The temple of Ekaveera Devi at Mahur ,Maharashtra is the plae where the Devi’s Navel fell and the Goddess Ekaveera Devi’s Temple is one of the Four Half Goddess’s among the four, the others being Kolahpur, Tuljapur and Sapthashrungi.
Ekaveera Devi,Shakti Peeta
These are called thus because only the Head of The Goddess is visible.
There versions that this is the place where the Devi’s Right Breast.
Legend:
Renuka mata is the consort of Jamadagni maharshi. She usually brought water from river in a freshly made wet pot. But one day she saw Gandharvas enjoying in river, at that time she got worldly desires, so she was unable to create pot. After reaching Ashram without water, Jamadagni mahrashi identified her worldly desires and ordered his son Parasu Rama to separate her head. Parasu Rama obeyed his fathers order and cut her mothers head. The separated head of Renuka mata was Ekaveera devi. Remaining body was Renuka mata. After that on request of Parasu Rama, Jamadagni gave life to Renuka mata.
Ekaveera mata is the power present in axe of Parasurama. With this power only Parasu Rama cleaned Earth 21 times by kílling all kings on Earth.
Atri Anasuya ashram also present here. Dattatreya born to them here. Lord Dattaterya will come and sleep here every day.
Other places ,Mahur.
1.Renuka mata temple
2. Jagadguru Dattatreya swamy temple
3. Atri and Anasuya temple
4. Devdeveswar mandir
5. Matru teertha
6. Mahur fort
Srisaiala one of the Jyotir Linga Khestras of Lord Shiva is the place where the Devi‘s Neck fell and it is a Shakthi Peeta.
Alampure Jogulamba, Sri shaile Bhramarambika / Kolha pure Maha lakshmi, Mahurye Ekaveerika-Asthadasa Stotra of Adi Shankaracharya.
Shakti Peeta StisailaiPe
Appearing as Goddess Mahalakshmi, in what is generally assumed as a part of Shakta and Saivite culture, this is a symbol that the division between Saivites and Vaishnavites is some ting one should, I hold this view,be ashamed of.
And as a representation of the Hindu principle that the Cosmos is the unification of the Male and the Female Principle(Dynamic and Potential Energy respectively), the temple has Ardhanareeswara’I Lord Shiva and Devi in One Form..
Bramar means Bees .The humming of the bees , Hreem is the Bhijakshara of Goddess Bhuvaneswari.
‘Ome Sreem Hreem Hum Bhuvana mathre Namah’
The other unique feature of this Shakti Peeta is that a Sri Chakra is found in front of the Garbha Gruha,
The shrine of Lord Mallikarjuna picturesquely situated on a flat top of Nallamalai Hills, Srisailam is reputed to be one of the most ancient Kshetras in India. It is on the right side of the River Krishna in Kurnool District of Andhra Pradesh. This celebrated mountain is also named as Siridhan, Srigiri, Sirigiri, Sriparvatha and Srinagam. It has been a popular centre of Saivite pilgrimage for centuries.
The prominence of this Divya Kshetram is highlighted by the fact that while performing our daily household rituals we specify place of location of our existence with reference to Srisailam.
The presiding Deities of this kshetram Lord Mallikarjuna Swamy is one of the twelve Jyothirlingas and Goddess Bhramaramba Devi is one of the eighteen Mahasakthis and both are self-manifested.
The unique feature of this kshetram is the combination of Jyothirlingam and Mahasakthi in one campus, which is very rare and only one of its kind.
There is a common belief in vogue that this Holy Kshetram exists from times immemorial.
The antiquity and origin of God Mallikarjuna Swamy and Goddess Bhramaramba Devi is not known.
The Mallikarjuna Linga is accessible to each and every devotee and anybody can go into the sanctum sanctorum of Mallikarjuna, touch him and perform Abhishekam and Archana himself to recitation of Mantras by Archakas without caste or creed or religion
Legend:
A number of legends have grown round Srisailam and its principal deities. Among them the most significant one is that Parvatha, son of Silada Maharshi is said to have performed penance, pleased Siva and made him agree to live on his body. This Parvatha assumed the shape of big Hill Sriparvatha and Siva lived on its top as Mallikarjuna Swamy.
