Papanasam (Sri Ramalingeswarar Temple/ 108 Shiva Linga Temple) – In Tamil literally it means “Destruction of Sins” It is believed that worshipping Lord Shiva in this temple would remove all sins.
This temple was built by Lord Rama and the 108 Shiva lingas were installed by him.Lord Ramalingaswami is in the main shrine. On a hall (Mandap) there are 106 Shiva Lingas in 3 rows.other significance of the temple is that Kamadenu the divine cow has an equal place with Nandhi the bull vehicle of Lord Shiva before His shrine.
Lord Rama, after rescuing Sita, performed Shiva Puja in Rameswaram to cleanse Himself of sins that befell on Him in the war killings. While returning to Ayodhya from there, Lord Rama felt that the sins of killing Kara and Dooshana in Janasthanam were following Him. He decided to perform Shiva Puaja immediately.
The Lord installed 107 Shivalingas and asked Sri Anjaneya to bring one from Kasi thus making the total 108. The main Linga was named Ramalingaswami and the one brought by Sri Anjaneya was named Hanumantha Linga.A shrine was built for Mother Parvadhavardhini later.
Sri Ramalingaswami temple is located in the city of Papanasam, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu and is more than 1000 years old.