Jnanakshi Rajarajeshwari Temple is a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

located in Rajarajeshwari Nagar,

Bengaluru Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

district in

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

. The primary

deity A deity or god is a supernatural being considered to be sacred and worthy of worship due to having authority over some aspect of the universe and/or life. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines ''deity'' as a God (male deity), god or god ...

of the temple is ''Shri Rajarajeshwari''. The temple was constructed in the year 1978 by Sri Sivaratnapuri Swamiji (popularly known as Sri Tiruchi Swamigal). The idol of Goddess ''Sri Rajarajeshwari'', a form of Goddess Sri Lalita Tripurasundari. This temple is believed to be the "ear" or "karnabhaga" of Bharat's many Shaktipeethas as mentioned in the Tantra Chudamani. It was once known as Kanchanagiri situated between the

Cauvery The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery) is a major river flowing across Southern India. It is the third largest river in the region after Godavari and Krishna. The catchment area of the Kaveri basin is estimated to be and encompasses the states o ...

and Vrishabhavati rivers. The ruling

Bhairava Bhairava (, ), or Kāla Bhairava, is a Shaivite and Vajrayāna deity worshipped by Hindus and Buddhists. In Shaivism, he is a powerful manifestation, or avatar, of Shiva.Kramrisch, Stella (1994). ''The Presence of Śiva''. Princeton, NJ: P ...

, Abiru Bhairava, is known as Jaya Peetha. The temple is believed to have been the home of the pious wife

Anusuya Anasuya () is an ascetic, and the wife of Rishi, Sage Atri in Hinduism. She is the daughter of Devahuti and the Prajapati Kardama in Hindu texts. In the ''Ramayana'', she lives with her husband in a small Ashram, hermitage on the southern borde ...

and the sage

Atri Atri or Attri is a Vedic sage, who is credited with composing numerous shlokas to Agni, Indra, and other Vedic deities of Hinduism. Atri is one of the Saptarishi (seven great Vedic sages) in the Hindu tradition, and the one most mentioned in ...

, who attained siddhi by appeasing the holy mother Sri Rajarajeshwari. The temple grounds are believed to be a sacred place for various devas, rishis, munis, and siddhas.

Temple history

His Holiness Sri Sivaratnapuri Swamiji, also called as Sri Tiruchi Swamigal, established Sri Kailash Ashrama Mahasamsthana in Kenchenahalli, which is now known as Sri Rajarajeshwarinagar. Sri Sivapuri Baba, who resided in

Kathmandu Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...

, was his guru. After initiating him, the Guru indicated there was a lot of excellent work to be done in the south and asked him to travel there.

Mount Kailas Mount Kailash (also Kailasa; ''Kangrinboqê'' or ''Gang Rinpoche''; ; ; , ) is a mountain in Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It lies in the Kailash Range (Gangdisê Mountains) of the Transhimalaya, in the western part of ...

was visited by Tiruchi Mahaswamiji before to his journey south. The triple deities of

Durga Durga (, ) is a major Hindu goddess, worshipped as a principal aspect of the mother goddess Mahadevi. She is associated with protection, strength, motherhood, destruction, and wars. Durga's legend centres around combating evils and demonic ...

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, , ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the goddess of wealth, fortune, prosperity, beauty, fertility, sovereignty, and abundance. She along with Parvat ...

, and

Saraswathi Saraswati (, ), also spelled as Sarasvati, is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the goddess of knowledge, education, learning, arts, speech, poetry, music, purification, language and culture. Together with the goddesses L ...

appeared to him there during a period of profound meditation, and a bodyless voice (Asarira vani) urged him to travel to Karnataka. He traveled from Bombay to Bangalore. On the auspicious Sankranthi day of 14.1.1960, early in the morning, Sri Tiruchi Swamiji and two of his followers were driving to Mysore for a Pada Pooja. About six kilometers southwest of Bengaluru City, he noticed three garudas, or sacred eagles, circling overhead. They reminded him of

, and

, who had previously materialized on Mount Kailas. After exiting the vehicle, Swamiji noticed a route that led to the small settlement of Kenchenahalli. As he continued, he came across a small cottage in the middle of a grove of guava trees, where the eagles continued to circle. He chose that location for his Ashrama. Sri Tiruchi Mahaswamigal placed the foundation stone there for the temple.

Temple architecture

The temple portrays

Dravidian architecture Dravidian architecture, or the Southern Indian temple style, is an architectural idiom in Hindu temple architecture that emerged from Southern India, reaching its final form by the sixteenth century. In contrast with North Indian temple styl ...

which has five Rajagopurams. It has an open hall with pillars (Mukha Mantapa), a porch (antarala), an elevated sanctum (garbha griha), a large circumambulatory pathway (Pradikshina patha), and an inner courtyard. A lovely six-foot-tall stone figure of the Divine Mother Sri Jnanakshi Rajarajeshwari may be found inside the sanctum sanctorum (garbha griha).

Deities inside the Temple

The temple complex has numerous shrines for various deities in addition to the main deity Sri Jnanakshi Rajarajeshwari

Special aspects of the Temple

Illumination of sanctum by the Sun

On 27 March every year, the sun directly hits the Devi's forehead and travels down to her feet, attracting more devotees. The temple is renowned for its Navarathri Celebrations and Brahmotsavam, where Chandi Homa is performed daily as priests recite the Vedas and Saptashati.

Gallery

File:RR Nagar Arch (2024).jpg, Entrance Arch File:Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple , Bangalore . 01.jpg, Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple from outside File:Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple , Bangalore . 05.jpg, Srichakra Maha Meru Temple File:Inner view of Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple , Bangalore . 02.jpg, Inner view of Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple File:Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple , Bangalore . 03.jpg, Gold Dwaja Sthamba, Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple File:Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple , Bangalore . 04.jpg, Pillars inside Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple, File:KANNADA SCHOOL.jpg, Sri Kailash Ashrama File:Sri Shivaratnapuri Temple of Health (2024) 45.jpg, Sri Shivaratnapuri Swamiji File:Rajarajeshwari Temple, Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Bangalore (2024) 03.jpg

Nearby holy places

* Sri Kailash Ashrama

Notes

External links

Sri Jnanakshi Rajarajeshwari Temple
{{Authority control Hindu temples in Bengaluru Devi temples in Karnataka Devi temples in India