South India · Andhra Pradesh
Srisailam, Andhra Pradesh
Sources: wikimedia
Before you go
Rare in combining a Jyotirlinga and a Shakti Peetha in one temple, deep in the Nallamala forest; Mahashivratri is the peak.
About Srisailam
- Forest
- Hills
Where it is
Srisailam is a temple town in Nandyal district of Andhra Pradesh, on a plateau of the forested Nallamala hills above the gorge of the Krishna river, about 230 km south of Hyderabad by road.
History
The Mallikarjuna temple has been revered for well over a thousand years, honoured both as one of the twelve Jyotirlingas and, through the goddess Bhramaramba, as a Shakti Peetha. Later dynasties, especially the kings of Vijayanagara in the 14th and 15th centuries, added its halls, towers and fortified walls, and the Srisailam dam was built on the Krishna in the 20th century.
People
Srisailam's residents speak Telugu and live largely from the temple and pilgrim trade, while the Chenchus, a forest people of the Nallamala, have long gathered honey and forest produce in the surrounding hills. Mahashivratri brings the largest gathering of the year.
Known for
- The Bhramaramba Mallikarjuna Temple
- Patalaganga ghat on the Krishna
- Srisailam dam
- Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve
- The Akkamahadevi caves
Did you know?
The 12th-century Kannada poet-saint Akka Mahadevi is said to have spent her last years near Srisailam, and caves named after her are reached by boat on the Krishna.
Shrines and sites
- Sri Bhramaramba Mallikarjuna Temple
- Sakshi Ganapati
- Patalaganga
- Srisailam dam
Traditions
- Hindu
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