The Malluru Narasimha Swamy Temple Entrance |
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 |
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 |
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 Chintamani Theertham that cures diseases |
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
Dear daughter, I am Venugopal, 64 yrs. and living in Kanchipuram. I and my wife went to so many temples with yr.help ie., after read yr.posts in yr.blog. this including the Sri Ramar temple near vadalur., Neively. This July we went to vijayawada ., Mattapalli, Vadapalli. If this post, came little earlier, I/we may be there. But anyway., We wish to go there, I/we seek the blessings of Sri Narasimha Swamy for giving His Dharshan. Thanks alot my daughter.
ReplyDeleteThanks Appa! I do hope you are able to visit!
Deleteafter seeing your post i felt that i ve visited the temple with you priya
ReplyDeletebeautiful narration. Thanks
ReplyDelete