On my Visit to Bhavanarayana Temple, Sarpavaram (Kakinada, East Godavari Dist.)

  

Sri Bhavanarayana Swamy Temple Tower

  

Beautiful idols on the tower

                                               

Pradakshina Marga around the temple

                                  

Entrance to the temple

                                

Sri Bhavanarayana Swamy in the sanctum

                             

The image of Tirunamam with divine discus and Conch

                                     

The figure of Lord Krishna

                                           

The statue of Lord Hanuman

                                            

Statue of Narada near Narada Kundam

                                   

Garuda Stambhamu

                                    

This temple is located just five kms from Kakinada. This temple is one of the one hundred and eight sacred Vaishnava Khetras. One who stays here for three days will get the merit of performing a hundred horse-sacrifices.  The name of the Lord “Bhavanarayana” means that the Lord bestows salvation just by thinking about Him. As per Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Sage Agashtya narrated the story of Adisesha to Saunaka and others in Nymisaranya. Here Adisesha did penance about Vishnu to get rid of his mother, Kadruva’s curse that all serpents who disobeyed her order would die in the serpent sacrifice to be performed by the king Janamejaya. Pleased with his penance, Lord Vishnu absolved him from Kadruva’s curse and accepted him to serve as His bed and as His seat. He also declared that the place where Adisesha did penance will be named after him as Sarpapura, and that he would stay there with his spouses Lakshmi and Bhudevi.

 

This is also the place where Sage Narada got salvation from his pride and arrogance. According to Devi Bhagavata Purana and Vishnu Purana, Narada felt proud of his penance and boasted before Brahma that he would not be deluded by Vishnu Maya. Later when he came to Sarpapura, he bathed in a lake and became a damsel. At that time Nakunda, the young prince of Pithapuram came and fell in love with the young lady and married her and took her to Pithapuram. There she gave birth to sixty sons named as Prabhava, Vibhava etc later taken as the names of Telugu years. Later another king Ripunjaya invaded Pithapuram and all the sons of the lady and her husband died in the battle. Narada in lady’s form was very much filled with grief and decided to end her life. Lord Vishnu appeared before her in the form of a Brahmin and asked her to take bath in the lake. When the lady took a dip, she became Narada again. Narada a realized his mistake and prayed to Lord Vishnu to forgive him. Lord Vishnu forgave him and named that lake as ‘Muktikasara” the lake of salvation. He also declared that they who take bath here would be freed from their sins. Kartika, Margasira and Magha are auspicious months and Sunday and Saturday are auspicious days for taking holy bath.  Besides, Muktisara there is another temple tank called “Narada Kundam”.  The water from this tank is used in the daily sacred preparation of the temple Prasad.

 

This temple has a five-tiered Raja Gopuram with a wooden door and a compound wall around. The entrance of the temple is east-facing with a stone Dwajha Stambham on the top of which the miniature idols of Garuda and Anjaneya are seen. The sanctum is seen on an elevated platform. Beside the main shrine, there are sub-shrines for Rajya Lakshmi Ammavaru and for twelve Alwars. Another important sub-shrine houses a Swambhu (self-born) idol of Patala Bhavanarayana Swamy mounted on Garuda Vahana, seen below the ground level. Adjacent to this shrine is seen the shrine of Manavala Mahamuni. On the opposite side there is Lakshmi Devi Sannidhi believed to be installed by sage Vedavyasa. On the outer wall of the temple is seen an idol of Ganapathy. On the outer side of the peripheral wall is seen the Nakshatra Vanam with 27 trees representing twenty-seven stars.

 In the open space of this temple, we can see the beautiful painted figures of Lord Krishna dancing on the hoods of the serpent Kaliya and a Thirunamam flanked by divine Chakram and divine Conch. At its two ends of these figures are seen the idols of Anjaneya and Garudalwar. A separate platform for lighting lamps is also seen. A temple garden with stone benches is another attraction here.

 

This temple is also considered as a Rahu, Kethu Dosha Parihara Kshetram and Sarpa Dosha Nivarana Sthalm. A row of serpent-stones is seen in the temple compound.

The architecture of the temple is a harmonious blend of both Chalukyan (7^th to 12^th centuries) and that of Cholas (11^th century). The temple gopuram was designed out of a single rock and the internal walls of the temple were made of sandstone. On the gopuras idols of Gopikas, Apsaras (divine damsels) and ten Incarnations of Lord Vishnu are seen. There are stone inscriptions of the Chola Kings (1022-1122) and Kataya Vema Reddy (1395-1414 A.D.). This temple was first renovated by Kulottunga Chola II in 1465 and later by Vasireddy Venkatadri Naidu of Amaravati in 1856. This temple is a protected by the Archaeological Survey of India. The greatness of this temple was mentioned by the 15^th century famous poet, Srinatha, in his work “Kasi Khandam” and in “Bhimeswara Puranam”. The nearby tourist places are: Draksharamam, Pithapuram, Kotipalli and Uppada Beach. The temple timings are: 6.00 a.m. to 12.00 P.M. (noon) and from 5.00 p.m. to 8.30 p.m. Those who go to Kakinada should not miss this sacred Vaishnava Kshetra with so many holy shrines.

                          +++++++++++++++++++++

   26th April 2026                               Somaseshu Gutala