Lord Siva's Abode

By Desaraju Surya
Kovvuru (West Godavari district): Situated atop the Devakoota hill amidst the river Godavari, with the picturesque Papikondalu forming a distant backdrop, the Veerabhadra Swamy temple at Pattiseema attracts scores of pilgrims every day.
The temple’s history dates back to some 1000 years when Lord Siva surfaced on the hill in the form of Veerabhadra. The idol is in the form of a Siva Lingam, the one of its kind in the country. The Reddy Rajas who ruled the region had built the main temple. Now, there are some ten other small temples within the main temple premises where the idols of different Gods and Goddesses were installed. "Maha Sivaratri is the main festival here when more than one lakh pilgrims visit the temple and offer prayers. In Kartika masam too thousands of pilgrims come here," said a temple priest. In all over 2.5 lakh pilgrims visit the historic Pattiseema temple annually. The dilapidated main temple has been renovated as also the other small temples on the hill. The Irrigation Department built a concrete wall around the temple, at a cost of Rs 2 crore, to check soil erosion.
There was rain on Thursday afternoon and the river was in full flow with lot of floodwater. I, along with a team of journalists, visited the temple during the Godavari Pushkarams and the boat ride to the temple was thrilling for us. For those of us sitting on the top deck of the boat, soaking in the drizzle added to the fun and one of our colleagues took beautiful snaps with different backgrounds.