Simhachalam
Encyclopedia
Simhadri or Simhachalam temple is a Hindu temple
located near Visakhapatnam
in Andhra Pradesh
, South India
. It is dedicated to the incarnation (Avatar
) of Vishnu
known as Narasimha
(the man-lion). The temple is a mix of Orissan
(main/central shrine) and Dravidian
(entrance) styles of architecture.
Atop the hill is a famous temple said to be the abode of Varaha Narasimha Swami, and hence the hill itself is called (nara) simhachalam. The temple is situated in the city of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
) earning a revenue of Rs.
520 million. The main deity inside the temple sanctorum gives "nijaroopa darshan" (holy appearance in true form) for only 12 hours in a year i.e. on Akshaya Tritiya
day, the rest of the time the deity is covered with Sandalwood
paste. The darshan described as 'Chandana yatra' or 'Chandanotsavam' falls every year in Vaisakha
masa (May).
was a Rakshasa
king. He was in fact one of Vishnu
's Dwarapalakas or gate keepers in Vaikuntha
, Jaya and Vijaya
. They had to take birth in the mortal world thrice because of a curse given by Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanathana and Sanathkumara
, who were not allowed to take darshan of Mahavishnu by them. The other palaka was born as his brother Hiranyaaksha.
Hiranyakasipu wanted to become immortal and hence performed austerities (tapasya) to propitiate Lord Brahma. However, Lord Brahma said that was not possible so Hiranyakasipu asked Lord Brahma to grant him a boon so that he could not be killed by any animal or a man neither in the morning nor in the night, by any weapons, neither in sky nor on the earth.
Hiranyakasipu wanted the entire world to worship him. But, Prahalada, his son, was a devotee of Lord Narayana and always expressed his bhakti towards Him. In spite of warning him several times, Hiranyakasipu could not alter Prahlada's devotion.
This made Hiranyakasipu angry and he made numerous attempts to get Prahlada killed. One of them was to throw him off the top of a mountain. However, Vishnu rescued him by moving the mountain and made a small path for Prahaladha. It is said that in the place where the Lord stood to protect Prahaladha is the place where the temple is built.
The most important thing about this temple is that here we can't see the God's feet. It is said that the feet is buried inside the earth. Lord Narayana came to rescue Parahalada on Garuda and when they threw Parahalada Lord Narayana jumped from Garuda to save him and in this process his feet went deep into the earth.
Swamy as the presiding deity. The deity at Simhachalam, the lion-man incarnation of Lord Mahavishnu is usually covered with sandalwood paste. The original shape of the deity in the tribhanga posture has two hands with the head of a lion on a human torso. An inscription dated as far back as 1098 AD of the Chola King Kuloththunga provides some clue as to its antiquity. Another inscription shows a Queen of the Eastern Ganga
of Kalinga
(ancient Orissa
) (1137-56 AD) covering the image with gold while a third inscription says the eastern Ganga King of Orissa, Narasimha Deva, built the main/central shrine in 1267 A.D. With more than 252 inscriptions in Oriya
and Telugu
describing the antecedents of the temple, it is a historically important monument.
Sri Krishna Deva Raya after defeating the Gajapati
ruler of Orissa
Gajapati Prataparudra Dev visited the shrine twice in 1516 AD and 1519 AD and offered numerous villages for maintenance of bhogam (worship) along with valuable jewellery of which an emerald necklace is still in the temple. For the last three centuries the royal family of Vizianagaram
, "The Pusapati
Gajapathi's" have been the temple's trustees. Giripradhikshana (circumambulation) around the hill range (~40 km) from Hanumantha vaka/MVP colony to Simhachalam is done by piligrims during the auspicious days. Crowds of elderly people/youth/children are observed walking the 40 km stretch over night. They visit the temple after the long journey and give their offerings to the deity.
approved a master plan for the development of the region into Divyakshetram on similar lines of Tirumala.
It is said that when Muslims during one of their invasions were about to destroy and plunder the temple, a poet by name Kurmanatha implored Lord Varaha Narasimha to save his temple and the Hindus. In response to his fervent prayers, a huge swarm of copper hornets suddenly appeared and attacked the invading army and drove them out of the city. The swarm disappeared behind a hillock after driving out the Muslim armies. That hillock is now known as Tummedala Metta (Tummedala=of hornet, Metta=hillock).
The hilltop road, as well as the location of the eastern ghat ranges are beautiful and picturesque. The hills are densely populated with trees like cashew, shrubs, mango groves, etc. The forestry is protected and well conserved. The greenery attracts tourists as well as nature lovers.
The localities near the piligrame include Srinivasanagar, Prahladapuram, Sainagar colony, Simhapuri colony and many other housing areas.
Hindu temple
A Mandir, Devalayam, Devasthanam, or a Hindu temple is a place of worship for followers of Hinduism...
located near Visakhapatnam
Visakhapatnam
Visakhapatnam is a major sea port on the south east coast of India. With a population of approximately 1.7 million, it is the second largest city in the state of Andhra Pradesh and the third largest city on the east coast of India after Kolkata and Chennai. According to the history, the city was...
in Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
, South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
. It is dedicated to the incarnation (Avatar
Avatar
In Hinduism, an avatar is a deliberate descent of a deity to earth, or a descent of the Supreme Being and is mostly translated into English as "incarnation," but more accurately as "appearance" or "manifestation"....
