|
Introduction
Velankanni, a hamlet on the sandy shores of the Bay of Bengal, is located 350 km south of Chennai and 12 km south of Nagapattinam, a small town on the coast of Bay of Bengal. River Vellayar, a tributary of the river Cauvery, runs on the south of the village and flows into the sea.
Historical records show that Velankanni was once a port and that people in this area traded with Rome and Greece, the ancient commercial centres of the western world. The canal that had been dug then for navigation between Nagapattinam and Vedaranyam is still found to exist to the west of Velankanni.
Velankanni is referred to as the Lourdes of the East owing to the fact that, like Lourdes in France, millions of pilgrims visit the Shrine throughout the year, offering worship and prayers as well as their gratitude to the deity, fondly addressed as ‘Our Lady of Health’ or ‘Arokiamatha’ (in the local language) for showing the way and for favours received.
As per traditional belief, the end of the 16th century was marked by the appearance of mother Mary holding the infant Jesus in her arms in this small hamlet.Ever since, Velankanni has seen growth and development as an important tourist destination for pilgrims from across the world regardless of region, creed or language barriers.
Pilgrims belonging to all religions, castes and communities visit the shrine at this Basilica. Considered by believers to be of divine origin, a lot of interesting legends revolving around miracles and other mysterious happenings are associated with this place of worship that bear testimony to the element of divinity. Owing to all these, the Shrine has assumed an international multicultural character which reflects in its unity and religious harmony.
|
