Author: M.V. Subramanyam
Publication: The Hindu
Date: June 3, 2002
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.
