Sthala Puranas

They are ancient texts of the Puranic literature

Purana – ancient tradition of a particular region, village or temple.
(‘regional history’)

• Refers to significance of a Hindu temple, or the sacredness of the region in which it is situated.
• The name of a given place and the temple present in a Sthala Purana traditionally has a religious or a historical
association, with some major event surrounding it.
• Sthala Puranas were transmitted orally by the priests of a Hindu temple. regarding how the murti of a temple
came to be in that place, either as a svayambhu (self-manifestation), a miraculous discovery, acts of the deity
performed at the given site, or how a saint or devotee was blessed by the deity in the site.
• They may also explain the relationship between the mulavar (main deity) in the temple, and the murtis of
other deities also .
• The other rituals performed at a given temple, and the punya (virtue) one would be at the site are also often
detailed.

Roughly categorized in 3 main themes –

Tirtha ( water body )

Kshetra ( geographical region )
Daivat ( primary Divinity )
•Sthala Puranas found more often in South
India, where the dominant
• Hindu traditions are Vaishnavism and
Shaivism they have contents regarding only
lord Vishnu and lord shiva.

•Vaishnava sthal puranas are associated with

shri Vaishnava tradition, to which 12 poet
saints alvars belong to.
(alvars - group of South Indian mystics)
Alvars wandered from temple to temple
singing ecstatic hymns in adoration of the god
Vishnu. They are 12 main devotees of lord
Vishnu.

ALVARS - 12 main devotees of Lord Vishnu.

