Kumbakonam is one of the ancient temple towns and among the top tourist places in India, flanked by the two rivers Cauvery and Arasalar, in the Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu. The name Kumbakonam means the Pot’s Corner. According to mythology, when the world was destructed due to the tsunami, Lord Brahma asked Lord Shiva, from where he can restart creation. He suggested him to make a magic pot with the sand collected from various sacred places and float it in the floodwater. Kumbakonam is the place where the pot stopped and then Lord Shiva shot an arrow, which led to the spilling of some nectar on this place, and thus life was revived on the earth.
Once ruled by kings, Kumbakonam rose to be a prominent city between the 7th and 9th centuries AD. The town reached the zenith of its prosperity during the British Raj and was named Cambridge of South for being the prominent center of European education and Hindu culture.