My Visit to Cheeryal Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple, Cheeryal (Telengana)

      

      

      

Sri Mallaram Eshwarayya, the founder of this temple

         This temple is located very close to Hyderabad. It is 10kms from ECIL Cross Roads and 5 kms before Keesera Gutta. It is connected to ECIL X Road by a four-lane road. Many city people visit this temple to enjoy the peaceful surroundings. The big lake before we enter the temple, with green paddy fields and trees refreshes one’s mind. The temple arch one of the biggest arches in Telengana region is very attractive with colourful carvings. On the top of the arch the idol of Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy along with Lakshmi is seen flanked by idols of Ganesh and Hanuman bearing the Sanjeevani Mount. On the extreme ends two idols of Abhaya Anjaneya Swamy are seen. On the pillars of the arch the idols of Jaya and Vijaya and Garuda are seen. This is an exquisite specimen of architecture which captures the attention of the devotees.

         The parking space before the temple is very spacious and there is a place assigned for breaking coconuts. There is a shoe stand just beside the parking place. On the way to the temple one can see stalls selling pooja material and a hotel. The temple hall is very colourfully painted with sculptures of various gods. Around the Pradakshina Patha (circambulatory passage) one can see the ten incarnations of the Lord Vishnu. The idol of Lakshminarasimha in the centre is very attractive. The idol of the founder (Sri Mallaram Eshwaraiah) is seen in a niche. There is a tortoise-pond behind with a beautiful statue of Lord Vishnu reclining on the serpent-bed in the middle of the pond. Inside the sanctum the idol of Shanta Narasimha with Lakshmi is seen under the shade of Adi Sesha.

         There are many sevas done here. Every Friday Abhishekam is performed. Swarnapushparchana is done to the main lord. In every month on Swathi Nakshatra day, Swamy Kalyanam is done. There is a big hall for performing various rituals Satyanarahyanavratam, Sudarshana Homa, Annaprashana and Upanayanam. Many people make their wishes (Sankalpa) standing before Dwajha Stambham with a coconut in their hands and go round the temple for eleven, twenty-one or forty-one times. After their wish is fulfilled, they again come here and go round the temple for forty-one times. Many devotees come here on Saturday and spend the night here. The following day they do pradakshinas. Devotees believe that their wishes would be fulfilled if they sleep five Saturdays in this holy temple. The devotees who come here should not close their eyes before the main deity but look at the Lord with devotion. Here the devotees should come in traditional dress.  People wearing T-shirts and jeans are not permitted.

          In 2015 the temple authorities constructed a choultry with 41 rooms with all facilities. On the days of Poornima and Amavaasya also, many devotees come here to spend the night and do pooja on the following day. So, this Lord is called “Sankalpa Siddhi Narasimha”. On every Tuesday special poojas are done to Lord Anjaneya and Lord Subrahmanaya. Kalasarpanivarana Pooja is also done on this day. On every Wednesday special poojas are done to Maha Ganapati. Special Poojas are done during the months of Kartik and Margasirsha months and on Vaikunta Ekadashi. In this temple Brahmostavams are celebrated in the month of April every year for three days. 

          There are many sub-shrines in this temple like, Maha Ganapati andAnjaneya. At the back of the temple near the choultry, one can see the shrines of Bangaru Mysamma, Nalla Pochamma and Subrahmanhya. These idols were found in the field of Ishwaraiah. 

          Regarding the founding of this temple, the credit goes to Mallaram Eshwarayya who is a staunch devotee of Lord Narasimha. He had a vision of Lord Narasimha who asked him to go to Yadagiri and worship the Lord there. He went there and brought a picture of Yadagiri Narasimha and kept it in his pooja room and lit Akhanda Deepam. Many people visited his pooja room and worshipped the Lord. Later His son, Mallaram Lakshminarayana too worshipped the Lord and received Narasimha mantra from Guru. Inspired by Lord’s vision he got Narasimha idol made on April19th 2007, and kept it in his pooja room. Later he thought a temple would be a suitable place to worship the Lord. So, in his field guided by the Lord he selected a suitable place and laid the foundation stone and did Pranapratishta on May 1^st 2008. While digging the field, he saw a serpent as if blessing him. So, a shrine for Naga devata is seen in the temple. The shrines of Grama Devatas (Village goddesses), Bangaru Mysamma and Nalla Pochamma have been renovated.

