Early medieval · Hindu · India

Pushpavananathar Temple

Tiruppoonturutti, Tamil Nadu · 10.8619°, 79.0820°

Shiva (Pushpavananathar)Chola—Paadal Petra Sthalam

Sacred since

800 CE

first attestation / structure

Standing structure

9th–16th c. (Chola–Nayak)

Chola

History & significance

A Paadal Petra Sthalam near Thiruvaiyaru and one of the Saptha Sthanam temples, revered in the Tevaram; its 9th-century Chola core grew through Vijayanagar and Nayak times, and it is noted for a seated image of Appar and a Durga standing on one leg.

Sthala katha — the legend

Indra, cursed by Gautama with a thousand marks, is said to have been cleansed after worshipping here with flowers — poo — which named the lord Pushpavananathar.

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