Mangadu Kamakshi Amman Temple

By -
Located at a distance of around 20 kms from Chennai, Mangadu has an important temple dedicated to Kamakshi. This is a famous Shakti temple across the country.

Legend


As per the legend, once Shakti playfully closed the eyes of Lord Shiva. It caused the entire universe to get into deep darkness. Also, Shiva turned furious at her. 

To pacify Shiva and get rid of her sin, Shakti came down to the holy site of Mangadu. She started performing severe penance by resting her left leg on the sacred fire known as Panchagni, with her right leg folded. She held japamala in her left arm raised above her head. This posture of the Goddess is called Tapas Kamakshi.

Pleased by Kamakshi's penance, Shiva appeared to her. He married her in the nearby Kanchipuram. The excited Kamakshi left Mangadu without extinguishing Panchagni. 

The fire caused unbearable heat in the region for a long time. During his visit to the holy place, Adi Shankara installed Ardhameru Chakra and thus doused the fire.
 

Temple Layout


The sanctum enshrines Tapas Kamakshi and Mahameru.

Although the temple is large, it enshrines only a few icons such as Ganesha, Nava Kanyas and utsava idols, besides the presiding deity.

For the devotees of Shakti, the temple is a must-visit.

Happy travelling.

Visit my site, krishnakumartk.com, to know more about the travel guides and other books that I have written.



Location: Mangadu, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Tallest Murugan of Chennai

By -
Image
Consecrated in March 2021, the 40 feet high Bala Murugan icon at Saveetha Medical College campus is the tallest image of Murugan in Chennai. Malaysia has 140 feet tall Murugan. In April 2022, the 146 feet tall image of Murugan was consecrated near Salem in Tamil Nadu. However, they are all stucco images. But, the one that we find on the college campus is a monolithic granite icon. Thus, it is the tallest stone icon of Murugan in the entire world. A stone weighing 320 tonnes was brought from Siruvambur near Wallajah, and it was carved to 140 tonnes to get this beautiful and gigantic sculpture. The entire temple complex is designed in the shape of the Devanagiri letter "Om", which can be appreciated in the aerial view.  The west-facing gigantic sculpture is located atop the star-shaped pedestal. It dominates the entire landscape. A large meditation hall is situated below the pedestal. On the open corridor in front of the presiding deity, smaller shrines are found. They enshrine
Read more

Little known Nimishamba Temple of Chennai

By -
Image
Site Name:  Nimishamba Temple Site Type:  Hindu Temple Location:   Kasi Chetty Street, Sowcarpet, Chennai city, Tamil Nadu state, India Highlights:   A rare temple of Nimishamba in Chennai city Nearest Railway Station:   Chennai - well connected from the cities/towns all over India Nearest Airport:   Chennai has both national and international airports How to reach:   Easily reachable by road as this is centrally located in the city Hotel:  Many star hotels, luxury hotels/resorts, and budget hotels are available in Chennai Restaurants:  All options - vegetarian, non-vegetarian, Chinese, South Indian, Gujarati, North Indian, Punjabi,....- you can find everything in Chennai city Chennai is considered as the gateway to South India. The capital city of Tamil Nadu state of India has hundreds of tourist sites which include museum, British period monuments, temples, beach, etc. Let us explore a little known temple called Nimishamba temple located in Chennai. Nimishamba is anothe
Read more

A 17th century Dargah with healing power - Mount Road Dargah, Chennai, India

By -
Image
Mount Road or Anna Salai is one of the most happening places in  Chennai . There are two famous Islamic shrines on Mount Road – one is  Thousands Light mosque . The other one is Dargah-e-Hazrath Syed Moosa Shah Qadri Baghdadi (Rahmatullah Alaihi), also known as Mount Road Dargah. It is the most popular Dargah across the city. It draws devotees of all faiths and all walks of life. Especially every Thursday, a large number of devotees gather to the Dargah. A lot of city-based celebrities regularly visit the site. This Dargah is the shrine of a Muslim Saint named Hazrath Syed Moosa Shah Qadri Baghdadi. He was also known as Rahmatullah Alaihi. Hazrath Syed Moosa Shah Qadri Baghdadi arrived from Baghdad in the middle of the 17th Century CE. He made Chennai his home and lived here. It is believed that he had healing powers. During his time, he had so many devotees regularly visiting him. After his demise, his family buried him next to his house, which is the current Dargah. You can easily lo
Read more