          In this temple the traditions followed by Yadagiri temple priests are followed here since devotees believe that Cheeryal Narasimha is a manifestation or Amsha of Yadagiri Lakshmi Narasimha. Many temples of Narasimha are seen in hill-caves. But here the Lord is seen on the ground floor and so devotees can go round the Lord to get their wishes fulfilled. Many Telugu serials’ shooting is done here. Telengana Chief Minister, Sri K.C.R visited this temple to fulfil his vows. The working hours of this temple are from 6.00 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. and from 4.00 p.m. to 8.00 p.m.  On Saturdays and Sundays, the working hours are from 6.30 a.m. to 2.00 p.m. and from 4.00 p.m. to 8.00 p.m. For city people this is a very nearby place to visit and spend peaceful time and worship the Lord who is regarded as very powerful and who removes obstacles and fulfils the wishes of devotees who pray to him with sincere devotion.

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       29th December, 2021                                                     Somaseshu Gutala

My Visit to Kotilingeshwara Temple (Siddipet)

                 

                          

                           

Kotilingeshwara temple was established in 1979 by Swamy Sri Madanananda in Indira Nagar located nearly 2.5 kms from Siddipet bus stand on the highway towards Medak. A welcome arch with idols of Lord Shiva and Parvati with Lord Ganesh and Lord Subrahmanya on either side greets the devotees. The temple tower is beautifully decorated with figurines of Lord Shiva and his Parivar (family). On the back side of the tower one can see the figurines of Sri Kalahasthiswara and that of Kannappa worshipping Shiva. A beautiful Nandi statue is seen in the hall facing the inner sanctum.

 Sri Madanananda Swamy had a vision to build a temple with one crore Pardhiva Lingams (lingams made of clay). Searching for a suitable place  Swamiji arrived at Koppole village  by the blessings of Koppole Sangameshwara. He asked his devotees to write the name of the village where they want a temple on a piece of paper and keep at the feet of Sangameshwara Swamy. He ordered one of his devotees to pick up one piece of paper. The piece of paper contained the name of Siddipet. So Swamiji arrived at Siddipet and stayed at Sharabeshwaralayam. His devotees made one crore Shiva lingams made of clay (Parthivalingams).   Philanthropists and people at Siddipet also extended financial support. In May 1979, Swamy performed Yantrasahita Vigrahapratishta.The main idol was brought from Varanasi. In the sanctum Shiva Panchakshari-written manuscripts were buried beneath the main idol at a depth of one foot. Divine symbols of Chandra Rekha, Bhasma Rekhalu, Parvathi and Ganga Devi are seen on the main idol in the temple. Once a cobra with Shiva lingam mark on its hood arrived on the bag containing the Parthiva lingams and stayed there for four hours to shower blessings on the devotees. 

There are twelve sub-shrines in the temple hall. The central hall or mukha mantapa is supported by thirty-six pillars. The mukha mantapa is beautifully painted with green, pink and gold colours.  The temple walls are decorated with beautiful carvings and designs. There are other halls like a sacrificial hall to conduct homams and yagnas, a library and a function hall to conduct marriages.

 The Sadananda Ashram where Swamy lived provides accommodation facility. There is an independent Vedic Patashala in Ashram premises. The subshrines in and around the temple are those of Sri Raja Rajeshwari, Gayathri Devi, Anjaneya, Dattatreya, Subrahmanya,  Santoshi Mata,Adi Shankaracharya, Murali Krishna, Navagrahalu, Sri Pashupainath, Sai Baba,Tulasi Mata, Chandishwara and Madanananda Swamy and Sri Shiva Sthupam. Just near the entrance before entering the Mukhamantapa. 

There is a big hall where one can see one hundred and eight lingams along with idols of Uma Maheshwara. Every Monday Shiva Kalyanam is performed here. Special poojas are done during festivals and on Shiva Rathri. The temple is open from 6.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m. This temple has become a holy pilgrimage spot for all devotees. One can spend peaceful time in the serene surroundings of temple which has many beautiful shrines with exquisite sculptures and idols. The nearby tourist places are: Sarabheswaralayam(2 kms), Kondapochamma Sagar, Sangameshwara Temple (20kms), Ananthasagar(30kms), Siricilla Textile City(34kms) and Vidya Saraswathi Kshetram(60kms) from Siddipet.

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    19th December, 2021                          Somaseshu Gutala

  

My Visit to Komuravelli Mallanna Temple, Komuravelli (Siddipet Dist.)