According to one story Chandravathi,the ruler of Chandraguptha Patana situated near Srisailam on the opposite bank of the river Krishna ran away from her father who made amorous advances to her went up the hill and settled down there with few servants. One day she found that one of her cows standing above a natural rock formation resembling the Sivalinga and shedding its milk over it. The princess in dream was informed that the piece of the stone was a self-manifested Linga of God Mallikarjuna and took to worshipping it. This story is mentioned in the Skanda Purana. Two sculptures of the Prakara Wall of the temple also represent this story.
According to another story Sri,the daughter of a Rishi did penance, pleased Siva and got her name associated with the name of the Hill( Sailam ) which thereafter came to be known as Srisailam.
Once upon a time, a demon named Arunaasura ruled the whole world. Chanting Gayatri mantra, he performed Tapasya for a very long time, and pleased Lord Brahma. Arunaasura, wished that he should not be kílled by two feeted and four feeted creatures. Lord Brahma granted his wish.
With this wish of Arunaasura, Devathas were worried and prąyed Adi Shakti. She appeared and told that, Arunaasura is her devote and can,t be kílled unless he stops worshiping her.
As per the plan of Devathas, Brihaspathi(Jupiter), the Deva guru meets Arunaasura. The demon wondered and asked Brihaspathi the reason for his vist. Brihaspathi told him that, as both of them worship the same deity, the Gayatri, there is no wonder if he meets him. Arunaasura felt ashamed of himself for worshiping Gayatri, who is also being worshiped by Devathas and stopped worshiping her. With this Adi Shakti became angry and took the form of Bhramari / Bhramarambika. She created innumerable bees, which have six legs. These bees kílled Arunaasura and his whole army within seconds.
Darshan Timing: 4.00 AM 10PM
Every year in the month of Ashviyja, Navaratri festival will be conducted in the Bhramaramba temple.
A local festival by name Kumbham is held every year in the month of Chaitra (around April).
INDIA>ANDHRA PRADESH>KURNOOL DISTRICT>SRISAILAM.
Srisailam is located in the Nallamala hills in a deep forest.
Nerest Bus station: Srisailam.
Nearest Railway stations: Markapur road, Ongole, Nandyala.
Nearest Air ports: Tirupati, Vijayawada.
The temple of Bhramaramba devi is located back to the Mallikarjuna swamy temple at a higher level, in the same campus.[Map Showing Bramarambha devi temple]
“Alampure Jogulamba, Sri shaile Bhramarambika’Asthadasa Stotrma ,Adi Shankaracharya.
Jogulamba,Alampur, Shakti Peetam, where Devi’s Upper Teeth fell.
The temple is on the left bank of the Tungabhadra river and is surrounded by Nallamala Hills.
Alampur is the meeting point of the sacred rivers Tungabhadra and Krishna and is referred to and is referred to as Dakshina Kashi(also known as Navabrahmeshwara Theertha) and the Western Gateway of Srisailam, the famous Shaivite (Shaivism) pilgrim centre.
The principal deities at Alampur are Brahmeshwara and Jogulamba.
Dhyana Rupa of Jogulamba
Idol of Jogulamba is in sitting position has huge amount of hair with lizard, scorpion, bat and a human scull in it. Idols of Saptamatrikas, Vighneswara and Veenapani veerabhadra are also present. Original Chandi Mundi idols were left in Bala brahmeswara swammy temple and new idols are made and placed in Jogulamba temple.
Old temple of Jogulamba was destroyed by Bahamani sultans in the 14th century. The idols of Jogulamba and her two shaktis Chandi, Mundi were protected from them and placed in Bala brahmeswara swamy temple untill 2005. Now, a new temple was constructed in the same place and the godess was shifted in to it. New temple of Jogulamba is very much beautiful to see with a nice granite flooring. It is surrounded by a water pool. Villagers of Alampur tell an interesting reason for it: “Jogulamba is an Ugra rupa (highly energetic and hard to worship) and this water pool makes the atmosphere cool so that we can easily worship her”.
Idol of Jogulamba is typical. She is in sitting position. She has huge amount of hair with lizard, scorpion, owl and a human scull in it. Idols of Saptamatrikas, Vighneswara and Veenapani veerabhadra are also present in the temple. Original Chandi Mundi idols were left in Bala brahmeswara swamy temple and new idols are made and placed in Jogulamba temple.
