Parnashala is about 25 km from Bhadrachalam in
Khammam District in
Andhra Pradesh. The place is closely related to the epic
Ramayana. It is believed that
Lord Ram, Sita and Lakshman spent their life in exile at Parnashala. They built a hermitage there during their ‘vanavasa' (forest stay). Parnashala features the beautiful re-creation of some scenes of the sacred vanavasa. Pilgrims often visit the footprints of Sita devi, Sita Vaagu, where Sita had bathed and collected turmeric and
Kumkum from nearby stones, and the marks of her saree on the rock near Sita Vaagu.
'Sokarama’ is the deity worshipped in the Parnashala temple. On the mountain on the opposite side of the river, tracks are visible considered by the faithful to be made by the chariot of
Ravana while kidnapping Sita.
