Fwd: Lepakshi - Lord Veerabhadhra Swamy

[Guest guest]

India Matrimony: Find your partner online.

Post your profile.

Sun, 19 Oct 2003 08:31:39 +0100 (BST)

=?iso-8859-1?q?Sandeep=20Kodali?= doktersandy

Lepakshi - Lord Veerabhadhra Swamy

LordVinayaka, GoddessPadmavathi,

LordVenkateshwara, GoddessSriLakshmi,

LordVishnu, GoddessBhoomiDevi,

GoddessSaraswathi, GoddessParvathi,

LordShivaShankara, GoddessGanga,

GoddessDurga, GoddessKali,

LordRama, LordSriKrishna,

LordNarasimha, GoddessSanthoshiMaa,

GoddessVaishnoDevi, LordKumara,

LordAyyappa, LordBrahma,

LordDattatreya, SriHanuman,

AllDeitiesGodsandGoddessess,

SriSaiBabaofShirdi, LordSriRama,

JaiRadhaKrishna, goddessgayatri

Cc: doktersandy

 

 

 

SHIVA

Third of the Trinity, Shiva is beneficial and maleficent. He represents the

power which destroys and regenerates the cosmos after its destruction, and

constantly destroys and regenerates during cosmic activities. He is also known

as Mahadev, Mahayogi, Nataraja. He has four arms. In one hand he holds a drum,

symbol of creativity, in the second a flame-symbol of destruction, the third in

pose of benediction to all, and the fourth pointing to the body under his

foot.There are twelve jyotirlingas. They are Shri Somnath*, Shri Mallikarjun*,

Shri Mahakaleshwar*, Shri Omkareshwar*, Shri Kedarnath*, Shri Bhimashankar*,

Shri Vishveshwar*, Shri Trimbakeshwar*, Shri Vaidyanath* , Shri Nageshwar* ,

Shri Rameshwar*, Shri Ghushmashwar*.

 

Sri Veerabhadra Swamy Temple

Lepakshi Temple is in the village of Lepakshi of Hindupur Town in Anantapur

District. It is 14 kms from Hindupur Railway Station. From the main bus stand,

devotees have to cover a distance of 14 kms by bus or Taxi. Anantapur is 114

kms away from the Temple. The nearest airport is Bangalore from where the

Temple is 110 kms away. Lepakshi is 65 kms away from Puttaparthi. Large number

of Buses and Taxis are available to transport the devotees from the above

places. The presiding diety of the Temple is Sri Veerabhadra Swamy.

LEPAKSHI

Facts to File

How far : 480 km from Hyderabad.

How to go : Air : Nearest airports are Bangalore (100 km)and Tirupati.Rail :

The nearest railhead is Hindupur (16 km) between Hyderabad - Bangalore railway

line.Bus : Regular buses and taxis from Hindupur and Ananthapur.

Where to stay : Hindupur Tourism Complex (8 cottages and restaurant) offers

excellent accommodation, Abhya Griha rest house at Lepakshi, AP Tourism Motel

Travellers' bungalow at Hindupur and PWD travellers' bungalow at Demakepalli.

Budget Hotels at Ananthapur.

What to see : Veerabhadra Temple, the mural paintings in the temple and the

monolithic Nandi

This shrine is one of the finest temples of AP in architecture and painting.

Lepakshi is easily accessible from Tirupati. Known as the Ajanta of AP,

Lepakshi excells in its myriad artistry. The presiding deity is Veerabhadra.

 

LEPAKSHI

LEPAKSHI is a small village, which lies nine miles east of Hindupur in Anantapur

District of Andhra. Hindupur is a railway station on the main metre-gauge line

between Hyderabad and Bangalore, and from Hindupur there is a good metalled

road to Lepakshi on which several good bus connections exist. There is a dak

bungalow at Hindupur, - as well as at Lepakshi, where pilgrims can conveniently

stay. Lepakshi is famous for its temple of Veerabhadra, and is also a renowned

place where the best specimens of the mural paintings of the Vijayanagar kings

are available. This temple is a notable example of the Vijayanagar style of

architecture, and is built on a low rocky hill, which is called Kurmasaila so

called because the bill is like a tortoise, in shape. An inscription on the

exit of the outer wall of the temple records that one Virupanna constructed it

in the 16th century.

LEPAKSHI

There is a popular legend about the temple which rum as follows: Virupanna was

the king's treasurer and was the chief of the merchant guild at the time of the

famous Krishandevaraya of Vijayanagar. He conceived the idea of installing a

temple here, because the image of Veerabhadra was found here. He proceeded to

put into execution this plan and fully used the tribute of the king also for

this purpose while the king was away at Vijayanagar. He had practically

finished the building and was actually supervising the completion of the

Kalyana mantapa, when the king returned and found his treasury empty. The king

ordered, as a punishment to this heinous crime, that be should be blinded. The

treasurer being a loyal servant carried out on the spot with his own bands this

order and, to this day, two dark stains are shown upon the wall near the Kalyana

mantapa, which are said to be the marks made by his eyes which he himself dashed

against the wall. The builder of the temple did not survive long after this, and

hence the Kalyana

mantapa was left unfinished. Hence it is that the village is called Lepa-akshi

Lepakshi, i.e., a village of the blinded eye.

