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Kalugumalai is located at a distance of about 21-km south
west of Koilpatti and 56-km from Tirunelveli
in Toothukudi district of Tamil Nadu. It was one of the
important centres of the Jains. The bas-reliefs found here are the
contributions of Jains and are among the earliest of such works.
Kalugumalai is a protected monument by the State Department of
Archaeology, Tamil Nadu. There is a hillock at
Kalugumalai, on its northern side there is a cavern, which is now
converted into an Aiyannar temple.
Monolithic Temple Of The Pandayas
Vettuvankoil is the only early Pandya monolithic temple, which stands at
a distance of 150 metres north of the Jain cave. One can see Jaina images
arranged in three rows consisting of Adinatha, Neminatha, Mahavira,
Parasvanatha, Bahubali, Ambika and Padmavati carved in specially cut
niches. All these images were made at the instance of monks, nuns and lay
devotees from all over Tamil Nadu in the 8th - 9th
centuries AD.
Road: Regular bus-services are available from Koilpatti and also from Tirunelveli, Sattur and Tenkasi and Sankarankoil.
Tourists can find few small hotels and lodges at Koilpatti and Sankarankoil.