Historical Period5c BCE
5th c. BCE onwards
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Deities
Koneswarar of Trincomalee (Sri Lanka) — the 5th Pancha-Ishwaram
Koneswarar — Shiva at the sacred mountain of Sri Lanka
Koneswarar — Shiva at the sacred mountain of Sri Lanka
Paadal Petra Sthalangal are Shiva temples sung in the hymns of the 3 Tevaram saints — Tirugnana Sambandar, Tirunavukkaracar (Appar), and Sundaramurti (Sundarar). Composed 7th–9th c. CE, the Tevaram is the sacred geography of Tamil Shaivism and foundational to the Shaiva-Siddhanta philosophy.
One of the 5 Pancha-Ishwaram of old Sri Lanka (Koneswaram, Ketheeswaram, Naguleswaram, Munneeswaram, Thondeswaram). Ravana is said to have hewn the temple from the cliff. Destroyed by Portuguese 1624; partially restored. Tevaram pasurams preserved the memory.
Daily 5-fold puja (ushat-kalam at dawn, kala-santi 6 AM, ucchikalam noon, sayaraksha dusk, ardha-jama 9 PM). Principal offerings: jala-abhisheka, panchamrita (milk/curd/ghee/honey/jaggery), vibhuti, bilva leaves.
Every Paadal Petra's sanctity rests on WHICH saint sang of it and HOW MANY pasurams. Tamil Shaiva tradition treats the Tevaram as Dravida Veda — equivalent in holiness to the Sanskrit Vedas.