LEPAKSHI

Apart from the huge monolithic Nandi which is the largest sculpture of Nandi in

India, Lepakshi is famous for its exquisite Vijayanagar style of sculpture

which is found in the Natyamantapa and the Kalyanamantapam as well as from the

mural paintings that are found in the upper part of these walls. These

sculptures depict a number of Puranic legends and epics and a study of the

temple sculptures is an education by itself in the Puranas as well as in the

legends. There are excellent sculptures of Ananthasayana, life size figures of

Virupanna and images of Dattatreya, Chaturmukha Brahma, Tumburu, Narada and

Rambha in the Rangamantapa. The musical instruments, costumes, the gestures and

the ornaments of the Gods have been delineated here with great accuracy.

Especially beautiful are the sculptures of Annapoorna, Mrutyunjaya and Padmini.

LEPAKSHI

On the outer walls of the temple bas-reliefs depict the legends of the famous

Siva bbaktha Sriyala, and the story of Kiratarjuniya. These two legends are

quite famous. The story of Sriyala is a famous one and is as follows. The

parents of Sriyala were devotees of Lord Siva. In order to test the strength of

their devotion the Lord took on the appearance of an old mendicant and came to

their house seeking alms. He was received with great veneration, and he was

offered Bhiksha at the house. Since he had come there to test their devotion,

he declared that he would be satisfied with nothing else than the mother

herself should cook the flesh of their only son Sriyala, which he desired.

LEPAKSHI

Though the misery of the parents was very great, still since their adherence to

the rules of hospitality was very strict, they promised to do so and in fact

put the plan into execution, the mother holding the boy, and the father

severing the head. The mother, in order to remind herself of her dear son, kept

his head away. But the Lord insisted that it should also be disposed of. When

the food was about to be served, the Lord asked them to call out their son, and

when they came and called out Sriyala, the lad came from outside due to the

divine mercy. Thereupon Lord Siva gave them his darsan and disappeared.

This famous story of Siva Bhakti is depicted in the bas-reliefs on the outer

wall of the temple, with a fineness and vigor that is rarely met with.

Similarly the story of Kiratarjuniya or the story of the fight of Arjuna with

Lord Siva, while performing his tapascharya on the Indrakila hill in order to

obtain the Pasupatastra, is also depicted here in the bas-reliefs of the

temple.

LEPAKSHI

The walls of the sanctum of the temple of Veerabhadra, the ceilings of the

Rangamantapa shrine and the part of the Mukhamantapa joining the shrine of Siva

are full of mural paintings of the Vijayanagar period. Here also the scenes are

all from the Puranas. The marriage of Parvathi, the image of Dakshinamurthy,

Sri Rama, and Lord Krishna as Vatapatrasayi, are some of the important mural

paintings in this temple.

In the Ardhamantapa of the temple there are a number of panels representing

puranic legends. The first represents Lord Siva as arising from the Linga.

Markandeya who was frightened of Lord Yama is shown here. Lord Siva is shown as

dancing over the demon that he had pierced with his trident. In the next panel

Dakshinamurthy is shown as seated on a hillock under a pair of Vata Vrikshas

and surrounded by sages. The next panel depicts Lord Siva in his Anugraha

attitude presenting his axe or Parasu to Chandikeswara. The next scene

represents Lord Siva as Bhikshatana when, to expiate the sin of having severed

the head of Brahma, he had to wander as a Bhikshatana, till he reached the

Himalayas, where he was relieved of his sin.

LEPAKSHI

The Rishi Patnis are shown here as offering him food in a state of mind, where

their entire personality was suffused with a deep love and affection, at the

divine beauty of the body of the Lord. The poise of the Lord as Bhikshatana is

as noble and majestic, as that of the Sivaganga going before him is quaint and

funny. There is also a panel here showing the Hariharamurthy. Another scene

shows Siva as Kalyana-sundara, who is being married to Parvati. The best

painting here is that of Siva (Gangadhara) as Gowriprasadaka appeasing Gowri.

There is in this painting a happy blend of action and repose, anger and calm.

