The temple
Kumara Bhimeshwara Temple at Samalkota, Andhra Pradesh is one of the Pancharama Kshetras — five coastal Andhra Shiva temples held by tradition to enshrine fragments of a single primordial linga split by Indra and installed by five different sages. One of the Pancharamas, installed by Kumara Swamy (Skanda).
Where it stands
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Place | Samalkota |
| State / region | Andhra Pradesh |
| Country | India |
| Coordinates | 17.0532° N, 82.1672° E |
Andhra Pradesh’s Shaiva tradition is anchored by Srisailam (one of the twelve Jyotirlingas) and the Pancharama Kshetras — five temples on the Andhra-Telangana coast traditionally circuited together by Telugu Shaivas.
Darshan rhythm
| Window | Time |
|---|---|
| Daily darshan | Typical 05:00 – 21:00. Confirm at the temple. |
The temple is in our verified-coordinates / template-timings tier — meaning the location and identity are confirmed against multiple sources but the daily schedule is not separately published. The Shaiva-temple norm of an early-morning opening, a midday closure, and an evening reopening through the aarti hours generally applies; for festival days, the only reliable source is the local priest or the temple’s own gate.
When to visit
- Maha Shivaratri, Shravan Mondays, and Pradosham are universally the most charged Shiva-temple windows; even when the temple does not publish a bespoke schedule, observance at these times is universal among Shaiva temples.
- For everyday visits, the post-sunrise window and the evening aarti hour are the consistently best times for a focused darshan — midday hours are when the temple is closed in most regions.
In the Pancharama circuit
Kumara Bhimeshwara Temple is one of the Pancharama Kshetras — Amararama (Amaravati), Draksharama (Draksharamam), Somarama (Bhimavaram), Ksheerarama (Palakollu), and Kumararama (Samalkota). The five sit along the Krishna and Godavari deltas of coastal Andhra and together form a compact Telugu-Shaiva circuit, traditionally completed in a single multi-day yatra alongside the Jyotirlinga at Srisailam (Mallikarjuna).
The Puranic frame: a single primordial Shiva linga was broken by Indra into five fragments after he doubted its power; each fragment was retrieved and installed by a different sage at a different place. The five Pancharama lingas are those fragments. The circuit is also covered by the Vedasara Shiva Stotram as the Vedic-Shaiva theological frame that grounds Telugu-Shaiva practice broadly.
What we verify, what we don’t
Verified. Coordinates and identity are cross-checked against Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, and (where available) the temple’s official site. Tradition classification (Jyotirlinga, Pancha Bhoota, Panch Kedar) follows the canonical lists preserved in Adi Shankara’s stotras and parallel Puranic sources.
Not verified. Daily timings and festival schedules can shift — temples adjust hours for renovation, security advisories, regional civic holidays, and astronomical recalculation of festival dates. The timings listed here are the most recently sourced; they are starting points, not guarantees. For any planned visit, confirm at the temple gate or via the temple’s published contact channels.
Not promised. Dress codes, photography rules, gender-of-access norms, and Brahmin-priest officiation policies vary by region and by individual temple. The norms of one regional Shaiva tradition do not automatically apply to another. When in doubt, observe the practice of long-standing local devotees on site.