108 buried Siva temples found
By M. V. Subramanyam
http://www.hinduonnet.com/stories/2002060301550400.htm
SIDDAVATAM (Cuddapah dt.) June 2. The surfacing of five
ancient Siva temples partly in sand dunes along the Pennar river in Jyothi
village in Siddhavatam mandal has led to the discovery that as many as 108 Siva
temples have been buried under sand at the place.
Besides the rare presence of 108 Siva temples dating back to
1213 A.D., a silver chariot and a diamond crown said to have been presented to
the Jyothi Siddhavateswara Swamy temple by Kakatiya Rudrama Devi were present in
Jyothi village, according to inscriptions discovered.
The 108 Siva temples were said to have been constructed by
King Rakkasi Gangarayadeva and his aide, Jantimanayakudu, in the 12th century
and were buried under sand during the Muslim Kings' rule, says Pothuraju Venkata
Subbanna, a retired headmaster and chairman of several temples in Siddhavatam
mandal, who has been conducting a study for the past eight years and has
authored a voluminous book running to 1,200 manuscript pages, which he hopes to
publish shortly. The king's nephew, Nachalappa, is said to have constructed the
"Aleru Katta'', stairs leading to the Pennar from the group of temples, he
stated. The main temple called Jyothi Siddheswara Swamy temple, in which the
local people have been performing pooja of late, has a big Sivalingam and a
gaping hole to the right of a Sivalingam is a very long tunnel, presently
inhabited by bats. A handful of villagers who ventured into the tunnel at the
behest of Venkata Subbanna have returned after crawling barely for a few metres
due to suffocation. A life-size inscription in the temple has Swastik symbol on
the left and the Sun, Moon and a sturdy bull on the right. The sculpture in the
main temple, a temple gopuram and a mantapam, which partly surfaced, depicted
that of the Vijayanagar Kingdom, Venkata Subbanna told The Hindu. The
"Vaanara'' king, Sugreeva noted in an inscription that during his search
for Goddess Seetha, he entered Siddhavatam which has countless Siva temples,
whose architectural splendour were a feast to the eye. Aghorasiva, a
Mathadhipathi of Pushpagiri Math, stated in an inscription dating back to 1313
A.D. now present in Vaidyanatha Swamy temple in Pushpagiri Matham, that
Siddhavatam had several Siva temples of significance, Venkata Subbanna said.
Women of Jyothi village have been entering one of the
temples, having Goddess Kamakshi icon, whose entrance is partly opened up, by
crawling in and performing pooja of late. A gopuram built with bricks and a very
long 11-feet high and two-feet wide compound wall, said to be encasing the 108
temples, partly surfaced in October last year, thanks to the floods, Satya Sai
Lakshmi Reddy of Cuddapah, studying MBA at Chennai, who spent a fortnight doing
a project work on the ancient temples, told this correspondent. In all half a
dozen temples partly surfaced from the sand dunes so far.
The second Vikramarka King, who ruled with Alampur in
Mahabubnagar district as capital, has visited the Siddheswara temple and
impressed by it, constructed Nava (nine) Brahmeswara temples on the northern
side of Pennar, according to an inscription, he said. There is a mantapam built
with huge rock boulders, which has partly surfaced. The rich ancient cultural
heritage and temple of historical importance at Jyothi village needs to be
unravelled by planning excavation of the temples under expert guidance, to
prevent their damage.
|