 

             

                                 

                               

Konda Pochamma

 This temple is a popular pilgrimage place for many people of Telangana region and Maharashtrian people. The presiding deity is Komuravelli Mallikarjuna Swamy popularly known as Komuravelli Mallanna, an incarnation of Lord Shiva. This deity is also called Khandoba by Maharashtrian devotees. This temple is constructed in Kakatiya and Chalukya syle and is located on a hill in Komuravelli village of Siddipet district in Telangana State. This pilgrimage spot is nearly 85 kms from Hyderabad and 22kms from Siddipet. Mallanna along with his two consorts, Golla Kethamma and Balija Medalamma are seen in a cave. A Shiva Linga is seen just below the deities. The idols are made of clay and are believed to be 500 years old.  The idol of Mallanna is of eight feet and is colourfully painted in blue colour and is decorated with golden crown and ornaments. Mallanna looks majestic with a curled moustache holding a trident and a hand-drum (dhamaruka) in his two upper hands. He holds a sword and a pearl bowl filled with bandari (turmeric powder) in his lower hands.  His arms and waist are decked with ornamental serpents made of gold. Three demon-heads of Tripurasuras (slain by Lord Shiva) are seen in front of the main idol. Utsava vigrahas of Lord Mallanna and Lord Veerabhdra are seen beside the shrine. On the way out to exit one can see beautiful painted sculptures of various gods and goddesses. 

 At the entrance of the temple there are big statues of Saint Renukacharya and Saint Basaveswara seen on either side of the temple outside. There is a big plum-tree (Ganga Regu ) considered very sacred  by devotees. People go round the tree and tie their votive offerings to the branches of the sacred tree. There is a shoe-stand and also a store room to keep devotees’ belongings. Mobiles are not allowed and they should be deposited in the store room. In Mukha  Mantapa there are fresco carvings of Lord  Veerabhadra, Saint Renukacharya and Lord Ganapati and sages in sitting position.

  The deity is worshipped mainly by Kurumas(shepherds), Golla folk (cowherds) and Balijas(farmers) of this region. Devotees offer prayers to Maallanna with the help of Oggu priests who draw a rangoli called “Patnam” in front of the Lord inside the temple and also in the temple verandah. The devotees bring bonums (rice cooked in new pots) and place them on rangoli designs.  The story of Mallaanna called “Oggu Katha” is sung by priests playing music on drums. The story narrates how Mallanna married Medalamma also called Bramarambika. According Oggu folk story, Mallanna was born to Veera Shaiva couple, Madiraju and Madamma and was believed to be an incarnation of Shiva and who came down to this world to protect his devotees. A festive fair (Jatara) is held on every Sunday and Wednesday from Sankranti festival to Ugadi(Telugu New Year). Kalyonotsavam (marriage ceremony) for Lod Mallanna and His holy consorts before Sankranthi. Lakhs of devotees come here to offer bonams in new pots. Veera Shaiva Priests after worshipping Lord Veera Bhadra and Bhadra Kali do fire-walking ritual in early dawn carrying idols of God (Utasava Vigrahas). A subsidiary temple for Sri Renukacharya, a Veera Shaiva saint, is seen beside the main temple.

 Next to Mallanna’s temple is seen Yellamma’s temple on the nearby hillock. She is considered as Lord Mallanna’s sister. A little farther away there is Saligrama Hanuman temple.  Navagrahas are seen on an elevated platform. If one climbs a few steps further, there is a cave temple for Veera Bhadra along with an idol of a sacred Shiva Linga and Nandi. There is a temple for Konda Pochamma at a distance of 20kms from this place. Devotees worship Konda Pochamma and offer bonams on Tuesday.

In Mallanna’s temple, turmeric powder called Bandari is applied on the brows of devotees. The main entrance tower, the compound wall, Mukhamantapa and cottages are painted in yellow.  There are separate passages for entrance and exit from the cave temple. Devotees can avail quick darshan by paying one hundred rupees each. Devotees buy Bandari packets from pooja stall as they believe that bandari protects devotees from all diseases. Outside the temple there are many stalls selling pooja materials. There are many photo studios with replicas of inside view of the temple and images of various gods and goddesses. One can get photographed standing beside these replicas. The Endowments Department renovated the temple mantapams and choultries. Nearly two hundred rooms are made available for devotees’ accommodation by Komuravelli Devasthanam Board. But there are too many beggars obstructing the devotees and pursue them asking for money. The outside surroundings and temple premises are not cleanly maintained. The menace of beggars should be solved as early as possible.

 The temple is open from 4.30 a.m. to 8.30 p.m. and from 12.00 p.m. to 3.00 p.m. Th darshan timings are from 6.00 a.m. to 12.00 p.m. and from 3.00 p.m. to 7.00 p.m.