Anegudde Vinayaka Temple-Kumbhashi( Temple Not to Miss)

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Anegudde Vinayaka Temple

Kumbhashi, about nine kms to the south of Kundapur, is famous for

its two Temples, namely, Mahalingeshwara and Anegudde Vinayaka. The

name of the place is said to be derived from Kumbhasura who was

slain here. Inscriptions mention this place as Kumbha-Kashi. It is

one of the seven places of pilgrimage in the region

called " Parashurama Srishti " or the creation of Saint Parashurama.

 

The Anegudde Vinayaka Temple situated on the hill attracts a large

number of pilgrims. Important new activities in the area are started

after a worship of this deity. The Temple of Mahalingeshwara is

surrounded by a lake and poja is offered to a shallow pit in

which " water from the Bhagirathi (Ganga) " is said to collect. The

right side of the lake is called Surya-Pushkarini and the left-side

the Chandra-Pushkarini. There are also shrines of Suryanarayana,

Channakeshava and Lakshminarayana on the banks of the tank and a

branch of the Sode Mutt.

 

Anegudde means elephant (Aane) hillock (Gudde) and it is the abode

of the elephant god, Sri Vinayaka. Sri Vadiraja Yathi, in his

Theertha Prabandha epic said that when drought hit this area sage

Agasthya came here to perform yajna to please the rain god. The

demon Kumbhasura tried to disrupt the yajna by troubling the sages

performing the yajna. To rescue the sages Lord Ganesha blessed

Bheema, the strongest among the Padavas, with a sword (Asi), using

which Bheema killed the demon and facilitated the completion of the

yajna.

 

The main sanctum sanctorum contains the majestic figure of Vinayaka

resplendent in silver Armour, in standing posture. Of the four arms

two are " varada hasta " indicating his inclination to grant boons.

Two hands point to his feet, as a means to salvation. The Vinayaka

here is said to be a swayambhu (emerged by himself) who manifested

in Dwapara Yuga. What is striking is the very large head of the God

with huge ears.

 

Tulabharam, a custom of offering to God valuables in weight

equivalent of a person is frequently done in this Temple by

devotees. Auspicious ceremonies like wedding, naming ceremony etc

are also held here.

All around the shrine there are sculptural depictions from the

Bhargava Purana. People from far off places come here to take

blessings from Lord Vinayaka. Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated with

great splendor. Lunch is served to devotees as Prasadam. The

Prasadam here, as in most Temples in coastal districts, is the

Panchyagajjya, which is a mixture of dal, sugar, copra, milk and

honey. Devotees arriving from distant places are offered food and

shelter.

 

The sacred spot was called as Harihara Kshethra during Krutha Yuga,

Madhukanana in Thretha Yuga and Gowthama in Dwapara Yuga. In Kali

Yuga, it is famous as Kumbhashi, which is situated adjacent to NH 17

on way to Kundapur from Udupi and between Kota and Koteshwar. It was

also called as Nagachala.

 

The Temple management is hereditary-oriented and presently K

Lakshminarayana Upadhyaya and K Vishwambhara Upadhyaya are managing

trustees and K Sooryanarayana Upadhyaya holds the position of the

Dharmadarshi. The ancient Temple was renovated in 1985 and a new

compound wall, main entrance, tower (Mahagopura), Yajna Mantap,

dining hall, guest house, dormitory, water supply and others. In the

year 2000, a massive dining hall was completed at a cost of Rs one

crore, which also facilitates holding ceremonies. During the last 15

years (1985-2000), various developmental projects amounting to Rs

2.25 crores have been completed and the management also constructed

a Temple office and Naivedya Pakashala at an expense of Rs 60 lakhs.

 

Pooja:

Pooja is performed thrice a day, namely, at 5 am, 1 pm and 8.30 pm.

The Temple is open for devotees from 6 am to 9 am. A number of

devotees throng this Temple on Sunday, Tuesday, and Friday and on

special occasions such as Sankramana, Sankashtahara Chaturthi and

Ganesha Chowthi. The annual festival and Rathothsava is being held

on Margashira Chaturthi every year. At least ten Saharsra Nalikera

Ganayaga takes place here annually.

 

Other poojas offered to Lord Ganapathi include Sathya Ganapathi

Vratha during a marriage or when their wishes are duly met with.

Fruits, coconut, sugarcane, Modakam, Apoopa and Kadubu are offered

to Lord Ganapathi as Naivedyam (offerings).

 

The Moolabimba is massive in size and exhibited in the form of an

elephant. Only the trunk portion is clearly visible and the darshana

of this deity is symbolic. It is not a sculpture and is not touched

by a chisel or any other instrument to depict the shape.

 

As myths run, a devotee (Vishweshwara Upadhyaya) was living here,

regularly worshipping Lord Ganesha. On day, a Brahmin Vatu (young

boy) appeared in his dream and said that he was hungry. Taking

Upadhyaya with him, the Vatu disappeared near a stone in Nagachala.

Getting surprised by this unusual dream, he started off on the next

morning in search of the spot, where the Brahmin boy disappeared in

his dream. It was his usual path, which led to a pond, where he used

to take his bath, bring sacred water for Abhishekam and collect

flowers for worshipping Lord Ganesha.

 

Soon he found the same granite stone, which he witnessed in his

dream and was covered by wild flowers giving it a divine appearance.

Impressed by this sight, Upadhyaya hurriedly took his bath in the

nearby pond and worshipped the deity and offered wild flowers and

fruits. He continued to do so for a long time. One day, he saw a cow

standing there pouring in milk from her udder on the deity. After

this incidence, his devotion became stagnant and worshiped his God

with more devotion. People generously donated land on which a straw

hut was constructed to enable Upadhyaya to continue his worship.

Thus started a new tradition of worship at Kumbhashi, which did not

stop at any stage.

 

Anegudde Vinayaka Temple

N. H 17, Kumbhashi- 576222

Karnataka, India

Phone: 91 8254 761079

 

 

 

Koteshwara

Koteshwara, about four kms to the Kundapur is a place of religious

importance and is well known for its temple of Kotinatha or

Kotilingeshwara. It has also given its name to a section of

Brahmins. There is a large tank a few yards to the north of the

temple. The main temple is surrounded by small shrines of Ganapati,

Subramanya, Mahishasuramardini, Jyeshtha-Lakshmi, Gopalakrishna,

Saptamatrikas etc. The Kotilingeshwara temple has undergone

renovations several times. There are many lithic records of the

Alupa and Vijayanagara days. Koteshwara is one of the seven holy

places of the area, of which three more, namely, Shankaranarayana,

Kollur and Kumbhashi (Kumbha-Kashi) are also in the Kundapur taluk.