The Pancha Bhoota Sthalam are five Shiva temples where Shiva is worshipped as the five great elements: earth, Ekambareswarar at Kanchipuram; water, Jambukeswarar at Thiruvanaikaval (Jambukeswaram); fire, Arunachaleswarar at Tiruvannamalai; air, Kalahastiswarar at Srikalahasti; and space, Nataraja at Chidambaram. Four are in Tamil Nadu and Srikalahasti is in Andhra Pradesh.
| Name | Element | Deity | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| KanchipuramEkambareswarar temple | Earth | Ekambareswarar (the earth linga) | Tamil Nadu |
| ThiruvanaikavalJambukeswaram, near Tiruchirappalli | Water | Jambukeswarar (the water linga) | Tamil Nadu |
| TiruvannamalaiArunachala | Fire | Arunachaleswarar, Annamalaiyar (the fire linga) | Tamil Nadu |
| Srikalahasti | Air | Kalahastiswarar (the air linga) | Andhra Pradesh |
| ChidambaramThillai | Space (ether) | Nataraja (the space linga) | Tamil Nadu |
The tradition of the five temples
The five great elements, earth, water, fire, air and space, are in Indian philosophy the five basic elements of the world. By tradition Shiva is present in these five temples as one element each, and their lingas are called by that element’s name. Swami Sivananda (Lord Siva and His Worship) names these same five as the "Pancha Bhuta Lingas" alongside the twelve Jyotirlingas: Kalahastisvar, Jambukesvar, Arunachalesvar, Ekambaresvar of Kanjivaram and Nataraja of Chidambaram.
Stories of the tradition: at Kanchipuram Parvati did penance under an old mango tree and made a linga of wet earth; at Thiruvanaikaval Parvati, as Akhilandeshwari, made a linga of the Kaveri’s water, and there is a spring of water in the sanctum; at Tiruvannamalai a great lamp is lit on the Arunachala hill on the full moon of the month of Kartika (Karthigai Deepam); at Chidambaram Shiva dances the ananda tandava as Nataraja, and an empty space behind a curtain is worshipped as the "Chidambara rahasyam".
In devotional poetry and music
The Tevaram of the Tamil Shaiva saints (the Nayanars) praises all five temples, so they are counted among the Paadal Petra Sthalams. The Government of India Publications Division book Devotional Poets and Mystics (ed. V. Raghavan, 1978) says that Arunagirinathar too sang of the Pancha Bhuta Sthalas in his Tiruppugazh: Kanchi (earth), Tiruvanaikka (water), Arunachala (fire), Kalahasti (air) and Chidambaram (space). The Carnatic composer Muthuswami Dikshitar wrote one kriti for each of the five, known as the Pancha Bhuta Linga kritis; for Tiruvannamalai, for example, "Arunachalanatham" in raga Saranga.
Where the sources differ
- Names: the temple of the water linga is known both as Thiruvanaikaval and as Jambukeswaram; the deity of the fire linga is called both Annamalaiyar and Arunachaleswarar; Sivananda writes Kanchipuram as "Kanjivaram".
- Administration: according to Wikipedia three of the Tamil Nadu temples are under the state’s Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department, while the Nataraja temple at Chidambaram is run by the Dikshitar community.
Frequently asked questions
Which are the Pancha Bhoota Sthalam?
Kanchipuram (earth, Ekambareswarar), Thiruvanaikaval (water, Jambukeswarar), Tiruvannamalai (fire, Arunachaleswarar), Srikalahasti (air, Kalahastiswarar) and Chidambaram (space, Nataraja).
Where is the air linga?
At Srikalahasti, Andhra Pradesh, where Shiva is called Kalahastiswarar. It is the only one of the five outside Tamil Nadu.
Which is the space linga?
That of the Nataraja temple at Chidambaram; Shiva is worshipped there as Nataraja, and by tradition space itself, an empty place, is worshipped as the "Chidambara rahasyam".
How do the Pancha Bhoota Sthalam differ from the Jyotirlingas?
The twelve Jyotirlingas are spread over India and are counted in the Kotirudra Samhita of the Shiva Purana; the Pancha Bhoota Sthalam are five temples of south India where Shiva is worshipped as the five elements. Sivananda lists the two groups separately.
Sources
- Swami Sivananda, Lord Siva and His Worship, The Divine Life Society, Rishikesh, pp. 75-76 (archive.org)
- V. Raghavan (ed.), Devotional Poets and Mystics, part 1, Publications Division, Government of India, New Delhi, 1978, the chapter on Arunagirinathar (archive.org)
- Kanchipuram district and the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham: Ekambareswarar, the site of the element earth (read for the Kanchipuram temple page)
- Gowri Kuppuswamy and M. Hariharan, An Anthology of Indian Music, Sundeep Prakashan, Delhi, 1989: Dikshitar’s Panchabhuta kritis (archive.org)
- Wikipedia: Pancha Bhuta Sthalam (read 17 October 2026)
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