Nara Simham!

The Malluru Narasimha Swamy Temple Entrance

It was over two years ago, that a devout follower of Aalayam Kanden called me to speak about the Malluru Narasimhaswamy Temple. The way she went about describing it, I was hooked. I got in touch quite immediately with my colleague and friend in Hyderabad to explore possibilities of visiting. However, as with everything else, this desire too had to wait for the will of God, which only came true last week. And the same friend to whom I had first spoken excitedly about the temple was able to accompany us too!

I am not surprised any of this happened. Ever since Aalayam Kanden began, six years ago, I have come to clearly understand that whatever I write here, is purely dependent on His will, and so be it!!
So we set off, all excited at 4 am in the morning towards Malluru from Hyderabad. After crossing Warangal and Hanamakonda cities, we entered the dense reserve forests through which we drove for about five kms to reach the foothills of the Hemachala hill on top of which the temple is located.

The way to the temple through the dense Hemachala forest

It is believed that the Narasimhaswamy manifested as an Ugra moorthy in a cave on top of the Hemachala hill and was brought to light by Sage Agasthya. In order to pacify the Ugra Moorthy and calm him down, Agasthya installed Goddess Lakshmi in his chest and Lord Hanuman as the Kshetrapalaka.

We crossed the arch and the newly constructed shrines for Venugopalaswamy and Uma Maheswara and took the 74 steep steps that lead to the shrine of the now Yogananda Narasimha swamy. The sight of the magnificent lord is awe-inspiring. He is over 9.2 feet tall and the only swayambu Narasimha in standing posture. He is found with a crown and four arms carrying the conch, discus, mace and lotus flower.

Steps leading up to the temple

The Narasimha avatar, a combination of man and lion, was taken by Lord Vishnu, to answer the prayers of his devotee Prahalada. At Malluru, the Lord is said to be depicting the human form.

Over weekends and special occasions, the abhishekam is performed at 12 noon. The abhishekam comprises of smearing oil all over the body of the Lord who has emerged on the wall of the cave. Several devotees bring bottles of oil for this purpose. The priest pours the oil into a vessel and passes it around to the devotees who in turn drop coins into the oil, and make their wishes. It is believed that these wishes definitely come true.

The priest takes a Tulsi leaf and presses it lightly into the chest of the Lord and to the wonder of everyone watching, the leaf goes into the chest and disappears. When the priest removes his hand, the dent is no longer there! It is believed that Narasimha is found here in the human form, with flesh and muscle! Even the garlands are placed on either side of the shoulder and gently pressed and they cling to the body of the Lord!

Not just that, there is a secretion of sandal from his navel. No one really knows how this secretion happened on certain days of the month. The priest mentions that sometimes the secretion turns red or white. This, according to them, is the wound that Narasimha suffered while fighting Hiranyakasipu.

The paste that secretes from the navel is given to those couples who seek childbirth, or to those suffering from chevva, rahu or kethu dosham. The persons concerned have to come in person and perform some rites, before the sandal paste is given to them. Consuming the sandal paste grants couples bonny babies and they then come back with the new born to perform abhishekam and offer prayers.

There is a stream running near by called the Chintamani theertham. The name, Chintamani is said to have been given by Queen Rudramadevi. No one really knows the source of this stream, but the water is crystal clear and sweet to taste. It is an elixir for all chronic ailments and the stories of those who have been miraculously cured after consuming the water from this stream are plenty. Devotees bathe in this stream and carry water from here in containers and consume the same over days.

Photo courtesy : Google

The water does not get bad over time, unlike water from other rivers. The temple is said to date back to 4000 years to the time of the Satavahana king, Dilipakarana. The Kakatiya rulers, Rudramadevi and her grandson Pratapa Rudra have given several grants of land and money to the temple. The hill on which the temple is situated is crescent shaped and was called Hemachala in the past. Now it is known as Malluru.

The Chintamani Theertham that cures diseases

Every year in the month of Vaikasi, on Suddha Chaturdasi day both Kalyana Utsavam and Brammotsavam are performed in this temple with great pomp and glory.

How to get here: The temple is 70 kms from Bhadrachalam, and 127 kms from Warangal city. There are buses from Hanamakonda and also all buses that ply to Eturnagaram stop at Malluru.

Temple Timings: The temple is open from 8.30 am to 5.30 pm with a lunch break between 1-2.30

Contact info: 9440634985, 9666887393