Mahanandi is a village located east of the Nallamala Hills of Nandyal District,

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, India. It is surrounded by forests. Within 15 km of Mahanandi, there are nine Nandi shrines known as ''Nava nandulu''. Mahanandi is one of the Nava Nandis. The Mahanandiswara Swamy Temple, an important

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

, is located here. This ancient temple dates back over 1,500 years. The inscriptions of 10th century tablets speak of the temple being repaired and rebuilt several times. These nine temples are Mahanandi, Sivanandi, Vinayakanandi, Somanandi, Prathamanandi, Garudanandi, Suryanandi, Krishnanandi (also called Vishnunandi) and Naganandi. A festival is held here annually during February and March to celebrate

Maha Shivaratri Maha Shivaratri is a Hindu festival celebrated annually to worship the deity Shiva, between February and March. According to the Hindu calendar, the festival is observed on the fourteenth day of the first half (night start with darkness - ...

, the Great Night of

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

. Mahanandi is about 21 km from Nandyal. The nearest international airport is at

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, which is about 215 km and the nearest railway station is at Nandyal. There are two routes to reach Mahanandi from Nandyal town. One route via Thimmapuram is the shortest, around 17 km from bus stand. The other route via giddalur road is the longer option, around 24 km from Nandyal.

Temple Architecture

The temple is famous for its fresh water pools, called '' Kalyani'' or ''Pushkarni''. The architecture of the temple shows the strong presence of the Chalukya Kings in this region. The pools of temple shows the skill of the Vishwakarmas. The initial structure was built by Badami Chalukyas in 7th century, while several additions were done in the 10th and 15th centuries. The gopuram over central sanctum was built in Badami Chalukyan style of architecture and other structures in the temple are in Vijayanagara style. According to the legend, the local kings known as Nandas ruled here in 10th century CE and built a number of temples and worshiped their ancestral deity the Nandi, hence the name Mahanandi. The main temple is surrounded by three pools: two small pools at the entrance and one big pool inside the temple itself. This holy tank is with an outdoor pavilion called a

mandapa A ''mandapa'' or ''mantapa'' () is a pillared hall or pavilion for public rituals in Indian architecture, especially featured in Hindu temple architecture and Jain temple architecture. ''Mandapas'' are described as "open" or "closed" dependin ...

in the centre. The inlets and outlets of the tank are arranged so that the depth of the water is constantly kept at five feet, thus enabling pilgrims to bathe in the holy waters. Bathing in the inside big pool is prohibited after 5PM every day. A peculiarity of the water source is that it has a constant flow irrespective of the change of seasons. The water source originates at the Garbhagruha (inner shrine) just below

Swayambhu Svayambhu () is a Sanskrit word that means "self-born", "self-manifested", "self-existing", or "that that is created by its own accord". Various deities and entities featured in Hindu literature and tradition are regarded to be svayambhu, such as ...

Linga. One can touch the water near the Shiva

Linga A lingam ( , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. The word ''lingam'' is found in the Upanishads and epic literature, wher ...

(symbol of Shiva). The devotees can offer prayers and touch the Shiva Linga. This is unusual because traditionally at temples, the main deity is kept away from the touch of the devotees. The water is famous for its crystalline and healing qualities and is also tepid. The outgoing water irrigates of fertile land surrounding the village. The surrounding areas are under production with rice fields, fruit, vegetable and flower gardens. The temple is well known for the Koneru. The water during the winter season will be very hot and vice versa during the summer. During the early mornings, the water is tepid and it gets cooled gradually with the rise in temperature.

Photos

Mahanandi Temple Gopuram 01.jpg, Mahanandi Temple Gopuram Mahanandi-pushkarini4.JPG, Mahanandi pushkarini view Worldsbiggestnandi2.JPG, Worlds biggest Nandi statue at Mahanandi Mahanandi Temple Gopuram 03.jpg, Mahanandi Temple Gopuram Mahanandi Temple Gopuram 02.jpg, Mahanandi Temple Gopuram view Mahanandi-pushkarini1.JPG, Pushkarini at Mahanandi

References

{{Reflist Villages in Nandyal district