In the East Godavari belt of Andhra Pradesh, stands an
ancient temple of Lord Shiva, the Kukkuteshwara Swamy temple. It is one of the
three Gayas, the Padagaya, where rituals for the departed ancestors is done.
The devotees believe that conduct of such rituals would give their should
liberation or moksha. Here, the Lord is worshipped as the cock. The temple has
the shrine of Puruhitika devi, considered to be one of the Shaktipeetha. Lord
Indira is believed to have worshipped the Devi here. Jagadguru Sripada, is also
described as having worshipped Puruhitika Devi.
Location Andhra Pradesh , East Godavari, Hyderabad
Legend
The legend of the temple is associated with the cursing of
the demon Gayasura. The demon who was a devotee of Lord Vishnu accepted the
Trimuthi's request of conducting a yagna on his body. The demon lay down still,
his body extending from Gaya to Pithapuram, for 6 days, but on the seventh day,
Lord Shiva tricked him with the crowing of the cock to believe that the yagna
had finished. The yagna got disturbed and the demon's body parts fell in
different places. The site where his feet fell is the Padagaya Kshetra or
Kukutesrara Swamy temple. The Puruhithika Shakthipeetham here is described as
the place where Devi's lower back had fallen.
This temple is part of famous Shaktipeethas.
Architecture
The temple is built in Dravidian style with goupram and the
vimana above the sanctum adorned with sculptures. The temple is vast and
spacious. Near the temple pond there is a
huge statue of Gyasura in the lying pose with the Trimurthis which
depicts the legend of the temple. The Puruhutika Devi shrine had carvings of Ashtadesa
Shaktipeeths on its walls. The idol of devi has four hands. There are shrines
of Vinayaka, Subrahmanya Swamny, Kalabhaoirava, Annapoorneshwari, Sri Rama, etc
around the temple. The Lingam of Shiva is swayambhu ad in the form of a cock.
There is a huge Nandi statue. Dattatreya temple is also inside the premise. An
imprint of Vishnu's footprints can be seen in the temple.
Culture
Pithapuram is famous for its ancient temples. Pithapuram is
one of the twelve holy pilgrim centres(punya kshetram) and is considered
equivalent to Kasi.
Darsan Info
Padagaya Kshetram is open from 5:30 AM till 12:30 PM and
4:30PM til 7:30 PM.The place is considered holy for 'Pind dan' or
'Shradha', the rituals for the departed
Darsan Dresscode
Devotees are advised to wear clean and conservative attire
Famous Festival
March - Shivratri
September - Pitripaksha mela (Sept/Oct)
October - Navarathri
December - Karthika deep
Temple Rituals
The priests perform regular pujas like the abhishekam,
nivedhanam, dhoophaseva, neeranjanam etc.
Special Rituals
Kumkumarachana is performed in the morning to the deity
of Puruhutika Devi
Additional Info
Durga Paradise
Vinayaka restaurant
Manikanda restaurant
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