Madurai

As per legend, the district of Madurai was originally a forest known as Kadambavanam. One day, a farmer named Dhananjaya while passing through the forest, saw Indra worshipping a swayambhu, a self-created Lingam, under kadamba tree. The farmer Dhananjaya immediately reported this to King Kulasekara Pandya. Then Kulasekara Pandya cleared the forest area and constructed a temple around the Lingam. Settlement was also planned with the temple as its centre. On the day of naming the place, Lord Shiva is said to have appeared and drops of nectar from his hair fell there. Thus, the place was named Madurai which means `sweetness` in Tamil language.