1) Tayumanavar Temple (meaning “He also became a mother”)
Once there was a pregnant woman living on the banks of
the Kaveri River, which flows through Tiruchirapalli. As her
time of delivery grew near, her husband crossed the river in
order to bring back her mother for the birth. After he’d
crossed over, however, heavy rain started and the river
became flooded. The woman was in great distress, knowing
that her husband most likely would not be able to cross back
over in time for her delivery. She began praying desperately
to Lord Shiva.
Filled with compassion for the woman’s plight, the Lord
disguised himself in the form of the woman’s mother and
delivered the child. When the flood subsided and the
husband and mother were able to cross, they were shocked
to find that the woman had already successfully delivered
her child. Soon the family realized that it had all been a play
of the Lord.
As Lord Shiva came in the form of a mother, the temple
erected there is known as the Tayumanavar (meaning “He
also became a mother).” The child is said to have grown up
to become a saint,
 2) Thiruvanaikkaval Temple
This temple is one of the pancha bhuta sthalams It is said that in his next birth the spider was born as
(temples wherein God is worshipped in the King Kochchengan, the builder of the
form of one of the great elements of air, wind, Thiruvanaikkaval Temple. Interestingly, the sanctum
water, fire and earth). In this temple, Lord Shiva sanctorum of the temple has been constructed in such
is in the form of the element of water, which a way that no elephant would be able to enter it. The
continually bubbles forth from the springs in entrance is very low, has a very small vestibule and
the sanctum sanctorum. There is also a Shiva the lingam itself resides in an even smaller chamber.
Lingam in the temple, which has a beautiful
story surrounding it, involving a spider and an
elephant.
It seems both the spider and the elephant were It is also said that even if the Kaveri River
devotees of Lord Shiva. Every day both the spider dries up in the peak of summer, the water
and the elephant would visit a natural Shiva Lingam within this chamber is ever bubbling forth.
located deep in a forest in Trichy. Out of devotion, Thus, there is water surrounding the lingam
the spider would spin a web over the lingam to give year round.
it shade. Similarly, the elephant would come and Three of the four alvars have sung in praise
offer the lingam abhishekham by spraying it with of the Lord in the Thiruvanaikkaval Temple
water from his trunk. Each day the spider would in the Devaram, a collection of devotional
come to find his web ruined by the elephant’s spray, verses about Lord Shiva.
and everyday the elephant would find the web
obstructing his worship. Finally the elephant decided
to totally destroy the web. As he was doing so, the
spider climbed into his trunk. With this clashing of
egos, both the elephant and the spider died. But at
the moment of their death, Lord Shiva appeared
before them and explained to them how they in fact
were both brothers in devotion.
 3) Perur Patteshwarar
According to the Puranas, two of Lord Shiva’s most precise gifts to humanity were
Kamadhenu and the Kalpataru—a wish-fulfilling cow and tree, respectively. For
ages, these two miracles of the Lord would bestow upon anyone anything they
wanted. Eventually, however, Kamadhenu grew tired of people constantly asking
her to fulfil their worldly desires, and she asked the Lord if he would permit her to
retire. Lord Shiva agreed and told Kamadhenu that in her next birth she would be
born as an ordinary cow and that he would come to her personally to bestow
liberation upon her.
In her next birth, Kamadhenu bore a calf. One day the two of them were grazing in
a forest in Perur (about 10 km from Kovai). As Kamadhenu’s calf frolicked about,
its legs struck an anthill and it became stuck. The calf began crying, and
Kamadhenu came running to free her child. But being an ordinary cow, there was
nothing she could really do. Finally, out of desperation, Kamadhenu drove her
horns down into the anthill. When she raised her head, one horn was covered
with blood. Kamadhenu immediately realised that this was not an ordinary anthill
but, in fact, was storing her Lord in the form of a Shiva Lingam. In reverence, she
immediately expressed her milk over the anthill, thus performing an abhishekham
to Lord Shiva, then appeared before Kamadhenu and, as promised, bestowed her
with liberation.
After some time, a temple was erected around this Shiva Lingam. Today that
temple is known as Perur Patteshwarar. And if one looks at the Shiva Lingam, one
can still see where it was pierced by Kamadhenu’s horn.
It is also said that two Tamil saints attained liberation in Perur, and this is eternally
reflected by Mother Nature in that palm trees grown in the area have abnormally
long lives and, on the converse, tamarind will not sprout there. This is symbolic of
how the saints transcended samsara, the cycle of birth and death.
4) Karuvalur town(Meaning raincloud)
Coimbatore District surrounds the Avinashi Lingeswarar
Temple
(about 30 km from the town of Kovai). This story also involves
Sundara Murti Nayanar.
Once, when the Nayanar was passing through Avinashi, he
heard two discordant sounds coming from opposite houses—
one reflecting joy and the other, sorrow. It seemed that three
years earlier, two boys of the same age were bathing in a
nearby water tank when one of them was devoured by a
crocodile. The boys were five years old at the time. On that
day, they both would have been eight. As such it was time for
their upanayanam samskara [sacred-thread ceremony]—
hence, the joy in the house of the living boy and the anguish
in the house of the dead boy.
Sundara Murti Nayanar was extremely moved by the sorrow
of the dead boy’s parents. Therefore, he spontaneously broke
out into a prayerful song to Lord Shiva, begging him to
resurrect the dead child. His prayer was answered. Rain
clouds quickly gathered and poured forth, filling the empty
tank with water. Soon, the tank overflowed, expelling the
infamous crocodile. The croc then regurgitated the child—an
unharmed eight-year-old boy.
The story is further reflected by the name of a nearby
Coimbatore town—Karuvalur. “Karuvalur” means “raincloud”
in Tamil. It is said that when Sundara Murti Nayanar prayed
for the boy’s resurrection, that the clouds formed over this
town. Hence its name.
5) Kapaleswarar temple
One of the most famous temples in Chennai is the There is another story associated with this temple, this one
Kapaleswarar Temple, located in an area that is today involving the Shaivite Saint Tiru Jnanasambandar Nayanar.
referred to as Mylapore. In fact, Mylapore is an The story goes that one day a girl by the name of
Anglicized form of “Mayilapur,” which literally means Poompavai was gathering flowers in a garden for the daily
“City of the Peacock.” worship when she was bitten by a poisonous snake and
In the Puranas, Lord Shiva is the guru of his divine died. Her father, a merchant named Shivanesan Chettiar,
consort, Parvati Devi. The legend says that once when had deep faith in Tiru Jnanasambandar.
Shiva was imparting wisdom to Goddess Parvati, she After her cremation, Shivanesan Chettiar placed his
became distracted by a beautiful peacock. Shiva then daughter’s ashes in a pot with the firm conviction that the
cursed her to take birth as a peahen, telling her that saint would resurrect her when he came to through the
he would join her after she worshipped him in the area in the near future. Indeed, when Tiru Jnanasambandar
form of a Shiva Lingam under a Punnai tree. After to the Kapaleswarar Temple, Shivanesan Chettiar
many years of searching, the peahen finally found approached him with his daughter’s ashes. Hearing the
such a Shiva Lingam in Mylapore (Southern Chennai). man’s sad tale, Tiru Jnanasambandar heart overflowed with
She then worshipped her Lord in this form, offering compassion. He then broke out in a spontaneous 10-versed
him flowers that she carried in her beak. Fulfilling his hymn in praise of Shiva in the form of Kapaleswarar. When
promise, the Lord then appeared Parvati and reunited he reached the final verse, Poompavai emerged from the
with her. pot alive and well.
The story shows how when we become enamored Tiru Jnanasambandar did not cast even a glance at
with the objects of this world (the peacock) and forget Poompavai, the beautiful young lady he had brought back
their divine essence (Shiva), we remove our self, as it to life. Instead, he attributed the miracle to the grace of
were, from God. But as soon as we remember the Lord Shiva, claiming no responsibility of his own.
divinity inherent in the world and its objects, we are Shivanesan Chettiar offered Poompavai’s hand in marriage
immediately reunited with the Supreme. to the saint, but he gently declined and continued on his
There is another story associated with this temple, pilgrimage.
this one involving the Shaivite Saint Tiru It is also said the Sri Rama stopped at the Kapaleswarar
Jnanasambandar Nayanar. Temple on his way back from Lanka.
6) Meenakshi &
Kannagi :
Madurai’s Women
of Power & Grace
•According to the legend, on the day the Madurai
was to be named, Lord Shiva blessed the land and
its people while divine nectar showered from his
dreadlocked hair. The city hence came to be
known as “Madhurapuri”—the City of Divine
Nectar.
•Perhaps the two most famous legends associated
with Madurai are those of Kannagi and Meenakshi
—the first a woman who ascended to the status
of a goddess, the second a goddess whos legend
has become one with the history of the city’s
people.
•Madurai is centred on its 2,500-year-old
Meenakshi-Sundareswar Temple; the city’s streets
and thoroughfares expand out from there, one
after another, in a concentric fashion, as if like a
lotus flower.
(A) The legend of Meenakshi Devi
The legend of Goddess Meenakshi begins with her father, Emperor Malayadwaja Pandyan, the successor to Madurai’s
founder Kulasekhara Pandyan.