LEPAKSHI

There are in the mukha mantapa also, a number of mural paintings showing the

story of the Kiratarjuniya, Lord Krishna as Vatapatrasayi etc. There is an

excellent painting of the famous story of the legendary king Manuchola,

granting justice to a cow at the cost of the life of his own son. This is also

found painted in the temple at Tiruvalur in the South. The story, which is a

popular one, is as follows. Manuchola was a great king who noted for the

evenhanded justice meted out by him. In order that he should be available at

all times of the day and night, to any one who sought justice, he had a large

bell erected at the outside of his palace, which any one could ring at any

time, if he wanted to attract the personal attention of the king for any

injustice done to him. One day the bell rang furiously and the king ran out to

see a cow rignging the bell. He followed in the cow and found that the clf of

the cow had been accidentally killed by the chariot driven by the King’s son

and in its deep sorrow at the death of its calf, the cow was weeping and

seeking redress at the hands of the King.

LEPAKSHI

The King felt the justice of the demand, and ordered that, just as the chariot

of his own son ran over the calf and killed it, similarly his own son should be

laid at the foot of the same ratha, which should be driven by the cow, and his

own son should be sacrificed just as the calf was sacrificed. This adherence to

the principles of justice even at the cost of the life of his own son pleased

the Lord Siva who appeared before the King and gave back the life to his son

and to the calf. The story has been painted here in a series of panels with

great vividness. The Ardhamantapa is particularly famous for its paintings of

the different manifestations of Lord Siva. Here Siva is depicted in various

ways as Natana murthy, as Andhakasura dhwamsa trampling over the demon

Andhakasura, as Dakshinamurthy with a Kankana, Keyurahara and Kiratapatta etc.

etc. The Chandikesanugrahamurthy depicts Lord Siva with a long Kapalamala and

having a tiger skin wrapped round him. The Bhikshatana showing the Lord in the

Darukavana is another piece done with exquisite skill.

LEPAKSHI

The temple is a famous one, and attracts a large number of pilgrims during the

Sivarathri and other Saivite festivals. The temple is a veritable treasure

house of Vijayanagar sculpture and paintings and literal museum and art gallery

where the entire puranic legends of Lord Siva are translated into stone and

painting. The temple is still a very powerful one and attracts the pilgrim, the

devotee, the archaeologist, the sculptor and the painter in a like measure.

About Temple :

Veerabhadra Temple at Lepakshi has some of the best paintings from the period of

the Vijayanagar kings. The temple is built on a low hill called Kurma Sailam,

because it has the shape of a tortoise. Lord Rama, Lord Papanaseswars (Siva),

Veerabhadra, and Durga are all worshiped here.

 

 

Lepakshi ! A dignified name. Sounds auspicious and emits a splendour rare. And

like a dazzling diamond pendant adorning andhra mata, it delights by its two

bright sides, connossieurs and pilgrims alike. There is embossed on its obverse

an epic episode, and a historic one on the reverse.AntiquityThis indeed lacks in

heavenly connections,but it has one solitary epic association with Sri Rama’s

visitation, that took place in the Tretayaga; its historical connection through

Virupanna deserves reverent study; for it is bereft of imaginative flights;

moreover, the inscriptions give a full, clear, vivid account of its origin and

abrupt end too.The TempleIt is according to tradition was established by

Agastya himself in the dim past, but historical evidence begins with

Virupanna’s construction around 1550 A.D. The temple is called Sri

Veerabhadreswara Swamy Alayam. It is built on high mount called Kurmasila,

because of its resemblance to a tortoise, and hence called

Kurmasila Kshetra. It has two high prakaras with three entrances on the East,

West and North, and more adorned by charming towers. The second prakara

contains the rarest sculptural wealth; for here lies the main temple of

Veerabhadra, along with many mantapas etc., like spacious Garbagriha,

Mahamantapa, Kalyanamantapa, Natyamantapa and severala niches for many adorable

deities such as veerabhadra, Sri Rama, Durga, Adisesha, vinayaka and

gopalaswamy, all appearing in their best and remarkable for its sculptural

excellences. As we enter the second prakara, the huge image of Saptaphani

Nagendra enshrining a beautiful Sivalinga over a broad hood, greets our sight.

The sight feasts the eyes and raises our hands in homage. There is an image of

vinayaka next to it. The Principal Deity – Lord Siva is facing the images of

Lord Vishnu and Veerabhadra. These three form a triangle are close to one

another. The beautiful images of Sri Rama and Durga, and also found here. Such

conbination of

several deities under one roof is rare.FestivalsMahasivarathri is celebrated

with great religious fervour. Lacs of devotees visit and spend days

participating in many functions held. Other festivals auspicious to Durga and

Sri Rama too are celebrated with great eclat. Papaneswaraswamy Utsavam falling

in Aswija masa lasts for 10 days is a gala affair here and lures lacs of theist

pilgrims.

