Sri
Mattapalli Naatham Pranathosmi Nithyam Namaha
short description:-
Like many temples of Lord Narasimha Swami, even this temple
at Mattapalli is situated in a cave. Yoga Narasimha Swami Shrine is one of the
spectacular temples of the ancient times. It is believed that the Lord Vishnu,
who takes the form of Yogananda Narasimha Swami in this temple, was worshipped
by sages and Gods.
Sthala Puranam :-
The Maha Kshetram is in the midst of a dense and lovely
forest, which instills awe and inspiration in the minds of the visiting
pilgrims. In one of the caves adjoining the pilgrim town, the image of the Lord
has been radiating glory from times immemorial. Legend had it that Sri
Bharadwaaja Maharshi worshipped this deity everyday accompanied by several
other sages. In those unknown times, only sages and gods could worship the self
revealed images of Narasimha in the cave. Later the sages who had the welfare of
this world at their heart, decided to throw open this holy place to the common
man. An auspicious time for it came in Kali Yuga.The deity was revealed in a
dream to the devotee Sri Anumala Machireddi, the ruler of Thangeda which is 3
km off Mattapalli on the opposite bank of the Krishna river. The Lord wished
Machireddi to reveal his image for the good of the mankind during Kali Yuga.
The ruler accompanied by his pandits, searched all the caves on the banks of
river Krishna, as ordained by the Lord, but could not trace the location of the
deity. Sad and depressed, he fell asleep in the forest. Again the Lord appeared
in his dream and ordained him to search further, in a designated area near an
"Aare" tree hidden behind the foliage in a cave. Waking up, the ruler
found the cave and the image of the Lord in a seated posture, with the
wellspread hood of Sesha over his head, fully adorned with Shankha Chakra Gadha
and as if the Lord was being worshipped regularly, with flowers, sacred leaves,
fruits etc. Overjoyed, the ruler revealed the Maha Kshetram to the general
public and constructed a Mukhaalaya.
About Sri Anumala Machireddy :-
The name and fame of Machireddi has lived down to this day
and we still see his benevolence and benefaction inscribed in the golden
kalasams in the Siva temple of Srisailam,and others like Kasi Visheswara, Lord
Gopala in Thangeda etc.However the fort of Thangeda is now in ruins.
Description of the Garbhagriha :-
There is a rock above the door to the sanctum sanctorum. On
it is the sculptured motif of Gaja Lakshmi with two elephants raising their
trunks upwards on either side. The sanctum is a cave. The roof of the
Garbhagriha is a big rock.
short description:-
Like many temples of Lord Narasimha Swami, even this temple
at Mattapalli is situated in a cave. Yoga Narasimha Swami Shrine is one of the
spectacular temples of the ancient times. It is believed that the Lord Vishnu,
who takes the form of Yogananda Narasimha Swami in this temple, was worshipped
by sages and Gods.
Sthala Puranam :-
The Maha Kshetram is in the midst of a dense and lovely
forest, which instills awe and inspiration in the minds of the visiting
pilgrims. In one of the caves adjoining the pilgrim town, the image of the Lord
has been radiating glory from times immemorial. Legend had it that Sri
Bharadwaaja Maharshi worshipped this deity everyday accompanied by several
other sages. In those unknown times, only sages and gods could worship the self
revealed images of Narasimha in the cave. Later the sages who had the welfare of
this world at their heart, decided to throw open this holy place to the common
man. An auspicious time for it came in Kali Yuga.The deity was revealed in a
dream to the devotee Sri Anumala Machireddi, the ruler of Thangeda which is 3
km off Mattapalli on the opposite bank of the Krishna river. The Lord wished
Machireddi to reveal his image for the good of the mankind during Kali Yuga.
The ruler accompanied by his pandits, searched all the caves on the banks of
river Krishna, as ordained by the Lord, but could not trace the location of the
deity. Sad and depressed, he fell asleep in the forest. Again the Lord appeared
in his dream and ordained him to search further, in a designated area near an
"Aare" tree hidden behind the foliage in a cave. Waking up, the ruler
found the cave and the image of the Lord in a seated posture, with the
wellspread hood of Sesha over his head, fully adorned with Shankha Chakra Gadha
and as if the Lord was being worshipped regularly, with flowers, sacred leaves,
fruits etc. Overjoyed, the ruler revealed the Maha Kshetram to the general
public and constructed a Mukhaalaya.
About Sri Anumala Machireddy :-
The name and fame of Machireddi has lived down to this day
and we still see his benevolence and benefaction inscribed in the golden
kalasams in the Siva temple of Srisailam,and others like Kasi Visheswara, Lord
Gopala in Thangeda etc.However the fort of Thangeda is now in ruins.
Description of the Garbhagriha :-
There is a rock above the door to the sanctum sanctorum. On
it is the sculptured motif of Gaja Lakshmi with two elephants raising their
trunks upwards on either side. The sanctum is a cave. The roof of the
Garbhagriha is a big rock.
The Lord manifested Himself on a rock, which is on the
backside of the Garbhagriha. Another rock is spread like the hood of Sesha over
it. The Lord is 1 foot in height. Seated in Padmasana, He holds, Chakra in His
upper right hand and Sankha in His upper left hand. He has kept His lower left
hand on His left knee, and His lower right hand is not visible. On the left
side of the Lord, ther are decorated three Namams, and two eyes, which are
considered as the form of Prahlada, the ardent devotee of the Lord. There is a
small lengthy rectangular rock of about 1 foot length at the feet of the Lord.
The rock is said to be "Chakri", an ardent devotee of the Lord who
was not given mukti when he requested for the same because the Lord did not
want to be separated from him. So he was made into a rock like form and placed
in the sanctum. Daily the abhishekam is performed to this rock also.
To the left of the manifested Lord, there is a black, stone
image of Lakshmi which is 1.5 feet in height, in a sitting posture on a lotus.
She holds lotus flowers in her upper hands. Her lower right hand is in Abhaya posture
and the left hand is in Suchi posture. Below the Lakshmi image, there is
another image of Lakshmi, which is carved on a rock. As Lakshmi is not visible
to the visitors, the image of Rajya Lakshmi is installed for the 'darsan' of
the devotees. It was consecrated in 1975. She holds chakra in her upper right
hand and Sankha in her left hand. She holds lotus buds in her lower hands. She
is in sitting posture. She is 1.25 feet in height. She wears a makuta on Her
head.
Before the presiding deity, at a lower level, the utsava
idols of the Lord are installed. There are also copper images of Sudarsana,
Nammazhwar and another Azhwar.
To the right side of the sanctum, leading to the north door,
there are eleven black stone images of the Azhwars, seven of which face the
west and the remaining four face east. There is a trench on the left side of
the Lord at some distance in the cave, which it is believed to lead to the
river Krishna through an underground passage.
A short narrow passage leads you to the main sanctum
sanctorum. The sanctum faces the west. You can see a beautiful mukha mantapam
with 21 pillars with a cement roof. There is another mantapam, which measures
21feet X 18 feet, with five pillars and a cement roof, just before the Vaikunta
dwaara (North door). It was built during the years 1973-75. The mukha mantapam
before the sanctum measures 24feet X 45 feet with a height of about 20feet.
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