POONDI MADHA SHRINE

Poondi is just a tiny village located in the Thiruvaiyaru taluk of Thanjavur district in Tamil Nadu. The rivers Cauvery and the Colleroon flank the northern and southern sides of this village. In a district that is predominantly rural, Poondi Madha Shrine is a celebrated place of pilgrimage for over half a century now.

It is a historically recorded fact that Veeramamunivar the Italian Jesuit missionary who was a renowned Tamil scholar, built a church at this very same place and dedicated it to Mother Mary. The present structure of the shrine is constructed in mix of Gothic and French architecture. The highlight of the structure is the row of statues of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ, saints like Francis Xavier and also one of Veeramamunivar (Constantine Joseph Beschi) on the facade, above the portico.

There is an interesting story behind how the present structure was erected. Rev. Fr. Lourdes Xavier, Parish Priest of the church in 1955, feared that the main roof, which was in a bad condition, would collapse any moment. When an engineer was consulted, he found that except for the central roof, he rest of the structure was quite strong. He recommended that it was enough to demolish only the roof. A little after this, on a rainy November night, the roof of the church collapsed, leaving everything else intact, thus saving the cost of demolishing. Shortly after this, the number of pilgrims to the Shrine was on the rise and kept increasing as accounts of miracles and cures started to spread.

Apart from the religious significance, Poondi is worth visiting just for the sight of lush greenery and the two rivers which have made Thanjavur the 'granary of Tamil Nadu'. The primary occupation of the villagers residing here being farming, the village is surrounded by coconut groves, paddy and sugar cane fields.

Location: The Poondi village is about 35 kms. from Thanjavur. The nearest town about 3 kms away, is Thirukattupalli.

Nearest Railway Hub: Budalore, about 10 kms from Poondi. Budalore is on the main railway line between Tiruchirappalli and Thanjavur.

By Road: Poondi is also accessible by bus. Many people combine their trip to Vailankanni with a visit to Poondi. To hire a private taxi from Vailankanni to Poondi costs around Rs.1500/- to Rs.2000/- depending on the type of vehicle.

Accommodation is provided to the Pilgrims by Church Authorities.

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