Mahanandi Temple

Mahanandi is one of the Navanandis ( nine nandis) that exists around Mahanandi area. Lord shiva as Mahanandiswara Swamy is the presiding deity of the temple at Mahanandi. The other eight Temples are  Shivanandi, Vinayakanandi, Somanandi, Prathamanandi, Garudanandi, Suryanandi, Krishnanandi (also called Vishnunandi) and Naganandi.

History :

The ancient temple dates back over 1,500 years. The inscriptions of 10th century tablets speak of the temple being repaired and rebuilt through successive ages by many kings.

Legend :

There are two popular legends as to why the place came to be called Nava Nandi. One version is that in the beginning, of Kritayuga, one Parvata had two sons called Silada and Nandi. The eldest son Silada got his name due to his strict penance in which he gave up eating any food except Sila or stone. The Lord was pleased by his devotion and converted Silada into a holy hill and began to live upon him. In the same manner, the second son Nandi also meditated upon Lord Siva, and the Lord converted him as his Nandi and made him his vehicle. The place where Nandi conducted his tapascharya is considered to be the portion where the present Mahanandi exists.

The other version is that a dynasty of local kings, known as Nandas, ruled here in the 11th century A.D. and they built a number of temples and worshipped their ancestral deity the Nandi, hence the name Mahanandi.

Temple :

The architecture of the temple water pools and the temple is a testimony for Vishwakarma Brahmins in planning the architecture for the pools and sculpting this temple. The main temple is surrounded by three pools: two small pools at the entrance and one big pool inside the temple premise. Holy tank is 60 square feet with a Mantapa in the centre.The temple is surrounded by mantapas on all sides. The Vimana over the sanctum is in Nagari style. It has a Shikara at the top.

The water is said to come from five springs called Srisailadhara, Narasimhadhara, Daivodhinidhara, Nanditirtha and Kailasatirtha in to the scraced pond of mahanadi.The sanctum contains a linga and is made from a rough uncut rock, with two sockets. Here the linga is seen just above the earth`s surface without the three Peethams underneath. All can touch and worship the Lord. A huge Nandi is at the front of the shrine and hence it is called Mahanandi Tirtha. The tank that lies behind is known as Rudra gundam and there are two more tanks called Vishnu gundam and Brahma gundam. Close to the main shrine is a shrine dedicated to the Goddess. The Srichakra in front of the deity is said to have been installed by Adisankara himself. The popular belief is that if one meditates upon the God then he will receive a darshan befitting his status in front of the mother. The mukhamantapa of the goddess is a recent construction. Mahanandi temple is famous for fresh water pools in the temple permises. The level of the water pools at Mahanandi remains at 5 feet and the pilgrims can easily take bath at Mahanandi. It is believed that a bath at Mahanandi tank purifies the body. The outlets of Mahanandi tank irrigate nearly 200 acres in Mahanandi village. No body knows the inlets and outlets of the Mahanandi tank, but the water level remains the same and warm at Mahanandi tank. Festivals : The most important festival is the Sivarathri. Pilgrims worship in the shrine of Mallikarjunaswamy and then at the shrine of Padma Nandi, which is two miles further ahead, in the Kartika masa. The other festivals like Dasara, Ugadi etc. are also important. Timings : 5.30 am to 9.00 pm How To Get Here :By Air : The nearest airport is at Hyderabad that is about 288kms from Kurnool. By Rail : Mahanandi can be well-reached by train with the nearest railway station at Nandyal. By Road : Mahanandi is located nearly 20 kms from Nandyala.