) of Vishnu
Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
known as Narasimha
Narasimha
Narasimha or Nrusimha , also spelt as Narasingh and Narasingha, whose name literally translates from Sanskrit as "Man-lion", is an avatar of Vishnu described in the Puranas, Upanishads and other ancient religious texts of Hinduism...
(the man-lion). The temple is a mix of Orissan
Kalinga architecture
The Kaḷinga architectural style is a style which flourished in the ancient Kalinga region or present eastern Indian state of Orissa and northern Andhra Pradesh. The style consists of three distinct types of temples: Rekha Deula, Pidha Deula and Khakhara Deula...
(main/central shrine) and Dravidian
Dravidian architecture
Dravidian architecture was a style of architecture that emerged thousands of years ago in Southern part of the Indian subcontinent or South India. They consist primarily of pyramid shaped temples called Koils which are dependent on intricate carved stone in order to create a step design consisting...
(entrance) styles of architecture.
Origin of the name
Simha: Lion ; Adri or Achala: Hill (one which cannot be moved, viz. hill).Atop the hill is a famous temple said to be the abode of Varaha Narasimha Swami, and hence the hill itself is called (nara) simhachalam. The temple is situated in the city of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
Significance
It is one of the eighteen "Naarasimha Kshetras" i.e. shrines of Lord Narasimha in India. Simhachalam temple is known as the second richest temple in India (after TirupatiTirumala Venkateswara Temple
Tirumala Venkateswara Temple ), is a Hindu temple in the hill town of Tirumala, near Tirupati in the Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh, South India. It is around from Chennai, from Hyderabad, and from Bangalore....
) earning a revenue of Rs.
Rupee
The rupee is the common name for the monetary unit of account in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Mauritius, Seychelles, Maldives, and formerly in Burma, and Afghanistan. Historically, the first currency called "rupee" was introduced in the 16th century...
520 million. The main deity inside the temple sanctorum gives "nijaroopa darshan" (holy appearance in true form) for only 12 hours in a year i.e. on Akshaya Tritiya
Akshaya Tritiya
Akshaya Tritiya, also known as Akha Teej is a Hindu and Jain holy day, that falls on the third Tithi of Bright Half of the pan-Indian month of Vaishakha....
day, the rest of the time the deity is covered with Sandalwood
Sandalwood
Sandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oils are also extracted...
paste. The darshan described as 'Chandana yatra' or 'Chandanotsavam' falls every year in Vaisakha
Vaisakha
Vaishakha or Baisakha is a month of the Hindu calendar. It is the first month of the Nepalese calendar and the Bengali calendar . In the Indian national calendar Vaisakha is the second month of the year, beginning on April 21 and ending on May 20.In the Hindu solar calendar, Vaisakha begins in...
masa (May).
Legend
HiranyakasipuHiranyakashipu
Hiranyakashipu [golden-haired] is an Asura from the Puranic scriptures of Hinduism. The Puranas describe Hiranyakashipu as an Asura. His younger brother, Hiranyaksha was slain by Varaha, one of the Avatars of Vishnu and angered by this, Hiranyakashipu decided to gain magical powers by performing...
was a Rakshasa
Rakshasa Kingdom
Rakshasa Kingdom refers to the territory of Rakshasas who were a tribe, mentioned along with others like Devas , Asuras , Pisachas, Gandharvas, Kimpurushas, Vanaras, Suparnas, Kinnaras, Bhutas and Yakshas...
king. He was in fact one of Vishnu
Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
's Dwarapalakas or gate keepers in Vaikuntha
Vaikunta
Vaikuntha , Param Padam , or Paramapadam is the abode of Lord Vishnu. It is believed, in the tradition of Vaishnavites, to be the place of eternal bliss, exclusive to the Lord, His eternal consort, the Goddess Lakshmi, and the three-folded Serpent Sesha Naga, upon whom the Lord, and His Shakti ,...
, Jaya and Vijaya
Jaya-Vijaya
Jaya and Vijaya are the two demigod gatekeepers of the abode of Vishnu, known as Vaikuntha .-Curse of the four Kumaras:...
. They had to take birth in the mortal world thrice because of a curse given by Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanathana and Sanathkumara
Four Kumaras
The Four Kumāras or Catursana are the four sons of Brahma from the Puranic texts of Hinduism named Sanaka, Sanatana, Sanandana and Sanatkumara....
, who were not allowed to take darshan of Mahavishnu by them. The other palaka was born as his brother Hiranyaaksha.
Hiranyakasipu wanted to become immortal and hence performed austerities (tapasya) to propitiate Lord Brahma. However, Lord Brahma said that was not possible so Hiranyakasipu asked Lord Brahma to grant him a boon so that he could not be killed by any animal or a man neither in the morning nor in the night, by any weapons, neither in sky nor on the earth.
