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About Palani
Located in the Dindihul district of the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu, Palani is a popular pilgrim place, widely known for the Palani Murugan Temple that is located on a hill top, giving a beautiful view of the town.
The temple is dedicated to popular Hindu war god Kartikeya. Such is the popularity of the temple that each year approximately 7 million pilgrims visit the place to pay their homage and offer prayers to the lord here.
The story revolving around Palani in mythology goes like this: Once sage Narada had appeared at Mount Kailash to meet Lord shiva and gave him a fruit that was said to be an elixir of wisdom.
The lord decided to divide the fruit into equal parts to give it to his two sons: Lord Ganesha and Lord Kartikeya. On this, the sage expressed his disappointment and said it is better to not cut the fruit.
So to come to a conclusion, Lord Shiva suggested that whoever from his two sons took the fastest trip around the world and came back would get the fruit for himself. Hurriedly, Kartikeya left for his circumambulation across the globe on his peacock.
On the other hand, Lord Ganesha, considering Lord Shiva, his father, and Goddess Parvati, his mother, to be his world in real terms, circumambulated around them and finished earlier. Pleased by his notions, Lord Shiva awarded Ganesha with the fruit, and this certainly didn’t go well with Kartikeya who was furious.
He left Kailash soon after and went to Palani in south India to perform rigorous meditation and also do some introspection in mature with time, and this led to the temple here being devoted to him as on today.