For years, Malayadwaja and his consort Kanchanmala were unable to conceive any children. In attempts to beget a child,
Malaydwaja conducted many Vedic homas [rituals involving a fire pit]. Finally, in the middle of one such ritual, a three-
year-old girl with three breasts2 emerged from the homa flames and sat on Kanchanmala’s lap. The girl in fact was
Goddess Parvati, who had taken birth as Kanchanmala’s daughter in response to a prayer of hers in her past life.
In fact, Malayadwaja was a bit sad that he was not blessed with a son. But suddenly he heard a disembodied voice tell
him that he should name the girl “Tatātakai” and to raise her as if she was were a son. The voice ensured Malayadwaja
that Tatātakai’s third breast would be absorbed back into her body when she first cast her eyes on the man who would
become her husband—Lord Shiva.
Malaydwaja obeyed the divine command. He named Tatātakai his successor and taught her the art of war. After
Malayadwaja’s death, Tatātakai ascended to the throne. She was the beloved of the people and came to be known as
“Meenakshi”—the one with fish-like eyes3. Meenakshi embarked on a dig-vijaya, a military campaign of victory across
the length and breadth of India. After numerous victories on earth, Meenakshi attacked Mount Kailash, the abode of
Lord Shiva. She defeated all the soldiers and generals of the Lord. Seeing this, Shiva himself came to fight the undaunted
queen. But as soon as Meenakshi saw the Lord, the prophecy of her youth bore fruit: she instantly fell in love with him
and her third breast went back inside her body.
Shiva directed Meenakshi to return to her home city, promising her that he would join her in eight days as her
bridegroom. And this is exactly what happened. They were married in Madurai with Lord Vishnu himself giving away
Meenakshi to Shiva. Meenakshi Kalyanam—the marriage of Meenakshi with Shiva—is celebrated annually to this
day.

According to the sthala purana—Tiruvilayadal Puranam, written by Paranjothi Munivar in the 16th century—
Meenakshi and Lord Shiva ruled over the city of Madurai for a long time in the form of mortals.

