Brahmapureeswarar Temple, Tamil Nadu

Legend has it that Brahma who was cursed by Shiva for misrepresenting facts to exalt his supremacy and greatness was relieved of it when he made austere penance to the benevolent Lord Shiva in remorse for his actions and pleaded for his mercy and kindness. By Shiva's curse Bramha the Lord and overseer of all of creation was deprived of his powers that abet creation. Bramha started a pilgrimage of all Shiva temples on the planet Earth to impress Lord Shiva otherwise and change his impression of him to relieve him of the curse.

At the Brahmapureeswarar Temple in Tiruchirappalli district of Tamil Nadu, it is believed that Lord Bramha installed 12 symbolic idols dedicated to Lord Shiva also known as Shiv Lingam in Hindu terminology and worshipped the Lord for a long time in penance at the same spot. These pious Lingams of Lord Shiva are :-

(1) Sri Bhramapureeswara,
(2) Sri Pathalaeswarar,
(3) Sri Pazamalainathar,
(4) Sri Thayumannar,
(5) Sri Sudharaneeswarar,
(6) Sri Kalathinathar,
(7) Sri Sabthagereswarar,
(8) Sri Jambukeswarar,
(9) Sri Arunachaleeswarar,
(10) Sri Ekambreswarar,
(11) Sri Kailasanathar and
(12) Sri Manduganathar.

Pleased by the sincerity in Bramha's penance for remorse, Shiva relieved Bramha of his curse and restored his powers of Creation again. In addition he bestowed upon Bramha a shrine in his temples for deification and worship and since then this is the spiritual venue where Bramha's destiny was rewritten, Lord Shiva suggested to Bramha that he too should consider rewriting the destinies of devotees who visited this holy place of worship.