Places of Interest

Yadagirigutta is a town in Nalgonda district in the Indian state of Telangana.

In Tretayugam, there lived a sage by the name of Yadarishi, son of the great sage Rishyasrunga and Santa Devi who did penance inside a cave with the blessings of Anjaneya (Hanuman) on this hill between Bhongir (Bhuvanagiri) and Raigiri (Now in Nalgonda district of Telangana, India). Pleased with his deep devotion, Lord Narasimha, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu appeared before him in five different forms as Sri JwalaNarasimha ,Sri  Yogananda, Sri Gandabherunda, Sri Ugra and Sri Lakshminarasimha. All these five forms (roopas) are presently worshipped within the temple. They later manifested themselves into finely sculpted forms that later came to be worshiped as Pancha Narasimha Kshetram.

There are Purana and traditional accounts of this Shrine, which are widely popular among the devotees. There is mention about the origin of this temple in the Skanda Purana, one of the famous 18 puranas. Glowing bright atop the sikharam of garbha griha (Sanctum Sanctorum) of this cave temple is the golden Sudarshana Chakra (about 3 ft x 3ft) of Lord Vishnu (whose reincarnation is Lord Narasimha), the adornment as well as the weapon is a symbol this temple is identified by from as far away as 6 km. It is said that many years ago the chakra moved in the direction from which the devotees came as if like a compass guiding them towards the temple.The Chakra Considered to posses mystic power and value, at times turns on its own ; no human hand is capable of turning it.Another Legend also has it that Sriman Narayana, pleased with Yada’s penance, sent Sri Anjaneya to direct the rishi to a holy spot, where the Lord appeared to him in the form of Sri LakshmiNarasimha. This spot is marked by a temple located at the foot of the Yadagiri hillock, and is located about 5 km from the present temple. There the sage worshiped the Lord for many years.

After Yadarishi attained moksha, a number of tribal people, hearing of the Lord’s presence, came to worship Him at this temple. But, not being very learned, these devotees began to engage in improper worship. Because of this, Sri Lakshmi Narasimha moved into to the hills. The tribal people searched for many years to find their Lord, to no avail. After many years had passed, the Lord appeared in the dream of a devout lady among the tribe, directing her to a large cavern wherein He revealed Himself to all as five majestic Avatars. The Aradhanam and Puja in this temple are performed according to Pancharatra Agamam. The puja vidhanam (Puja procedure) was set by Late Sri Vangeepuram Narasimhacharyulu who composed Yadagiri Suprabhatam, Prapatti, Stotram, Mangalashasanam and served as Sthanacharya of this temple.    

The official devasthanam website link : https://www.yadagiriguttasrilakshminarasimhaswamy.org/

Direct link to the pooja schemes performed in the temple : yadagiriguttasrilakshminarasimhaswamy.org/schemes.html

Bhongir Fort

Bhuvanangiri Fort was built by Tribuvanamalla Vikramaditya who was a Chalukya king. The Fort was built sometime during the 12th century as was supposed to provide protection to the kingdom. The fort has been built over an area of 40 acres and is atop a hill. The fort is at a height of 500 meters from ground level. The fort is a popular destination among tourists because of its unique construction and architecture. The fort is oval in shape and can be entered from two gates. Outside the fort were put tons of moat so as to make it absolutely inaccessible. Inside the fort are underground chambers and long corridors that have secret passages, trap doors, a secret room for storing weapons and also a stable for horses. The upper level of the fort has two ponds and some deep wells to fulfill the water needs. One can easily reach the top of the fort by taking a dark stairway or by going up through a winding and steep track.

Kolanpaka

Kolanupaka Temple is a Jain shrine at the village of Kolanupaka in Yadadri Bhuvanagiri district, Telangana, India.The temple houses three idols: one each of Lord Rishabha, Lord Neminath, and Lord Mahaveer.The temple is about 77 km from Hyderabad on the Hyderabad-Warangal Highway.The Kolanupaka Temple is said to be more than two thousand years old. In its present form, is more than eight hundred years old. It is believed that Jainism was prevalent in Telangana before the 4th century, and Kolanupaka was one of the prominent centres of Jainism from early times.Lord Rishabha, popularly called Adinath Bhagvan, was the first Tirthankars in the Jain religion. It is believed that the original idol of Lord Adinath, known locally as Manikya Deva, has made Kolanupaka its abode. There are eight idols of the other Tirthankars on both the sides of the main temple. The statue of Lord Mahaveer is 130 centimetres (51 in) tall and is said to be made of a single piece of jade. Idols of Lord Simandar Swami and Mata Padmavati are installed on either side of the main temple. Kulpakji is an important pilgrimage center for Svetambara Jains of South India. Also, the Someshwara Temple is very famous, which was established by Chalukya’s about 800 years back. Kolanu means a Lake and Paka means a Hut. There used to be lots of lakes and huts and this caused to get this name.