(Emporer Sundara Pandya being considered to be Lord Shiva. His son, Ugra Pandya, considered to be Lord
Subrahmanya.) The 64 miracles of Lord Shiva that are enumerated in this later-day Tamil purana are taken from the
Sanskrit Halasya Mahatmyam.
(B) The story of Kannagi
In fact, the Madurai that we know today is not the Madurai of ancient times, for it is said that the entire city was once destroyed in
an all-consuming fire. The story behind that fire is told in the 5,270-lined epic poem Cilappatikaram [“The Story of the Jewelled
Anklets”] written by a Jain monk by the name of Ilango Atikal in the 5th century C.E. According to the author of the poem, it is a
story about the importance for kings following dharma, the glory of a chaste woman and the effects of past-life karma.
Although Cilappatikaram was written only 1,500 years ago; the story itself is much older. The poet-monk only learned of the story
when visiting the countryside near the Periyaru River with his brother, Senkuttuvan, a Chera King. On the banks of the river,
villagers told the king and Ilango the story of Kannagi, a woman with a single breast who sat down under a tree and did austerities
for 15 days, without food or water, until she died. The villagers worshipped Kannagi as the Goddess of Chastity, and her story so
inspired the king that he asked his brother to immortalize it in poetry for the benefit of mankind.
Rather than retell the story, here are lines extracted from the translation by Professor A.L. Basham from the original Tamil.
Kovalan, the son of a wealthy merchant in Kaverippattinam, married Kannagi, the lovely daughter of another merchant. For some
time they lived together happily, until, at a festival at the royal court, Kovalan met the dancer Madavi and fell in love with her. He
bought her favours and in his infatuation forgot Kannagi and his home.
Gradually he spent all his wealth on the dancer. At last he was penniless, and returned repentantly to his uncomplaining wife.
Their only fortune was a precious pair of anklets, which she gave to him willingly. With these as their capital they decided to go to
the great city of Madurai, where Kovalan hoped to recoup his fortunes by trade.
On their arrival at Madurai, they found shelter in a cottage, and Kovalan went to the market to sell one of Kannagi’s anklets. But
the queen of Nedunjeliyan, the king of the Pandyas, had just been robbed of a similar anklet by a wicked court jeweller.
The jeweller happened to see Kovalan with Kannagi’s anklet, and immediately seized it and informed the king. Guards were sent to
apprehend Kovalan, who was then killed on the king’s orders. When the news was brought to Kannagi, she went out into the
town, with her eyes ablaze with anger, carrying the remaining anklet in her hand as proof of her husband’s innocence. [The city
caught ablaze from the fire in her eyes.]
At last the patron goddess of the city [Meenakshi] interceded with Kannagi, and she agreed to withdraw her curse, and the fire
abated. Weak with loss of blood from her self-amputated breast, Kannagi struggled to a hill outside the city4, where after a few
days she died, and was reunited with Kovalan in Heaven. Meanwhile the news of her death spread throughout the Tamil Land. She
was deified, temples were raised and festivals held in her honour, and she became the patron goddess of wifely loyalty and
chastity.
7) Mumba Devi reclaims Bombay
In the mid-1990s, many state governments The legend of Mumba Devi was recorded from the
officially re-Indianized their cities names. In Sanskrit sthala-purana by scholar and city historian K.
1995, the capital of Maharashtra officially Raghunath in a book called Hindu Temples of
switched from Bombay to Mumbai, thereby re- Bombay, published in 1900. In that book, he writes:
invoking a goddess considered by the Koli to be “It is stated therein that in times of yore, there lived
the area’s protectress. (The name “Mumbai” in this island a very powerful and mighty giant
comes from a mix of mumba and ai, both of bearing the name of Mumbarak, and the island had
which mean “mother” in Marathi.) derived its name from him.
Initially, Mumbai was not part of mainland India ‘By means of austerities he pleased Brahmadev and
as it is today, but a string of several islands, prayed to him to be favoured with a blessing that he
which the British began connecting in 1782 and would be incapable of meeting with death at
completed in the early 1900s. It is believed that anybody’s hands, and that he would ever prove
one of the settlements in this string of islands successful.
was known as Mumba Devi. ‘Having once secured the blessing, he set out to
A Mumba Devi Temple where people come to harass both people and the Gods on earth. All the
worship the patron goddess stands today in the Gods therefore proceeded masse to Vishnu to seek
Kalba Devi area of Mumbai. The original temple his protection and prayed to him to destroy their foe.
was at the Phansi Talao (Gibbet Tank) on the “Upon this, Vishnu and Shiv extracted a portion of
city’s Esplanade, within the current limits of lustre, each from his own body, and made of it a
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus. Although the goddess or Devi for the destruction of the giant. The
original temple managed to escape demolition goddess then beat Mumbarak almost to death and
during Muslim and Portuguese rule, it was threw him down on the ground and told him to ask
demolished by the British in order to provide for a blessing. He entreated her to join his own name
additional space for fortifications in the mid- with hers and to perpetuate that name on earth.
1700s. The temple was rebuilt in it current “The goddess accordingly granted his prayer and
location in 1830. The general belief is that the named herself Mumbadevi.”
original temple was constructed in the late 14th
century.
REFERANCES :

https://www.amritapuri.org/in/other/sthala-purana