According to a legend, Maharshi Jamadagni has an ashram in Alampur & lived with his wife Renuka and four sons. They were making their livelihood and worshipping Bala Brahmeswara and Jogulamba Devi. Renuka Mata, with her power, regularly used to make a pot with sand and bring water from the Tungabhadra River. One day, she noticed a king of Gandharvas bathing in the river with his wives. By seeing that, she formed a prejudice that happiness comes from materialistic wealth but not by worship. She lost her power for her sinful thoughts and could not make the pot. So, she went home without water. Jamadagni asked her the reason; she told about the incident and admitted her sinful thoughts. Then, Jamadagni got angry on her and ordered his sons to kill her. Three of them refused to do so; but the fourth son, Parasurama obeyed the order of his father and killed his mother by cutting her head off with his axe. Jamadagni was pleased and offered him a boon. Parasurama asked him to give back life to his mother. Then Jamadagni revived her life.
(Goddess Shankari in Sri lanka, Kamakshi in Kanchipuram, Goddess Shrinkhala in Pradyumna and Chamunda in Mysore)
Chamundeshwari, Mysore.Shakti Peetam where Hair Fell’
“The Chamundeshwari Temple is considered as a Shakti Peetha and one among the 18 Maha Shakti Peethas. It is known as Krouncha Pitham as the region was known in Puranic times as Krouncha Puri. The origin of Shakti Peethas is associated to the mythology of Daksha yaga and Sati’s self immolation.”
The Legend of Chamunda.
Chamunda Hoysala Sculpture
Chamunda (Sanskrit: चामुण्डा, Cāmuṇḍā), also known as Chamundi, Chamundeshwari and Charchika, is a fearsome aspect of Devi, the HinduDivine Mother and one of the seven Matrikas (mother goddesses). She is also one of the chief Yoginis, a group of sixty-four or eighty-one Tantric goddesses, who are attendants of the warrior goddess Durga.[2] The name is a combination of Chanda and Munda, two monsters whom Chamunda killed. She is closely associated with Kali, another fierce aspect of Devi.[3] She is sometimes identified with goddesses Parvati, Chandi or Durga as well. The goddess is often portrayed as haunting cremation grounds or fig trees. The goddess is worshipped by ritual animal sacrifices along with offerings of wine and in the ancient times, human sacrifices were offered too. Originally a tribal goddess, Chamunda was assimilated in Hinduism and later entered the Jain pantheon too. Though in Jainism, the rites of her worship include vegetarian offerings, and not the meat and liquor offerings.
In Hindu scripture Devi Mahatmya, Chamunda emerged as Chandika Jayasundara from an eyebrow of goddess Kaushiki, a goddess created from “sheath” of Durga and was assigned the task of eliminating the demons Chanda and Munda, generals of demon kings Shumbha-Nishumbha. She fought a fierce battle with the demons, ultimately killing them. Goddess Chandika Jayasundara took the slain heads of the two demons to goddess Kaushiki, who became immensely pleased. Kaushiki blessed Chandika Jayasundara and bestowed upon her the title of “Chamunda”, to commemorate the latter’s victory over the demons.
According to a later episode of Devi Mahatmya, Durga created Matrikas from herself and with their help slaughtered the demon army of Shumbha-Nisumha. In this version, Kali is described as a Matrika who sucked all the blood of the demon Raktabija. Kali is given the epithet Chamunda in the text.[11] Thus, the Devi Mahatmya identifies Chamunda with Kali.
In Varaha Purana, the story of Raktabija is retold, but here each of Matrikas appears from the body of another Matrika. Chamunda appears from the foot of the lion-headed goddess Narshmi. Here, Chamunda is considered a representation of the vice of tale-telling (pasunya). The Varaha Purana text clearly mentions two separate goddesses Chamunda and Kali, unlike Devi Mahatmya.[7]
According to another legend, Chamunda appeared from the frown of the benign goddess Parvati to kill demons Chanda and Munda. Here, Chamunda is viewed as a form of Parvati.[12]
Matsya Purana tells a different story of Chamunda’s origins. She with other matrikas was created by Shiva to help him kill the demon Andhakasura, who has an ability – like Raktabija – to generate from his dripping blood. Chamunda with the other matrikas drinks the blood of the demon ultimately helping Shiva kill him.[7]Ratnakara, in his text Haravijaya, also describes this feat of Chamunda, but solely credits Chamunda, not the other matrikas of sipping the blood of Andhaka. Having drunk the blood, Chamunda’s complexion changed to blood-red.[13] The text further says that Chamunda does a dance of destruction, playing a musical instrument whose shaft is Mount Meru, the spring is the cosmic snake Shesha and gourd is the crescent moon. She plays the instrument during the deluge that drowns the world.
