The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
In a time long, long back,
even before temples were built, certain sites were considered
sacred. Among such sites are the islands on the Kaveri, which were marked out
as abodes of Lord Vishnu. It is said, that when the Kaveri flowed down from
Agasthya’s kamandalu, free and
unbound, she asked a boon from Lord Vishnu, that she be considered more sacred
than the Ganga. And Vishnu agreed. He replied, “The Ganga flows from my feet. You,
Kaveri, are my garland! And it is thus she flows, around these islands
demarcated for Him, like a garland, sanctifying the land, and those of us who
visit, with her mere presence. The first among these islands is Srirangapatna,
near Mysore.
Lord Ranganatha here is
called Adi Ranga – the first among
the Ranganathas, since there are more such abodes of his, downstream. The temple
here is an ancient one, first built by a Ganga chieftain, Tirumalaraya, in 894
AD. The temple was later expanded by the Hoysalas, the Vijayanagara kings, the
Wodeyars, and finally, Hyder Ali. The Hoysala and Vijayanagara influences are
clearly evident, especially in the pillars and columns.
The entry to the sanctum
is through a mandapa, which is
decorated with various forms of Vishnu. Unfortunately, photography is not
allowed inside the temple, and the outside was under renovation when we
visited, so I do not have many photos to show you.
The main sanctum has a
massive idol depicting Lord Vishnu reclining on the seven hooded Adishesha, his
consort, Lakshmi at his feet, and other deities flanking him. This is said to
be the biggest Ranganatha idol in Karnataka.
Interestingly, as I mentioned
before, all the major islands on the Kaveri are dedicated to Ranganatha Swamy, and
there are three such island temples –
- The first is this temple, at Srirangapatna, 15 Km from Mysore, called Adi Ranga.
- The second , Madhya Ranga, is at Shivanasamudra, 60 Km from Mysore, better known for its waterfalls.
- The third, Antya Ranga, is at Srirangam, near Trichy, and is the biggest and grandest temple of the three!
A single day pilgrimage
to these three temples is considered extremely sacred, and is popularly called ‘Tri-ranga
Darshanam’.
 |
| This map I saw at the temple might be of use to those of you who would like to try out the Tri Ranga Darshanam |
Even more interestingly,
this temple also figures on another pilgrimage list – the Pancha Ranga Kshetram, or
5 shrines of Lord Rangnatha. These five temples are -
- Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangapatna, near Mysore
- Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam, near Trichy
- Sarangapani Temple, Kumbakonam
- Sri Appakudathan Temple, Trichy
- Sri Parimala Ranganatha Perumal Temple, Mayiladudurai.
The story of the Ranganatha Swamy
temple is the ancient story of Srirangapatna. However, the city has more
stories to tell … stories from the more recent past, as well as the present.
Over the next few weeks, you can look forward to reading more of these stories,
so keep coming back!
Information:
- Location: Srirangapatna is about 15 Km from Mysore.
- Temple Timings: 07:30 AM to 1 PM; 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Informative post. The temple at Srirangapatana is an impressive one. Nice to know about its connection with the other Ranganatha temples.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Niranjan!
DeleteNice post one...Thanks for sharing this...
ReplyDeleteInformative post. The temple at Srirangapatana is an impressive one. Nice to know about its connection with the other Ranganatha temples.Nice post one..
ReplyDeleteThank you dear for this information. I was under the information that Srirangam and Srirangapatna both are same. I have visited Srirangam many times, but never had a chance to visit Srirangapatna. Thank you very much .
ReplyDeleteGood post. :)
ReplyDeleteNice post
ReplyDelete