Tiruvannamalai Arunachala Hill Girivalam

The Arunachala hill in Tiruvannamalai (Tamil Nadu, India) is a holy mountain for Hindus as it is considered as a manifestation of Lord Shiva himself. For the festival of Karthigai deepam, a flame of light appears on top of this hill.

Walking around the hill is called Girivalam or Giri Pradikshana, as we circumambulate in a clockwise direction around the hill the path we take is through asphalt roads and it should be done barefeet or with socks. Shoes are ideally not preferred to wear as a mark of respect to Lord Shiva.

During summer it can get really hot and walking barefoot is difficult so it is ideal to walk in the evening from 6pm or early in the morning. However, when we did the walk we started walking from 11.30 pm and completed our pradakshina by 4.30am the next day. There will be groups of people walking as it is a common pilgrimage devotees undertake. It is a very flat terrain, look out for vehicles.

There are also 52 shrines along the way where we can stop and pray, out of these there are 8 lingams which are key to visit. Please check their timings so you can plan to visit them. If you walk at night, it is also okay to visit the temples using a vehicle the next day as most of them will be closed during the night

There are adequete shops for refreshments and resting. If walking at night it is ideal to carry a torch and some places the sides of the road will be littered with garbage, cow dung etc so keep an eye out for it. Also, carry adequete water with you and some snacks if needed.

During the pradakshina it is preferred to meditate, chant God's name or mantra, sing bhajans as this pilgrimage is aimed at igniting our spiritual fire as the Arunachala Hill and the Shiva at Tiruvannamalai is in the form of fire.

The entire Girivalam was slightly exhausting as we are not used to walking barefeet on asphalt roads. The whole walk was a rewarding experience.