Pancharama Kshetras
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The Pancharama Kshetras or the Pancharamas are five ancient Hindu temples dedicated to the deity Shiva in Andhra Pradesh. According to regional legend, the lingams at these temples are made from a single lingam.
Image: Gopuramxx
Image: Draksharama temple Main entrance
Image: Someswara Swamy 5
Image: Plakollu temple
Lingam
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A lingam, sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary murti or devotional image in Hindu temples dedicated to Shiva, also found in smaller shrines, or as self-manifested natural objects. It is often represented within a disc-shaped platform, the yoni – its feminine counterpart, consisting of a flat element, horizontal compared to the vertical lingam, and designed to allow liquid offerings to drain away for collection. Together, they symbolize the merging of microcosmos and macrocosmos, the divine eternal process of creation and regeneration, and the union of the feminine and the masculine that recreates all of existence.
A lingam with tripundra, projected on a yoni base
Badavlinga, Hampi (Vijayanagara Empire)
Stone lingam and yoni pedestal found in Cát Tiên, Vietnam, circa 8th century. At 2.1 meter tall, this is the largest lingam ever found in Southeast Asia
A Buddhist stupa (above) may have influenced the later iconography of the Hindu Shiva-linga, according to Swami Vivekananda.