Maduranthakam

Madurantakam is a town and a municipality in Kancheepuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The town is known for the man-made and second largest lake in Tamil Nadu, the Maduranthakam Lake. It is believed to be built by the Chola King Uthama Chozha, also called as Maduranthakar, during his reign. It is also home to the Aeri Katha Ramar Temple. As of 2011, the town had a population of 30,796.HistoryMadurantakam is one of the holy places visited by Ramanuja though it has not been sung by the alvars. The place is also unique in that Ramanuja's statue is found dressed in white on all days while in almost all temples the saint is dressed in ochre.In two of his poems, Saint Manavala Mamunigal asks everyone who wants to cast away his past sins to worship the Lord at this place. There are separate shrines for Lakshmi Narasimhar, Periya Nambi and Ramanuja, Andal, Sudarsana and Vedanta Desika. The holy tank is opposite the temple with a separate shrine for Anjaneya on its banks.GeographyThe reservoir near Madurantakam irrigates more than 1000 small villages in and around the town.