Srikalahasti Temple is located in the town of Srikalahasti, in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India.

It is one of the most famous Shiva temples in South India, and is said to be the site where
Kannappa was ready to offer both his eyes to cover blood flowing from the Siva linga before the
Siva stopped him and granted him mukti.

Srikalahasti temple, situated 36 km away from Tirupati is famous for its Vayu linga, one of the
Panchabhoota Sthalams, representing wind. The temple is also regarded as Rahu-Ketu kshetra
and Dakshina Kailasam. The inner temple was constructed around 5th century and the outer
temple was constructed in the 12th century by the Chola kings and the Vijayanagara kings. Shiva
in his aspect as Vayu is worshiped as Kalahasteeswara.

During the early days of creation, Vayu performed penance for thousands of years to "Karpoora
lingam" (Karpooram means camphor). Pleased with his penance, Shiva manifested before him
and said, " O Vayu Deva! Though you are dynamic in nature, you stayed here without movement
and did penance for me. I'm pleased with your devotion. I shall grant you three boons". Vayu
said, "Swami! I want to be present everywhere in this world. I want to be an integral part of
every Jiva who is none other than the manifestation of Paramatma. I want to name this Karpoora
Linga, which represents you, after me. Samba Siva said," Your are qualified for these three
boons. As per your wish, you will be spread throughout this world. Without you there will be no
life. This linga of mine will forever be known all over through your name, and all Suras, Asuras,
Garuda, Gaandharvas, Kinneras, kimpurushas, Siddhas, Saadhvis, humans and others will
worship this Lingam". Shiva disappeared after granting these boons. Thereafter, this Karpoora
Vayu Lingam is worshipped by all Lokas (worlds).[3]

There are several other legends connected to the glory of the temple. Prominent among them is
of Parvati who was cursed by Shiva to discard her heavenly body and assume the human form.
To get rid of the above curse Parvati did a long penance here. Pleased with her deep devotion
Shiva again recreated her body – a hundred times better than her previous heavenly body and
initiated various mantras including the Panchakshari. Consequent to this, Parvati gained fame
and came to be known as Shiva-Gnanam Gnana Prasunamba or Gnana Prasunambika Devi.

Cursed to become a ghost, Ghanakala prayed at Srikalahasti for 15 years and after chanting the
Bhairava Mantra many times Shiva restored her original form. Mayura, Chandra and Devendra
were also freed from their curses after taking bath in the river Swarnamukhi and praying at
Srikalahasti. To Bhakta Markandeya, Shiva appeared in Srikalahasti and preached that a Guru
alone could make esoteric teachings and, therefore he is Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara.

As per another legend, Vayu and Adishesha had a dispute to find out who is superior, to prove
the superiority Adishesha encircled the Kailasam, Vayu tried to remove this encircle by creating
Twister. Because of the twister, 8 parts from kailasam fell into 8 different places which are
Trincomalee, Srikalahasti, Thiruchiramalai, Thiruenkoimalai, Rajathagiri, Neerthagiri, Ratnagiri,
and Suwethagiri Thirupangeeli.[4]

History
Around the 10th century, the Chola kings renovated the temple and constructed the main
structure.[5] The temple received contributions from various ruling dynasties like Cholas and
Vijayanagar Empire. The hundred pillared hall with intricate carvings was commissioned during
the regime of Krishnadeva Raya during 1516 AD.[6]

Architecture
The 120 feet (37 m) high main gopuram and the 100 pillar mandapam were constructed by
Krishnadevaraya, the Vijayanagara king in 1516. The presiding image of Shiva in the form of
Linga is made of white stone in a shape resembling trunk of elephant. The temple faces south,
while the sanctum faces west. The temple is located on the foothills of a hill, while there is also a
belief that the temple was carved out of a monolithic hill. There is a rock cut shrine of Vinayaka,
9 ft (2.7 m) below the ground level. Vallaba Ganapathi, Mahalakshmi-Ganpathi and Sahasra
Lingeswara are some of the rare images found in the temple. There is a large shrine of
Jnanaprasanammba, the consort of Kalahatisvara. There are smaller shrines in the temple for
Kasi Viswanatha, Annapurna, Suryanarayana, Sadyoganapathi and Subramanya. There are two
large halls namely Sadyogi Mandapa and Jalkoti Mandapa. There are two water bodies
associated with the namely, Surya Pushkarani and Chandra Pushkarani.[6]

Religious importance
The temple is revered as one of the Pancha Bhoota Stalam where the presiding deity is
worshipped as Vayu linga(air). This temple is considered "Kashi of the South".[7] Saivaite saints
of the first century sang about this temple. This is the only temple in India which remains open
during Solar and lunar eclipses, while, all other temples are closed.[8] This temple is famous for
Rahu-Kethu pooja. It is believed that performing this pooja will ward the people from
astrological effects of Rahu and Kethu.[8] As per Hindu legend, Kalahatiswara was worshipped at
this place by Brahma during all four Yugas. Arjuna, the Pandava prince during Mahabharata is
believed to have worshipped the presiding deity. The legend of Kannappa, who was a hunter and
turned into an ardent devotee of Shiva accidentally, is associated with the temple. The temple
also finds mention in the works of Nakeerar and the Nalvars, namely, Appar, Sundarar,
Sambandar and Manickavasagar in the canonical works of Tirumura.[6] As the temple is revered
in Tevaram, it is classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam, one of the 275 temples that find mention in
the Saiva canon.[9]