Temples in Vijayawada
Kanaka Durga temple
There are three ancient temples in Vijayawada-the Vijayeswara Swami temple, Kanaka Durga temple, and the Malleswara Swami temple (Mallikarjuna temple). The Malleswara temple is reputed to have been originally installed by Yudhisthira, the oldest of the Pandava brothers, to celebrate their victory in the south. The present temple was built by the Chalukya King, Tribhuvana Malla, in the 10th century. The Vijayeswara temple is said to have been installed by Arjuna, the younger brother of Yudhisthira.
The deity in the Kanaka Durga temple is regarded as swayambhu, or self-manifested. The deity depicts the manifestation of Chandi as the destroyer of the demon Durgama. This deity is said a have been worshiped by Agastya, Markandeya, and the Pandavas. Many people come to this temple, which is especially crowded on Fridays.
The Victoria Jubilee Museum, Bander Rd, has a collection of paintings and sculptures that includes a huge granite statue of Buddha.
Nearby Vijayawada At Akiripalli there is a temple dedicated to Vyaghra Narasimha, called Sobhanachala Swami, on top of a hill. Also on top of the hill is a Siva temple called Malleswara-swami temple. Lord Vishnu as Vyaghra Narasimha is said to have incarnated in a cave on top of the hill here. There are also temples dedicated to Sri Venkatachala Swami, Sri Venu Gopala Swami, Rajya Lakshmi and the Alwars. There is a large gopuram at the bottom of the hill.
There is a huge tank here called Varahapushkarini, almost a hundred acres, which is said to have been dug by Varahadeva, Lord Vishnu in His boar incarnation. To get to Akiripalli you can take a bus from Vijayawada.
MANGALAGIRI
Mangalagiri is situated about 12 km south of Vijayawada. There is a Lord Narasimha temple here. The Deity is called Pana Narasimha (Panakala Narasimha), because He is believed to drink half the quantity of pana, or cold drink, offered by worshipers. It is said that when the Lord is offered sugar syrup here, He does not take more than half. The temple is built around this self-manifest mouth of Lord Narasimhadeva. Over the mouth, completing the face of the Lord, is a brass mask with an angry expression. A chakra and club are also self-manifested in the stone.
The temple is on a hill and is approached by ascending 600 steps. This temple has the highest gopuram in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Inside this temple there is a conch shell presented by the late king of Tanjor, and this shell, according to the locals, was used by Lord Krishna Himself.
The pujari of the temple takes a pot of sweet drink called jaggery water and pours half of the drink with a conchshell into the Lord's mouth. The jaggery water drink is made of gur-water (sugar) camphor, black pepper, and cardamom. Half of whatever quantity of jaggery water prepared is offered to the Lord and the rest is returned to the offerer as mahaprasad. While the water is being poured into the mouth of the Lord you will hear a gurgling sound, as someone might make while drinking. Even though there is so much sugar water offered here, there is not a single ant seen on the hill. This is the reason the temple has the name Panakala Narasimha.
It is said that Lord Narasimha rested here alter killing Hiranyakasipu, and Laksmi Devi then gave Him some nice drink to quench His thirst. At the bottom of the hill there is a very old Laksmi Narasimha temple. Mangalagiri is mentioned as a very holy place in the Skanda and Brahma-vaivarta Puranas.
Lord Caitanya came here in 1512. There is an imprint of His feet here and a verse dedicated to Him in the temple. During the month of March, a large festival takes place in this temple.
Veerabhadra Temple
This is a small village located 17 km east of Hindupur. Hindupur is on the Hyderabad-Bangalore train line, about 100 km due north of Bangalore in Andhra Pradesh. It is said that Jatayu fell here after fighting with Ravana.
There is the famous Veerabhadra Temple here which has some of the best mural paintings from the period of the Vijayanagar kings. The temple is built on a low hill called Kurma Sailam, because it has the shape of a tortoise. Lord Rama, Lord Papanaseswara (Siva), Veerabhadra, and Durga are all worshiped here. There is also a Deity of Gopala Swami (Krishna). In the Skanda Purana, Lepakshi is said to be one of the 108 important pilgrimage sites dedicated to Lord Siva. Narrative reliefs on the south wall depict the pastimes of Lord Siva, including Arjuna's penance.
In the temple, the shrine of Lord Vishnu faces Lord Siva with Veerabhadra in the center. The pillars in the Natya-mandapa are intricately carved. The biggest Nandi in India is located 200 metres east of the temple. It is carved out of a monolithic rock and is 20 feet high and 30 feet in length. Apart from being famous for this huge Nandi, the temple is well known for its intricate sculptures and excellent murals that include Lord Krishna's and Lord Rama's pastimes. These murals have elegant line-work and vibrant natural colors and the costumes and facial expressions are most outstanding in their detail.
The treasurer to the king ofVijayanagar used taxes collected on the king's behalf to build the temple, while the king was away in Vijayanagar. When the king returned and found his treasury empty, he ordered the treasurer to be blinded as punishment. The treasurer blinded himself and dashed his eyes against the wall of the temple. There is a wall near the Kalyana-mandapa that has two dark stains said to be from his eyes. That is why the village is called "Lepa-akshi" (Lepakshi), "the village of the blinded eye".
Ranganatha Temple
The main Deity, Garbhodakasayi Vishnu reclining on His couch of Ananta Sesa, is ten feet long. Laksmi is sitting on a lotus flower on His chest. Lord Brahma sits on a lotus rising from the Lord's navel. At the Lord's feet are 26" high deities of Sridevi and Bhudevi. In front of the main Deity are the utsavamurtis (festival Deities) of Ranganatha Swami. There is also a four-handedseated Deity of Laksmidevi called Ranga-nayaki-devi.
This temple was built about 1070. It is on the bank of the River Pennar, or Penarkini. The temple has a 110 year old 95 foot high gopuram covered with hundreds of forms of Lord Vishnu.
|