The temple is located near Mysore,Karnataka and is administered by the Sri Sringeri Mutt.
The First Shakti Peetam Shankari Devi at Trincomalle is was also destroyed and what we have there is only the Murthy and some portions of the old building.
Shrunkala Devi, Second Shakti Peeta,Destroyed By IslamMinar of Shrinkala Devi, under ASI.Window at Shrinkala Devi Temple< West Bengal
Pillar remains at Shrinkala Devi temple.New Shrinkala Devi temple
Location:
Shrinkala Devi temple is located in Pandua, Hoogly district, West Bengal. Pandua is 66 kms from Howrah railway station.
It is also believed that the temple is in Sringeri, Karnataka.( I am unable to locate this, I am not sure if this is Sringeri Sharada)
There is also another temple dedicated to Hanseshwari Devi near Shrinkala temple.
At present there is no temple in Pandua. During Muslim rulers’ invasion, the temple was destroyed and in its place a Minar is built.
The entry to the temple is barred for security reasons. The temple is maintained by the Archaeological survey of India.
“Regarding the temple ofShrinkhala devi near calcutta:
It is said to be situated as u said in Hugli dist in a place by name Pandua.
Just for your information I myself had been to the place with my friends where the temple of Shrinkhala devi was supposed to be in the past.
At present there is no temple in the place, a minar was built there by muslim invaders and at present the place is under the protection of Archeological society of India, the door was locked and when we enquired the way inside we came to know that entry was banned into the temple (the so called minar) because of security reasons, but there were clear cut and significantly distinguishable features at the main door of the construction showing that it was once the main entrance of a Hindu temple probably of Shrinkhala Devi. There were ruins of temple infront of minar.
Another supportive evidence about the temple was obtained when we enrquired local residents, Every year during magha maasa (Around February) a festival by name MELA TAALA of about 30 days duration is celebrated in the premises of the minar which is attended by local hindu and muslim communities in large numbers (More than 1 lakh). It is one of the important celebration of that place.
Another interesting fact is that near to Pandua there is a temple of Hanseswari mata which is regarded as Shakti peetha.
Taking into consideration all the above facts observed and collected it could be a possibility that it was the place where there was Shrinkhala devi temple.
Regarding the story of Rushya srunga it is said that he was grown up by his father from his child hood without exposure to the external world away from everyone except his father himself in the forest.This sage was pure at heart that he had a soul of an infant who does not get into the wordly joy. This made him a devotee of Shrinkhala devi .
There is also a contest in great epic of hindus ”The Ramayana” about this sage that he was the one who conducted the Putrakaameshti yaaga for king Dasaradha.
King Romapada a friend of Dasradha adopted Santha devi who was the sister of Sri Rama.He requested this sage to conduct a yagna to get relief of very long famine which was relieved after the yagna.On the request of the king this sage married Santha devi and conducted the above metioned Yagna .
After some time this great sage as was a great devotee of Shrinkhala devi brought her in the sense his mother to Sringeri and distributed the energy around the Srunga parvatha and there he constructed temples to the deity. These places are also regarded as Shakti peethas…
Shrinkala devi was supposed to be in West bengal, hoogly district.But as such there is no temple also.A story says that Sage Rishya Shringala has brought to her to shringeri in karnataka.Any further light on this story?
Saraswati devi of sharada peetham was supposed to be at 120 kms from Mujjafarrabad in POK.But as such the temple is completly ruined by the localites.Anticipating the future Saint Sankaracharya has brought her to Shringeri in Karnatak.The present deity of Sharada is none other than Saraswati devi.Any further light on this story?
There are remnants of the existence of a temple earlier.
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