Pathirakali Amman Temple ( ta, பத்திரகாளி அம்பாள் கோயில்) – Pathirakali Ambal Kovil – or the Kali Kovil, Trincomalee is a Hindu temple dedicated to the goddess

Bhadrakali Bhadrakali (IAST: Bhadrakālī; ), also known as Mahakali and Kali, is a Hindu goddess. According to Shaktism, she is one of the fierce forms of the Supreme Goddess Shakti, or Adi Parashakti, mentioned in the Devi Mahatmyam. In Vaishnavi ...

, a form of the goddess

Kali Kali (; sa, काली, ), also referred to as Mahakali, Bhadrakali, and Kalika ( sa, कालिका), is a Hindu goddess who is considered to be the goddess of ultimate power, time, destruction and change in Shaktism. In this tra ...

Amman in

Trincomalee Trincomalee (; ta, திருகோணமலை, translit=Tirukōṇamalai; si, ත්‍රිකුණාමළය, translit= Trikuṇāmaḷaya), also known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee Dis ...

, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. The Kali temple of the ancient ''Trincomalee Koneswaram Temple Compounds'', a large complex of connected shrines in the Trincomalee Konesar Malai area, the temple is located close to the

Trincomalee Hindu College Ramakrishna Mission Sri Koneswara Hindu College (also known as Trincomalee Hindu College or Trinco Hindu College) is a national school in Trincomalee, Sri Lanka. History The school was founded in 1897 by leading Hindus. It was administered by ...

. Made in classical

Dravidian architecture Dravidian architecture, or the South Indian temple style, is an architectural idiom in Hindu temple architecture that emerged from South India, reaching its final form by the sixteenth century. It is seen in Hindu temples, and the most distinc ...

, the '' Kovil'' is located just beyond the Konesar Road Esplanade before the entrance to Konamamalai (Swami Rock). Proximal to the ancient Koneswaram temple, both ancient temples share functions during Ther Thiruvillah Festival procession and the Back Bay Sea (Theertham Karatkarai). Pathirakali Amman temple has attracted pilgrims from before the 11th century CE. King

Rajendra Chola I Rajendra Chola I (; Middle Tamil: Rājēntira Cōḻaṉ; Classical Sanskrit: Rājēndradēva Cōla; Old Malay: ''Raja Suran''; c. 971 CE – 1044 CE), often referred to as Rajendra the Great, and also known as Gangaikonda Chola (Middle Tamil ...

expanded the shrine significantly during his reign, an inscription he left detailing this is displayed on the premises."Trinco historic Pathirakali Amman temple festival begins"
TamilNet (March 9, 2003). Retrieved April 5, 2012. The temple is mentioned in the book ''Birds of Prey'' (1997) by

Wilbur Smith Wilbur Addison Smith (9 January 1933 – 13 November 2021) was a Zambian-born British-South African novelist specialising in historical fiction about international involvement in Southern Africa across four centuries, seen from the viewpoints ...

, set in the 1660s.

References

Hindu temples in Trincomalee District Religious buildings and structures in Trincomalee Kali temples {{Hindu-temple-stub

See also

References