Badrakali Amman Temple – Sivakasi
Badrakali Amman Templein Sivakasi, a town in Virudhunagar district in the South Indian state of Tamilnadu, is dedicated to the Hindu god Badrakali. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, the temple is believed to have been built during the 18th century with later expansion during the 19th and 20th centuries.
The temple is open from 6am to 12 pm and 5 to 8:30 pm on all days except during new moon days when it is open the full day. Four daily rituals and many yearly festivals are held at the temple, of which Panguni Pongal and Chithirai Pongal festivals being the most prominent.
The temple priests perform the pooja (rituals) during festivals and on a daily basis. There are weekly, monthly and fortnightly rituals performed in the temple. The temple is open from 6 am to 12 pm and 5 to 8:30 pm on all days except during new moon days when it is open the full day. Panguni Pongal and Chithirai Pongal are the annual festivals celebrated for the deities Mariamman and Badrakali Amman in April and May respectively, both of which are celebrated for ten days.
Badrakali is a fierce manifestation of Parvati the consort of Shiva. Badrakali Amman temple is the most prominent landmark of Sivakasi. There is a shrine of Heramba Vinayaka, a fierce manifestation of Vinayaka with five heads. Usually the manifestation is sported with lion as his vehicle obtained from his mother Parvathi. In this temple, he is sported with his bandicoot vehicle.