The mountain · The five element temples
The Pancha Bhuta Sthalams: the five element temples
Shiva is worshipped as each of the five great elements ~ earth, water, fire, air, space ~ at five particular temples of the south. Arunachala is one of them: the temple of fire. The five element-abodes, and Arunachala’s place among them.
The short version
- What
- The five temples where Shiva is worshipped as the five elements of creation.
- The five
- Earth (Kanchipuram) · Water (Thiruvanaikaval) · Fire (Arunachala) · Air (Srikalahasti) · Space (Chidambaram).
- Arunachala
- The FIRE temple ~ and the only one where the element is the whole hill, not a sign in the sanctum.
- Nearest to us
- Chidambaram (space), ~140 km ~ fire and ether, a natural pairing.
Hinduism holds that the whole material universe is woven from five great elements ~ earth, water, fire, air, and space (ether). And in the sacred geography of South India, Shiva is worshipped as each of these five, at five particular temples, one for every element. These are the Pancha Bhuta Sthalams ~ “the five element abodes” ~ and together they map the entire material cosmos onto the land, with Shiva at the inner reality of each. Arunachala is one of the five: the temple of fire. To understand the five together is to see Arunachala’s place in a grand cosmic scheme.
The five elements, the five temples
In Hindu thought the five elements (pancha bhuta) ~ earth (prithvi), water (appu), fire (agni/teyu), air (vayu), and space or ether (akasha) ~ are the building-blocks of all creation, from the grossest matter to the subtlest. At each of the five Pancha Bhuta Sthalams, Shiva is enshrined and worshipped in the form of one of these elements, so that the five temples together honour the whole of manifest reality ~ and point, through it, to the one Shiva who is the reality within all five. All five lie in the Tamil-Telugu south; four are in Tamil Nadu and one (air) just over the border in Andhra Pradesh.
The five Pancha Bhuta Sthalams
Ekambareswarar Temple
Earth (Prithvi) · KanchipuramOne of the largest temples in Tamil Nadu, with a vast thousand-pillared hall and an ancient mango tree under which, tradition holds, the goddess Parvati worshipped Shiva as a lingam of earth (sand) she fashioned with her own hands ~ embracing it to save it from a flood.
Jambukeswarar Temple
Water (Appu / Jala) · Thiruvanaikaval (Tiruchirapalli)Here Shiva is worshipped as the element of water: the sanctum holds an underground spring that keeps the lingam perpetually surrounded by water. The temple tells of a spider and an elephant who both worshipped here, and of Parvati doing penance as Akhilandeswari.
Arunachaleswarar Temple
Fire (Agni / Teyu) · TiruvannamalaiOur own Arunachala ~ where Shiva is the element of fire, worshipped as the hill itself, the infinite column of flame of the Lingodbhava legend. The greatest of the five for the seeker drawn to the fire of realisation.
Srikalahasti Temple
Air (Vayu) · Srikalahasti (Andhra Pradesh)Shiva as the element of air ~ the lingam’s presence shown by a perpetually flickering lamp flame in the windless inner sanctum. Named for a spider (sri), a serpent (kala) and an elephant (hasti) who worshipped here; famed too for the devotee Kannappa Nayanar.
Thillai Nataraja Temple
Space / Ether (Akasha) · ChidambaramShiva as space itself ~ worshipped not as a form but as the formless Chidambara Rahasya, the ‘secret of Chidambaram’: an empty space behind a curtain, honoured as the all-pervading ether. Here Shiva is also Nataraja, Lord of the cosmic dance.
Each of the five now has its own guide ~ earth · water · fire (Arunachala) · air · space.
Arunachala, the temple of fire
Among the five, Arunachala holds the element of fire ~ and it is, arguably, the most extraordinary of them all, because here the element is not confined to a symbol in the sanctum but is the very hill. Where the other four temples enshrine their element in a lingam or a sign within the building, at Arunachala the whole mountain is the fire-lingam, the cooled form of the infinite column of flame in which Shiva appeared in the Lingodbhava legend. Fire is the element of transformation and of the spiritual path ~ it burns away the false and rises ever upward ~ which is why, of the five, Arunachala is the one most associated with the fire of realisation and the destruction of the ego. For the deeper meaning, see our page on the sacred geometry of Arunachala.
Four temples enshrine their element in a sign within the sanctum. At Arunachala, the whole mountain is the fire ~ which is why it stands apart among the five.
Visiting the five
Some devout pilgrims undertake to visit all five Pancha Bhuta Sthalams, a journey across the southern land that traces the whole cosmos of the elements. From Arunachala, the nearest of the others is Chidambaram (space), about 140 km away ~ the two making a natural pairing of fire and ether, the grossest-turned-subtlest and the subtlest of all. The others ~ Kanchipuram (earth), Thiruvanaikaval near Trichy (water), and Srikalahasti (air) ~ lie further afield across Tamil Nadu and into Andhra. For those moved by Arunachala’s place in this fivefold scheme, completing the circuit of the elements is a profound pilgrimage; for others, simply knowing that the hill is one of five cosmic points deepens the sense of what Arunachala is.
The Pancha Bhuta Sthalams place Arunachala within a vast sacred scheme ~ the fire among the five elements of creation. For Arunachala as fire specifically, see what Arunachala is and the fire legend; for the cosmic geometry, the sacred geometry of Arunachala; and for Chidambaram, the nearest of the five, our temples near Tiruvannamalai.
Frequently asked questions
What are the Pancha Bhuta Sthalams?
The Pancha Bhuta Sthalams ('five element abodes') are five temples in South India where Shiva is worshipped as each of the five great elements of creation: earth at Ekambareswarar temple, Kanchipuram; water at Jambukeswarar temple, Thiruvanaikaval; fire at Arunachaleswarar temple, Tiruvannamalai; air at Srikalahasti; and space or ether at the Thillai Nataraja temple, Chidambaram. Together they map the material cosmos onto sacred geography.
Which element is Arunachala?
Arunachala is the temple of fire (agni) among the five Pancha Bhuta Sthalams. Uniquely, the element is not confined to a symbol in the sanctum ~ the whole hill of Arunachala is regarded as the fire-lingam, the cooled form of the infinite column of flame in which Shiva appeared in the Lingodbhava legend. Fire is the element of transformation, which is why Arunachala is associated with the fire of realisation.
Where are the five element temples located?
Four are in Tamil Nadu and one in Andhra Pradesh: earth at Kanchipuram, water at Thiruvanaikaval (near Tiruchirapalli), fire at Tiruvannamalai (Arunachala), space at Chidambaram, and air at Srikalahasti (Andhra Pradesh). From Arunachala, Chidambaram (space) is the nearest, about 140 km away.
What does each Pancha Bhuta Sthalam represent?
Each enshrines Shiva as one element: Kanchipuram (earth) has a lingam of sand fashioned by Parvati; Thiruvanaikaval (water) has a lingam surrounded by an underground spring; Arunachala (fire) is the fire-hill itself; Srikalahasti (air) shows the element by a flickering lamp in a windless sanctum; and Chidambaram (space) worships the formless Chidambara Rahasya, an empty space honoured as all-pervading ether.
Last updated 16 February 2026. Following the documented record preserved by Sri Ramanasramam and his devotees; where an account is traditional, it is told as such.