Adikesava perumal in Sholingar town, had stepped back (literally) to accommodate the utsava murthy of Lord Narasimha (Bhaktavatsala perumal) of the Sholingar hill temple. As you enter the temple the main sanctum sanctorum houses the utsava murthy, and Adikesav perumal is in the sanctum sanctorum in the outer pragaram (right behind the main sanctum sanctorum) with sridevi and bhudevi in standing posture.
Legend has it that for abundant rains, thirumanjanam is to be performed with 1008 pots of offerings, which would include ghee, honey, oil and fruits to Adhikesava perumal.
Interestingly for all the water and offerings poured on the moolavar deity, there is no outlet inside the sanctum sanctorum. All the offerings get absorbed at the foot of the deity. It is remarkable not only spirutually but also an engineering marvel.
Another interesting feature is the absence of a Dhwajasthambam (holy flag mast) the reason being there is no moolavar for Bhaktavatsala perumal (the moolavar is on Sholingar hill).
On the lighter side, it seems Lord Narasimha has taken over the temple completely.
Legend has it that for abundant rains, thirumanjanam is to be performed with 1008 pots of offerings, which would include ghee, honey, oil and fruits to Adhikesava perumal.
Interestingly for all the water and offerings poured on the moolavar deity, there is no outlet inside the sanctum sanctorum. All the offerings get absorbed at the foot of the deity. It is remarkable not only spirutually but also an engineering marvel.
Another interesting feature is the absence of a Dhwajasthambam (holy flag mast) the reason being there is no moolavar for Bhaktavatsala perumal (the moolavar is on Sholingar hill).
On the lighter side, it seems Lord Narasimha has taken over the temple completely.
Right now renovations (balalayam) are being done to the Narasimha temple on the hill, which is expected to be completed before 15th November 2008, till then we could have the dharshan of the lord and lordess together (serthi) which by itself is rare as the utsavar goes up hill on couple of occasions during a year.
Lord & Lordess togetherLocation : Sholingar is about 120 Kms from Chennai. The best route to reach this temple frm chennai would be to via Thiruvallur, Thrutani, along the Chennai - Thirupathi - Chitoor route. Past Thirutanni one takes a detour to Sholingur. Approximate travel time would be 3.5 to 4 hrs. from Chennai.
1 comment:
I think this is a very good attempt to capture our heritage. I would encourage you to write about Hindu culture in general; there are many temples of Siva and Vishnu which stand testimony to the grand era/renaissance of South india.
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