Pillar Campus

Pillar Campus

Green surroundings to rejuvenate mind and body

Pillar Campus is set on an idyllic environment. The green surroundings will rejuvenate your mind and body. For sports lovers, we have an excellent basketball court and wide-open spaces for jogging and walking.

For those seeking inward journey and God’s presence, there is a Chapel and a Meditation Pavilion with a gurgling fountain for company in a serene atmosphere.

• Basketball court
• Jogging & walking
• Chapel
• Meditation Pavilion
• Sacred Grove
• Prayer Rock

And for our inquisitive guests, we have some interesting places to explore on the sprawling campus. Strap on your boots and walk some 200 meters to the west and you'll reach a small hillock where you’ll find the Sacred Grove. Go around the hillock on the prayer path for the Marian Cave with an open air communion place. The spirited ones can climb the sturdy stairs to the summit, the Prayer Rock, with viewing benches carved on the rock. Though it is not for the weak-kneed and those with fear of heights, for the able-bodied, the climb will give a reward of a sweeping view of the countryside.

Meditation Hall

Where a spiritual legacy still vibrates

The stony and meditative hills surrounding the PILLAR Campus are sacred. They were home to hundreds of Jain monks since 300 BC. Leading an austere and ascetic life, the monks lived in perfect harmony with the surrounding nature. Defying caste discrimination, they served the common folk providing education and medicine. With the rise of Bhakti Movement, they became victims of brutal persecution culminating in their impalement, 'Kazhuvaetram'. Eight thousand monks living in the various hills of Madurai were mercilessly killed. Jainism, thus, disappeared from Nagamalai. Today we have only some remnants of their once superior culture and spiritual past such as cave dwellings, stone beds, images, springs, footprints, Tamil Brahmi and Vatteluthu inscriptions. This meditation hall, set in this backdrop, vibrates their spiritual legacy.

The single stone placed in the middle of the Meditation Hall in the erect position symbolizes God, who is powerful and eternally loving; a rock of refuge and strength for all who seek Him. The spring splashing through the rock stands for the life-giving eternal spring (God) found in the depth of every human being, which is accessible in silence and meditation.

This sacred hall, designed by Y R Ramnath provides an atmosphere of peace and serenity required to find God in oneself. Those touched by God are bound to change. They become lovers of humanity. Believers of all faiths and people of goodwill are welcome to experience the life-giving love and joy of God in this sacred space.

Sacred Grove & Prayer Rock

அருள் காவு · A place for silent prayer

For those willing to spend moments of silent prayer and meditation, the center has a sacred grove (அருள் காவு) too. It was dedicated in 2013 commemorating 50 years of St. Vincent Pallotti's sainthood. At the center there is a prayer rock surrounded by a prayer path for meditative walks. On the west side there is a Marian Cave with a statue of Jesus' Mother presented in the Tamil religious tradition. In front of the cave there is space for cave communion formed of numerous stones for seating. At the entrance of sacred grove there is a row of steps leading to the place for group mass/prayer.

Close by there is a model Jain Monk's bed where one could lie down to experience the tranquility enjoyed by the renowned world renouncer and the healing power of the rock . The peak of the Prayer Rock could be reached by climbing the narrow winding steps, where one could spend time with God just as Jesus did on Mount Tabor. The entire sacred grove is covered by a lot of trees, providing a serene atmosphere.

• Dedicated 2013
• Prayer path
• Marian Cave
• Prayer Rock