BhaktiVed🪔 Temples of India
Pancharama Kshetras
Five Shiva shrines of Andhra where, the story goes, the linga worn by the demon Tarakasura fell in five pieces: Amararamam, Draksharamam, Somaramam, Ksheeraramam and Kumararamam.
- 1 Amararamam (Amaravati Amareswara)Amaravati, Andhra PradeshThe first Pancharama, on the Krishna at Amaravati. Installed by Indra, lord of the immortals, the linga is called Amareswara; the tall white linga is seen from two level…
- 2 Draksharamam Bhimeswara – ManikyambaDraksharamam, Andhra PradeshBoth a Pancharama and one of the 18 Shakti Peethas in one temple, held to be Daksharama, the site of Daksha's sacrifice. The linga, about 14 feet tall, rises through a t…
- 3 Somaramam (Bhimavaram)Gunupudi, Bhimavaram, Andhra PradeshInstalled by the Moon (Soma). Devotees say the linga turns white by the full moon and brownish-black by the new moon. Unusually, Annapurna's shrine is on the upper floor…
- 4 Ksheeraramam (Palakollu)Palakollu, Andhra PradeshPalakollu's Ksheeraramam is seen from afar by its nine-storeyed gopuram. Shiva drew a stream of milk (ksheera) from the earth with his trident here, the story goes, whic…
- 5 Kumararamam (Samarlakota)Samarlakota, Andhra PradeshNamed because Kumaraswamy himself installed the linga here. Like Draksharamam it is a two-storeyed temple of the Eastern Chalukya king Bhima, with a limestone linga abou…