Blog Archive

Monday, April 5, 2021

Meet Vishnu at the Durga Temple and Bow Down at Draksharamam

Durga Temple, Aihole- Karnataka 

In the capital of the Chalukya Dynasty 

Sometime in the 4th century, 

Lay the historic holy site Aihole,

Alongside the Malaprabha river 


Pulakeshi II, a follower of Jainism 

Dedicated the aalyam to Bhagwan Vishnu 

Building a total of 120 temples in the vicinity

 

Durga mandir, it is famously called  

Deriving the name from the Durg nearby 

Flaunting the Dravidian architecture 

Source: Hisour.com
Ravi Keerthi, the Jain poet praises the king

For his victory against Harshavardhana 

The inscriptions you see are as old as 364 CE

In the sacred languages of the land- Sanskrit and Old Kannada

Source: RVA Temples

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Draksharama, East Godavari- Andhra Pradesh 

Mani Kyamba is her name 

The left cheek of Devi Sati 

 12th part of her body that fell to the earth

Upon her death in the sacred fire 

 

Daksha Prajapathi- ruled the land,

The father in law of Prabhu Shiva, 

Turning it into a pilgrim spot

However, it was the Tarakavada 

That gave the region its title 

When the shiv linga broke into five 

With a piece falling at Draksharama 

 

Four entrances it has in four directions

The prakaram and gopuram 

Lead to the magnificent aalayam 

Praised by Vyasa muni in the Skanda Purana 

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Sources: 

http://www.karnatakatourism.org/tour-item/durga-temple-aihole/ 

https://www.astroved.com/astropedia/en/temples/south-india/durga-temple-aihole 

https://eastgodavari.ap.gov.in/tourism/temples/lord-bhimeswara-swami-temple-draksharama/

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#FreeHinduTemples



10 comments:

  1. Enjoying these temple trails with your words Srivalli. Thank you.

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  2. Hello, this is truly a history lesson for me. Wonderful pictures that you have included and I've learned about a place, Chalukya Dynasty which I had never heard of until today. So thank you for your history lesson. If you need me I'll be Doing Chores over at my site. Cheers ☺

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    1. Thank you so much. I'm glad to share a tiny piece of my land's heritage with you. Heading over to your blog right away. :)

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  3. Wow Srivalli... Have you been to all these temples... I am so much in envy of you right now. I didn't know of these two temples at all... Thanks for choosing this theme dear... Now I have a ready resource to share as well as refer to for planning my visits in future.

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    1. Thank you so much, Ira. Sadly, no. I haven't visited even a single temple on this list. :( It's my travel list which I'm sharing with others.

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  4. Aihole is one of those places I plan to visit soon..
    loved the poetic history lesson..
    I grew up in a town called Harihar (the very center of Karnataka is what I learned later about it!) and the Harihareshwara temple is small but beautiful.. built around 1223–1224 CE during the Hoysala reign

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