An ancient temple with a unique idol | Telangana Today
Jayashankar Bhupalpally: Nestled in the thick forest near to the Godavari river at Mallur village in Mangapet mandal, the Hemachala Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple is alluring hundreds and thousands of pilgrims from different parts of the State and the neighbouring States.
Located 1,500 feet above the sea level on Puttakonda (hillock), Lord Narasimha is believed to be incarnated from a volcano and his body is felt and sensed same as that of a human body — even with ‘hair’. If you press your fore-finger on the chest of the idol, you can see the finger literally sinking into the rock without resistance. Once you take out the finger, you can watch the trough formed due to the pressing slowly filling up leaving an impression on the chest.
According to the priests, the temple has a history of 4,776 years and it was Agastya, the great sage, who named the hillock as Hemachalam.
Temple chief priest K Raghavacharyulu says, “You cannot see an idol of this kind in any temple in India. The 9.2 feet tall idol of the deity oozes out some liquid like water from navel which is served to the devotees. It is a divine wonder to note that the sandal in the fluid form flows through the umbilicus (navel) of the great Maha Vishnu. Chintamani jalapatham and koneru near the temple have its water originated at lord’s feet.” He also adds that it was Rani Rudrama Devi who named the stream (small jalapatham) after Chintamani.
Devotees are seen either taking a bath or taking the water in the bottles and tins from the stream at the hillock.
Vishal Kumar, a devotee, said that he had come along with his friends all the way from Hyderabad to take a bath in the water from the hillock as it has many medicinal values.
The State government has also declared it a protected biodiversity zone of herbals.
It is said that the temple was kept out of public sight intentionally to keep the sacredness of this temple untouched.
Lakhs of pilgrims throng the temple during the Vaishaka maasam to witness the Brahmotsavams every year. As the number of devotees is increasing year by year, the State government is planning to develop the temple. A detailed project report (DPR) to this effect is in the preparation, according to the sources.
How to reach:
The temple is located approximately 130 km away from Warangal.
50 Km away from Manuguru
70 Kms away from Bhadrachalam via Manuguru
