Lord Mallikarjuna (Srisailam)
The Saivaite temples of Srisailam,
celebrated in devotion, tradition and history from the second century A.D., stand on a
plateau on the top of a hill named Srisailam, Sriparvata or Srigiri, in the Nallamalai
ranges in Kurnool district. The Lord, Mallikarjuna,and His Consort, Bhramaramba, are held
in great veneration by countless devotees
The Bhramaramba Mallikarjuna Swamy temple
is one of the 12 'jyotirlingas' in India. The temple is also the seat of Mahakali in the
form of Bhramaramba.
There are five regular rows of sculpture on
the walls from above the base. The first contains figures of the elephant in many
postures. The next has reliefs of the horse, the warrior, the hunter and the dancer.
A part of the Srisailam pilgrimage is a
visit to the Patalaganga in order to bathe there. Many pilgrims carry the water uphill in
order to bathe the icon of Lord Mallikarjuna. The pathway is 4 km long and on either sides
there are many shrines. One of them is the temple of Umamehaswara, considered artistically
the finest in Srisailam. It is in the late Vijayanagar style and contains some splendid
sculptures..
Perhaps the oldest structure on Srisailam is the Vriddha Mallikarjuna, or the Old
Mallikarjuna temple. This is to be ascribed to the seventh century. It stands near the
Mallikarjuna temple.
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