that there is only one reality and that is
(5 miles) east of Kaladi, is said to Brahman, the all-pervading cosmic force
of which the human soul is a part, while all
be where St Thomas erected a material objects are mere illusions (maya).
cross. The 1,000-year old rock-cut The Buddhist elements in his philosophy
Kalill Temple, 22 km (14 miles) provoked, during his lifetime, the orthodox
southeast of Kaladi, was originally Brahminical charge that he was a “Buddha
a Jain temple. It is now dedicated in disguise”. His historical importance lies
to the mother goddess. Unlike at in the fact that he provided an intellectual The philosopher
other temples, a female elephant basis to Hindusim. Adi Shankaracharya
is used in all ceremonial rituals.
For hotels and restaurants in this region see p703 and pp718–19

652-653_EW_India.indd 652 26/04/17 11:50 am
Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
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Date 12th July 2013
Size 125mm x 217mm