Patteswaram
is located four
miles from the holy
city of Kumbhakonam.
The place is famous
for its Siva temple.
The temple is a
piece of architecture
and the name is
derived from the
worship of the devotee
Patti. Patti was
the eldest daughter
of the celestial
cow Kamadhenu and
was a great worshipper
of Lord Siva. She
used to make ablutions
to the Lingam discharging
milk from her udders
and Siva was very
pleased with her
worship. Siva here
is also known as
Dhenupureeswara.
There is a legendary
 story
associated with
this place wherein
Jnanasmbandar was
advancing towards
Patteswaram temple
to get the blessings
of Lord Dhenupureeswara.
But he was very
tired due to the
heat. Realizing
his devotee’s
dilemma, The Lord
is said to have
erected canopies
of pearl to allow
his devotee a peaceful
visit to his shrine.
This incident is
celebrated in the
form of a festival
every year. It is
also believed that
Srirama instituted
the Ram lingam here
to get away with
the Chaya Dosha
after killing Ravana.
Rama thus got redemption
from Chaya Dosha.
The temple has other
deities worshipped
like Ganapathy,
Shanmukha, Durga
and Bhairava. The
Chola kings were
great devotees of
Goddess Durga. It
is said that when
the Chola kingdom
was declining, they
installed the Durga
image here and it
is said to be very
powerful here. It
is said that the
Goddess here is
so powerful that
the prominence of
the original temple
has diminished because
of this.
Patteswaram can
be reached from
Kumbhakonam. Only
a small village
road connects it
with Kumbhakonam. |
