Vasavi Kanyaka Parameswari Temple - Chennai, India

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Vasavi Kanyaka Parameswari is revered as an incarnation of Goddess Parvati. In Chennai, the gateway to South India, a temple dedicated to her stands as a place of worship.

In the 10th century CE, a girl named Vasavi was born to Kusuma Sresti, a Vysya, in Penugonda, Andhra Pradesh. When the Chalukya king Vishnu Vardhana sought to marry her, she chose self-sacrifice over submission. Along with 102 Vysya couples, she entered a sacred fire, reaffirming the belief that she was no ordinary girl but the divine Kanyaka Parameswari, an incarnation of Parvati.

While the primary temple of Kanyaka Parameswari is in Andhra Pradesh, Chennai also has a dedicated shrine in the Parrys area, near the old Kothawal Chavadi Market. This locality has long been home to a sizable Telugu-speaking community.

The Kanyaka Parameswari temple is among the oldest in Chennai. In the past, its entrance faced a bustling wholesale market, making access difficult. However, after the market was relocated to Koyambedu, the temple now stands in a more serene setting, enhancing its grandeur.

Though small, the Vasavi Kanyaka Parameswari temple houses a striking icon of the Goddess in the sanctum. A separate shrine holds the utsava (processional) image, and a Navagraha shrine is also present within the temple complex.

Happy travelling.






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