Hiranyakasipu wanted the entire world to worship him. But, Prahalada, his son, was a devotee of Lord Narayana and always expressed his bhakti towards Him. In spite of warning him several times, Hiranyakasipu could not alter Prahlada's devotion.
This made Hiranyakasipu angry and he made numerous attempts to get Prahlada killed. One of them was to throw him off the top of a mountain. However, Vishnu rescued him by moving the mountain and made a small path for Prahaladha. It is said that in the place where the Lord stood to protect Prahaladha is the place where the temple is built.
The most important thing about this temple is that here we can't see the God's feet. It is said that the feet is buried inside the earth. Lord Narayana came to rescue Parahalada on Garuda and when they threw Parahalada Lord Narayana jumped from Garuda to save him and in this process his feet went deep into the earth.
History
It has Sri Varahalakshmi NarasimhaNarasimha
Narasimha or Nrusimha , also spelt as Narasingh and Narasingha, whose name literally translates from Sanskrit as "Man-lion", is an avatar of Vishnu described in the Puranas, Upanishads and other ancient religious texts of Hinduism...
Swamy as the presiding deity. The deity at Simhachalam, the lion-man incarnation of Lord Mahavishnu is usually covered with sandalwood paste. The original shape of the deity in the tribhanga posture has two hands with the head of a lion on a human torso. An inscription dated as far back as 1098 AD of the Chola King Kuloththunga provides some clue as to its antiquity. Another inscription shows a Queen of the Eastern Ganga
Eastern Ganga dynasty
The Eastern Ganga dynasty reigned from Kalinga and their rule consisted of the whole of the modern day Indian state of Orissa as well as parts of West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh from the 11th century to the early 15th century. Their capital was known by the name Kalinganagar, which is...
of Kalinga
Kalinga
Kalinga is a landlocked province of the Philippines in the Cordillera Administrative Region in Luzon. Its capital is Tabuk and borders Mountain Province to the south, Abra to the west, Isabela to the east, Cagayan to the northeast, and Apayao to the north...
(ancient Orissa
Orissa
Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
) (1137-56 AD) covering the image with gold while a third inscription says the eastern Ganga King of Orissa, Narasimha Deva, built the main/central shrine in 1267 A.D. With more than 252 inscriptions in Oriya
Oriya language
Oriya , officially Odia from November, 2011, is an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family. It is mainly spoken in the Indian states of Orissa and West Bengal...
and Telugu
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
describing the antecedents of the temple, it is a historically important monument.
Sri Krishna Deva Raya after defeating the Gajapati
Gajapati Kingdom
The Gajapatis were a medieval Hindu dynasty that ruled over Kalinga , large parts of Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, and the eastern and central parts of Madhya Pradesh and the southern parts of Bihar from 1434-1541. Gajapati dynasty was established by Kapilendra Deva in 1434...
ruler of Orissa
Orissa
Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
Gajapati Prataparudra Dev visited the shrine twice in 1516 AD and 1519 AD and offered numerous villages for maintenance of bhogam (worship) along with valuable jewellery of which an emerald necklace is still in the temple. For the last three centuries the royal family of Vizianagaram
Vizianagaram
Vizianagaram is the main city of the Vizianagaram District of north-eastern Andhra Pradesh in southern India. Vizianagaram district was formed on 1 June 1979, with some parts carved from the neighbouring districts of Srikakulam and Visakhapatnam. It is, at present, the largest municipality of...
, "The Pusapati
Pusapati
Pusapati or Poosapati was the ruling clan of the Kalinga Vizianagaram . They were Kshatriyas of the Suryavanshi sect.-History:...
Gajapathi's" have been the temple's trustees. Giripradhikshana (circumambulation) around the hill range (~40 km) from Hanumantha vaka/MVP colony to Simhachalam is done by piligrims during the auspicious days. Crowds of elderly people/youth/children are observed walking the 40 km stretch over night. They visit the temple after the long journey and give their offerings to the deity.
Recent developments
In October 2007, the Government of Andhra PradeshAndhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
approved a master plan for the development of the region into Divyakshetram on similar lines of Tirumala.
Trivia
The Simhachalam temple faces west unlike so many others which face east. An east-facing entrance, according to religious belief, brings prosperity while a west-facing one brings victory.It is said that when Muslims during one of their invasions were about to destroy and plunder the temple, a poet by name Kurmanatha implored Lord Varaha Narasimha to save his temple and the Hindus. In response to his fervent prayers, a huge swarm of copper hornets suddenly appeared and attacked the invading army and drove them out of the city. The swarm disappeared behind a hillock after driving out the Muslim armies. That hillock is now known as Tummedala Metta (Tummedala=of hornet, Metta=hillock).
The hilltop road, as well as the location of the eastern ghat ranges are beautiful and picturesque. The hills are densely populated with trees like cashew, shrubs, mango groves, etc. The forestry is protected and well conserved. The greenery attracts tourists as well as nature lovers.
The localities near the piligrame include Srinivasanagar, Prahladapuram, Sainagar colony, Simhapuri colony and many other housing areas.