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SriRangaSri List Archive: Message 00118 Jun 2004

 
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Dear sirs / Madams,

I am a regular reader of all the mails that's posted in our yahoogroup. I
have seen that many leaders / administrators like you are doing soo many
good things for all the temples in India and also in the overseas. But back
here in India there is  a necessity for all of us to wake up. I wish to
speak about the very very age old temples
located near Melkote. There are 3-4 very old temples which has its rich
heritage & history beyond 1000-5000years.

For those who are new to Melkote, I have attached some write-up ( copied
from the internet) about Melkote temple and the temples in the nearby
Thondanur where Sri Gopalakrishnaswamy temple and Sri Nambi Narayana Swamy
temples are located opposite to each other. There is also a temple of Sri
Yoga Narashima swamy along with Sri Ramanajar swamy in Shesha avatar.

There is only one priest Sri Raghuram Bhat who shuttles between Sri
Gopalakrishnaswamy temple and the Yoga Narashima swamy temple which is on
the nearby hillock. And there is another single priest named Sri K S
Seshadri Archakar.We understand that even for nitya Pooja there is severe
shortage of money. I also understand that the Endowment board that is
supposed to maintain these ancient temples gives only Indian ruppees
eighteen only per month for the daily expenditure for these temples where
great sages like Ramanujacharaya have performed poojas. These priests also
are not paid monthly salary from the Govt. They have to depend only on the
money that devotees put in the arathi plate.

Now these temples are in a very pathetic condition for want for good
administrators like you who can generate funds to bring back the glory these
temples had long long ago. Even though these temples are very huge and big
from outside, when you go in one will surely feel very bad why we Hindus
donot know how to maintain and protect our dieties and temples.

Like the work you are doing for this temple in tamilnadu. i also request
your kindselves to do something for these temples also. Somebody Pl help. Pl
help Pl help.Especially the significant temples like Yoga Narashima temple
on the hillock where its said that Ramanujar had a debate with 1000+strong
Jain monks and won over them and also converted them to vaishnavas. One has
to visit Melukote and Thondanur to see this and experience this in person.

      Melkote
      Temples of Karnataka



      Melkote located  near Mysore in Karnataka houses an ancient shrine to
Vishnu, worshipped as TiruNarayana. This shrine is known for its long
standing association with the spiritual leader Ramanujacharya. Melkote is
also known as Yadavagiri, yatistalam, Vedadri and Narayanadri.

      The presiding deity here (moolavar) is known by the name Tiru
Narayana, while the processional image of Vishnu goes by the name Selva
Pillai or Sampath Kumara. Vishnu's consort is known by the name Yadugiri
Taayaar. The image of Selvappillai is housed in the Rangamandapa. There are
shrines to Yadugiri Taayaar and Kalyani Nachiyaar. The temple tank is known
by the name Kalyani theertham.

      Legend has it this image of Vishnu was held in worship by Bhrahma. It
is believed that the festival image Sampatkumara was worshipped by Rama and
his son Kusha; hence the name Ramapriya. Legend has it that Krishna
installed this image here at Melkote.

      Melkote has two distinct temples. The Tirunarayana temple at the
foothills and the hill temple to Yoga Narasimha. Legend has it that the Yoga
Narasimha temple image was installed here by Prahlada.

      King Bittideva of Karnataka who embraced the Sri Vaishnava way of life
and patronized the saint Ramanujacharya, assumed the name of Vishnuvardhana
and built five shrines known as the Panchanarayana temples. It is believed
that at that time the Narayanapura shrine was in ruins and that both the
images of Tirunarayana and Sampathkumara were missing and that
Ramanujacharya discovered the image of Tirunarayana in the midst of Tulasi
shrubs on the Yadavagiri hill and installed it back in the temple.

      Legend has it that during the Muslim raids of South India, the
festival image of Melkote was stolen and taken away and that Ramanujacharya
restored it from the court of the ruler.  It is said that it  a muslim
princess had gotten attached to the image of Selvappillai and that being
unable to part with it, she followed the Acharya to Melkote and then merged
into the shrine there. In honor of this, there is an image of Bibi Nachiyar
here.

      This temple is known for its Vairamudi Sevai in the month of
March-April, when the image of Selvappillai is adorned with a diamond crown
and taken out in procession. It is traditional belief that this crown is not
to be looked at when it is not worn by the festival image; hence each year,
during the occasion, the officiating priest picks up the crown from its
chest with his eyes blindfolded and then places it upon the head of the
image of Selvappillai. Thousands congregate to celebrate this occasion each
year.

      Such was the hospitality of the residents of Melkote that they were
reluctant to let Ramanuja leave for Srirangam. Hence, Ramanujacharya made an
image of himself and left it behind. It is to be noted that Ramanuja's body
in its preserved state is maintained at Srirangam and that there is another
image of Ramanuja at Sriperumpudoor near Chennai.



      A write up to explain about the origination of Sri Nambi Narayana
Swamy temple:



Bitti Deva was the ruler of this place ( a Jain follower)

Ramanuja traveled eastward and came to Tondanur, the second capital of the
Hoysala Empire. Bitti Deva (Vittala Devaraya) was the name of the Hoysala
ruler. His daughter was suffering from a mental illness. Ramanuja by now had
become famous as the man who cured the illness of the Chola princess. When
the king sent for Ramanuja, he did not go at first. But when a
disciple,Tondanurunambi, assured him that the Hoysala king was not a
fanatical tyrant like the Chola king, Ramanuja agreed to go. He cured the
illness of the princess, to the delight of the king. He was drawn to
Ramanuja's faith and became a Srivaishnava. He then onwards came to be known
as Vishnu- vardhana. In memory of this great event, the king built five
Vaishnava temples Channiganarayana temple at Belur, Nambinarayana temple at
Tondanur, Kirtinarayana temple at Talakad, Veeranarayana temple at Gadag and
Chaluvanarayana temple at Melkote. These temples are lasting monuments of
Karnataka culture and architecture. Ramanuja built many other temples too in
Tondanur. He also got constructed a huge reservoir called
'Tirumalasagara'(now called Moti Talab


With Best Wishes & Regards

G. SATYA NARAYANAN
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