Kotilingeshwara Temple - The temple with many Lingas

When you are taking a trip with your family, especially the elderly you tend to look to go to a place which would accommodate all their needs. Most elderly tend towards visiting a temple more than anything so were we when when we decided to go to Kotilingeaswara Temple which is only around 100km. (approximately) from Bangalore. We started in early after (packing our lunch and snacks ofcourse) as we were travelling with our 2 year old kid and our 60 over mother-in-law. This is a place where there are no stairs to climb or distances to walk so its ideal for a whole family, When you are travelling with kids it is always advisable to carry a few eatables since you cannot be sure of hygienic food. It took us more than three hours to reach the temple and it is not because of the road not being good but the opposite. The NH75 makes for a smooth ride, uninterrupted except for the occasional trucks and container lorries that we could see on the road. The road snakes between rocky hills that offer picture perfect vistas. The boulders on these tiny hills look like a gaint's baby has been playing marbles and heapead them up in little piles. We had to stop to take in the scenery.

When we finally arrived at the temple we found that it was not as deserted as one would expect a temple in a tiny little village to be. In fact the whole area was bustling with activity, they had a huge parking area that could accommodate atleast 50 four-wheeler easily which tells us that the temple expects huge crowds. There were colorful little stalls aligned on either side of the pathway to the temple selling an array of items including earthen lamps with ghee, apparently it is good to light a Ghee lamp in the presence of the Lord. We bought one and were on our way. There is a 20/- ticket for adults and a 50/- charge for the cameras. Its a good thing they allowed cameras because I love clicking pics and when I go to places where they do not allow them I feel like I am missing something. (That is how much the camera means to me now, my husband keeps telling me I should put it down for a minute and enjoy the scenery for once, but my mind always wants to get back behind the lens and capture every moment, that is why we have great shots of my kid praying to every Lingam in the place. It was ADORABLE.)

The sight that welcomed us on entering the gate was a court yard full of multicolored platforms covered with Siva limgams of all shapes and sizes. To a common viewer the sight is delightful, but to a devotee of Shiva this will your heart with joy. There are hundreds of Shiva lingams everywhere you see, arranged in rows and rows, adorned with kumkuma, pasupu and flowers.

There are a group of temples dedicated to different Gods and Godesses including the famous Sri Manjunatha temple where we offered our obeisance and the lit the ghee lamp. Then we open up in to a huge court yard that spreads around a few acers filled with more and more Shiva Lingams.

 This is where we find the huge granite Lingam reaching for the sky. Although we find that the Nandi standing in the Lord's presence is not up tot the mark, it does have the desired effect when you look it as a whole.

The different kinds of Lingams we find here are quiet variable and facinating.

Right outside the premisis of the Kotilingeshwara temple is the temple of the local deity with a idol fierce and awe inspiring and a bed of marigold crop in-front of the temple.

teluguvaramandi.net and teluguvaramandi blog