 

Lepakshi

The Lord Veerabhadra Temple in Lepakshi is renowned the world over as one of the

1O8 Shaiva temples of India. It is a typical example of exquisite Vijayanagara

architecture.The dance hall or the Natyamandapa is supported by 100 pillars

finely sculpted with figurines of dancing gods. From the middle of the hall

emerges a dome, twenty- one feet in height reminiscent of a giant lotus

reaching out to heaven. The temple also houses a life-size figure of

Veerabhadra, sculpted in granite along with carvings of the giant Naga linga,

the great bull, the flying Gandharvas, Ganesha etc.

 

Lepakshi:

Stone carvings of Lepakshi truly speak about the immense talents

of sculptors who brought life to any stone structures. The shilpakala (the art

of sculpture) of Lepakshi is indescribable. Lepakshi, which is famous for its

rich fine arts and architectural beauty, is situated in Ananthapur district at

120 km. away from the district headquarters and 12 km. from Hindupur.If we go

by the historical background of Lepakshi, the Skandapuranam says that it is one

of the 108 Saiva temples in India. Sri Virupanna, who worked as a Treasury

Officer of Penukonda Fort of Vijayanagara Empire, has taken up the construction

of Lord Veerabhadhra temple at Lepakshi. Sikhar of Lord Veerabhadra temple,

depicts the Ramayan. "Antarikshastambham the hanging pillar is another

highlight.The carvings

of man (Vasthupurusha) and woman along with other pictures on the pillars proves

the talent of sculptors and are some of the eye-catching sights in Lepakshi.

Above all, the 6 ft. height and 8 mt. length monolithic Nandi sculpture which

is said to be the biggest monolithic Nandi in India, is synonymous with

Lepakshi. The majestic Shilpakala of Nandi sculpture is inexplicable and it is

a feast for the eyes. Lepakshi is a good tourist center for both pleasure and

pilgrimage .. During the month of February (Asvayujamasam) the temple

authorities will conduct a 10 day long celebration including the car

festival.During the festivals, Lepakshi is packed with pilgrims from all over

the country.

 

Lepakshi Stone carvings of Lepakshi truly speak about the immense talents of

sculptorswho brought life to any stone structures. The shilpakala (the art of

sculpture) of Lepakshi is indescribable. Lepakshi, which is famous for its rich

fine arts and architectural beauty, is situated in Ananthapur district at 120

km. away from the district headquarters and 12 km. from Hindupur.

If we go by the historical background of Lepakshi, the Skandapuranam says that

it is one of the 108 Saiva temples in India. Sri Virupanna, who worked as a

Treasury Officer of Penukonda Fort of Vijayanagara Empire, has taken up the

construction of Lord Veerabhadhra temple at Lepakshi.

The "Sikhar" of Lord Veerabhadra temple, depicts the Ramayan.

"Antarikshastambham" the hanging pillar is another highlight.The carvings of

man (Vasthupurusha) and woman along with other pictures on the pillars proves

the talent of sculptors and are some of the eye-catching sights in Lepakshi.

Above all, the 6 ft. height and 8 mt. length monolithic "Nandi" sculpture which

is said to be the biggest monolithic Nandi in India, is synonymous with

Lepakshi. The majestic Shilpakala of Nandi sculpture is inexplicable and it is

a feast for the eyes.

Lepakshi is a good tourist center for both pleasure and pilgrimage. It is

centrally located between Hindupur and Kodikonda checkpost. The Andhra Pradesh

State Road Transport Corporation has its services daily from Hindupur. For

lodging, there is a R & B guest house at Hindupur and also the tourists can

stay at A.P Tourism Department rest house as well have their lunch.

During the month of February (Asvayujamasam) the temple authorities will conduct

a 10 day long celebration including the car festival. During the festivals,

Lepakshi is packed with pilgrims from all over the country.

 

SACRED TANKS OF SOUTH INDIA:- http://www.ukhap.nic.in/reports/SACTANKS.PDF

 

CONTACT THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES ABOUT HOW TO REACH THE PLACES:-http://www.aptourism.com/

http://www.andhratourism.com/

http://www.adhyapak.com/tours/aptoursdata.html

http://www.thebharat.com/states/andhrapradesh/html/tourism/

 

 

 

 

 

Sri Veerabhadra Swamy Temple

Lepakshi Temple is in the village of Lepakshi of Hindupur Town in Anantapur

District. It is 14 kms from Hindupur Railway Station. From the main bus stand,

devotees have to cover a distance of 14 kms by bus or Taxi. Anantapur is 114

kms away from the Temple. The nearest airport is Bangalore from where the

Temple is 110 kms away. Lepakshi is 65 kms away from Puttaparthi. Large number

of Buses and Taxis are available to transport the devotees from the above

places. The presiding diety of the Temple is Sri Veerabhadra Swamy.

[ © Infologic Cybernetics Limited ][ This page is best viewed in IE 4.0 and above ]

India Matrimony: Find your partner online.

Post your profile.