Pothigai

Pothigai Hills

Highest point
Elevation	1,866 m (6,122 ft)
Coordinates	8°37′00.09″N 77°14′46.50″E / 8.6166917°N 77.2462500°E / 8.6166917; 77.2462500
Geography
Location	Thiruvananthapuram district, Tirunelveli district, Kanyakumari district, India
Parent range	Anaimalai Hills

The Pothigai Hills, also known as the Agasthiyar Malai are in the Ashambu Hills, part of the Anaimalai Hills in the southern part of the Western Ghats of South India. Legend says that the sage Agastya (also written as Agasthiyar or Agathiyar) is said to have provided the grammar for the Tamil language. This grammar was further fine tuned by one of his disciples in the Tolkāppiyam.

Geography

The western slope is located in the Thiruvananthapuram District of Kerala state, eastern slope of Pothigai hills is in the Tirunelveli District, southern slope is located in Kanyakumari District of Tamil Nadu. At 1,866 meters, it is the highest peak in the rugged Ashambu hills, which have one of the richest concentrations of biodiversity in the Western Ghats.^[1] The area is known for its spectacular views, beautiful forests and waterfalls, ancient temples, and the river Tamirabarani, the lifeline of the region.

Legend

According to the Mahābhārata, Lord Shiva sent the two saints (or sages) Vyasa and Agastya, down to Earth, to create the divine languages, Sanskrit and Tamil. Agathiyar came to Pothigai and established the Tamil culture.

After establishing the Sidhar Gnana Koodam center for scientific research, and later traveling throughout the world, spreading the knowledge gained, Agathiyar returned to a spot in the Pothigai hills, where he merged into the cosmos. A temple has been built for him at this spot, close to the Papanasam Falls on the banks of the Thamirabarani River. It is said that Sage Agathiyar occasionally gives appearances to sincere aspirants and devotees.

The Japanese scholar Shu Hikosaka on the basis of his study of Buddhist scriptures, ancient Tamil literary sources, as well as field survey, proposes the hypothesis that, the ancient mount Potalaka, the residence of Avalokiteśvara described in the Gaṇḍavyūha Sūtra and Xuanzang’s Records, is the real mountain Pothigai (or Potiyil) situated at Ambasamudram in Tirunelveli district, Tamil Nadu.^[2] Shu also says that mount Potiyil/Potalaka has been a sacred place for the people of South India from time immemorial. With the spread of Buddhism in the region beginning at the time of the great king Aśoka in the third century B.C.E., it became a holy place also for Buddhists who gradually became dominant as a number of their hermits settled there. The local people, though, mainly remained followers of the Hindu religion. The mixed Hindu-Buddhist cult culminated in the formation of the figure of Avalokiteśvara.^[3]

References

↑ The Hindu: Ashambu Heritage hills
↑ Hirosaka, Shu. The Potiyil Mountain in Tamil Nadu and the origin of the Avalokiteśvara cult
↑ Läänemets, Märt (2006). "Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara in the Gandavyuha Sutra". Chung-Hwa Buddhist Studies. Retrieved 2009-09-12.

Western Ghats

Rivers	Bhadra Bhavani Bhima Chalakudy Chittar Godavari Gurupura Kabini Kali Kallayi Kaveri Koyna Krishna Kundali Malaprabha Manimuthar Netravati Pachaiyar Parambikulam Saraswati Savitri Sharavati Tambaraparani Tapti Tunga Venna

Regions	Desh, Maharashtra Goa Gap Konkan Malabar Malenadu North Malabar Kongu Nadu Palakkad Gap Tulu Nadu

Peaks	Agastya Mala Anamudi Anginda Anjaneri Banasura Biligirirangana Betta Brahmagiri Chembra Dhodap Doddabetta Gangamoola Harishchandragad Kalsubai Kemmangundi Kudremukh Kodachadri Kumara Parvata Mullayanagiri Marunthuvazh Malai Ponmudi Pushpagiri Paithalmala Salher Saptashrungi Sispara Sonsogor Tadiandamol Taramati Vellarimala Ranipuram Vagamon

Hills	Anaimalai Hills Biligiriranga Hills Cardamom Hills Nilgiri mountains Satmala Range Selbari Range Palni Hills Trimbakeshwar Range

Waterfalls	Abbey Chunchanakatte Dudhsagar Falls Gokak Irupu Jog Kalhatti Mallalli Falls Sathodi Lushington Sivasamudram Athirapally Falls Vazhachal Falls Hogenakkal

States	Tamil Nadu Gujarat Karnataka Kerala Maharashtra Goa

Parks & Reserves	Annekal Reserved Forest Anshi National Park Aralam Reserved Forest Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve Agasthyavanam Biological Park Bandipur National Park Bannerghatta National Park Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary Chandoli National Park Chimmony Wildlife Sanctuary Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary Dandeli National Park Eravikulam National Park Grass Hills National Park Indira Gandhi National Park Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve Karian Shola National Park Karnala Bird Sanctuary Koyna Wildlife Sanctuary Kudremukh National Park Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary Mudumalai National Park Mudumalai Tiger Reserve Mukurthi National Park Nagarhole Rajiv Gandhi National Park New Amarambalam Reserved Forest Neyyar Wildlife Sanctuary Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve Palani Hills National Park Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary Peechi-Vazhani Wildlife Sanctuary Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary Periyar National Park Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanctuary Radhanagari Wildlife Sanctuary SAI Sanctuary Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary Silent Valley National Park Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary Talakaveri Wildlife Sanctuary Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary

Places	Khandala Lonavla Lavasa Mahabaleshwar Matheran Chiplun Tamhini Panchgani Kudremukh Kodagu Karjat Kasara

Ghats	Amboli Ghat Bhor Ghat Tamhini Ghat Amba Ghat Bhor Road Ghat Chorla Ghat Goa Gap Kasara Road Ghat Kumbharli Ghat Malshej Ghat Naneghat Palakkad Gap Varandha Ghat

Related	Mountains of Kerala Mountains of Maharashtra

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