Pathala Ponniamman Temple, Kilpauk

Pathala Ponniamman Temple stands in Kilpauk, Chennai, near its border with Purasawalkam, so it is also known as the Purasawalkam Pathala Ponniamman temple. Roughly one lakh families in and around the city regard its goddess as their family deity, and women make up most of its worshippers. It is run by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department.

The story goes back some 350 years, to the time of Chennappa Nayak of the Vijayanagara Empire. The British had leased land here, then full of mango trees and flowering plants, and ordered a well to be dug for irrigation. About 30 feet down, the diggers struck a large stone that turned out to be an image of a goddess, found with a panchaloha idol. Local people began worshipping both. The stone image was consecrated as the main deity, Pathala Ponniamman, and the metal one became the festival idol. The temple also has images of Vishnu, Shiva, Parvati, Nataraja, Murugan, Hanuman, Kala Bhairava and the Navagrahas.