Short films
Films of Arunachala
Short illustrated films on the sacred hill and the town at its foot, drawn in pencil and light. Each links to the articles that go deeper.
The fire, the hill and the holy land
Why Arunachala is Shiva as fire, why the lamp is lit on the summit, and why this is a land of tapas. Read more: why Karthigai Deepam is celebrated and what is Arunachala.
Why we light the lamp: Karthigai Deepam explained
The story of the Maha Deepam in pencil and light: the column of fire, the hill that became Shiva, the six Krittikas, Ardhanarishvara, and how to keep the festival wherever you are.
Tapobhumi: why Tiruvannamalai is a holy land of tapas
The fire hill, the five element temples, Parvati's penance, the saints who sat here, and the old promise that to think of Arunachala is enough.
Walking the hill
Girivalam, the 14 km walk around Arunachala, and what a full-moon night on the road is like. Read more: the Girivalam guide, the Pournami night walk and the Pournami calendar.
Girivalam: walking around Arunachala with devotion
What Girivalam is, the eight lingams in the order you meet them, and the spirit in which the walk is made: a prayer offered with the feet.
Pournami night: what a full-moon Girivalam walk is like
The moon, the monthly timing, the river of pilgrims on the 14 km road, the stalls and songs, the silent walkers, what to carry, and where to find quiet.
Girivalam, stop by stop
Four short films take you around the route in quarters, from the great temple to Indra Lingam, on past Agni, Yama and Niruthi, around the far side, and home. They live with the full route guide: Girivalam route in detail, all 41 stops.
The sacred year
A wheel of twelve Tamil months around the hill. Read more: the Tamil festival year and the sacred calendar.
The Tamil festival year at Arunachala, month by month
A wheel of twelve Tamil months around the sacred hill, from Chithirai to Panguni, with Karthigai Deepam and Maha Shivaratri as the two great peaks.
Ramana and the siddhas
The sage who made Arunachala known to the world, and the older tradition of hidden sages and living shrines. Read more: Ramana Maharshi, the siddhas of Arunachala and jeeva samadhi.
Ramana Maharshi and Arunachala: the sage and his sacred hill
From a sixteen-year-old's sudden fear of death in Madurai to the temple, the caves, the hymns and the light seen going home to the hill: Ramana's love of Arunachala, retold in a few minutes.
The Siddhas of Arunachala: the hidden sages and the living shrines
Who the Tamil Siddhars were, the eighteen great Siddhars, why the hill draws the perfected, what a jeeva samadhi is, and where some of them are found. Told as the tradition tells it.
These films retell the traditions and the accounts preserved by Sri Ramanasramam and the temple in our own words. Where a story is traditional, it is told as tradition. Dates and times of festivals change every year: always confirm with the temple or a current panchang.