Sri Pallikondeswarar Temple is an auspicious Shiva temple located at the Surutapalli of Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh. It’s fundamentally different from all the other Shiva temples that you may encounter all-across the Globe. Here the deity of Shiva has his head resting under the lap of Goddesses Parvathi. So the deity is known as BhogaSayana Shiva, which is similar to the AnanthaSayana form of Lord Vishnu. Here we depict the Lord Vishnu rests his head in the lap of Goddess Lakshmi. The temple is also an architectural landmark, as a well-preserved monument of the south Indian temple architecture, the late Vijayanagara period.
Location of the Sri Pallikondeswarar Temple
The Surutapalli is located in the Chennai-Tirupati highway at almost midway between the Chennai and Tiruapti. It is located at a distance of 66 KM from Chennai and 70 KM from Tirupati. This makes it an ideal mid-station point for a devotee during his trip towards Tirupati.
What is Special at Sri Pallikondeswarar Temple
As we discussed, Sri Pallikondeswarar Temple is the only temple, where the Lord Shiva rests his head reclining in the lap of Goddess Parvathi. And Witnessing this special occasion, the main deities are surrounded by many prominent structures of God's such as Vinayaka, Subramaniya, Surya, Chandra, Devendra and sages such as Naradha. Some experts consider the temple as the great unison of Vaishnavites and Shivities beliefs and principles. This temple is also a tribute to the Lord Shiva, who saved the entire universe by taking the Halahala poison. And this brings us to the next point.
History/Purana of the Sri Pallikondeswarar Temple
The history of beloved Sri Pallikondeswarar temple is intricately connected with the Samudramanthan period, where Devas and Asura's joined hand searching for the elixir for eternal life known as Amrita.But the milk ocean was also the source of many undesirables and destructive objects. One of these was the deadliest poison the world has ever seen – Halahala or Kalakootam poison. This poison had the capacity to evaporate the entire universe into nothingness. While all the Gods and Asuras cringed at the power of poison, the Lord Shiva saved everyone through taking this poison by himself. The poison was prevented from entering his body only with the prompt reaction from Goddess Parvathi, who clasped her hands across the Lord's throat preventing the poison from traveling down. As a result the poison solidified into an effervescent bluish glow at his throat. Afterwards the Lord Shiva rested at a reclining position keeping his head on the lap of Sri Parvathi. The Sri Pallikondeswarar temple is a reminder of this holy sacrifice from the part of Lord Shiva. The name ‘Sri Pallikondeswarar’ is named after the bluish throat of Lord Shiva. Along with this the Lord also came to be known as ‘Sri Sarva Mangala’.
Special occasions at the Sri Pallikondeswarar Temple
•The Sivarathri is the most important celebration at the Sri Pallikondeswarar Temple. At this day lakh's of devotees throng the temple, participating at the nightlong devotion chanting Shiva’s holy name.
•The second most important occasion at the temple is the Aipasi Annabhishekam, This occurs during the Tamil month of Aippasi, which happens during the month of October.
•To respect the presence of Goddess Shakthi, the festivals such as Holi and Deepawali are also help at great penchant at this temple. These are the occasions in which Goddess Parvati triumphed over the evil.
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