BENGALURU : Amid the chaos and traffic on the Swamy Vivekananda Road, stands one of the oldest temples in the city - Sri Subramanya Temple. The locals ascribe the temple to be about 800 years old, but documents suggest that the temple was built in the 15th Century. Arun Prasad, historian and researcher, says, “There could have been a small shrine before the temple was built. According to documents, the temple was built during the Vijayanagara dynasty. The facades and architectural features of the temple denote the Vijayanagara style.”
The temple is located in Ulsoor, one of the oldest suburbs in Bengaluru, which existed even before the city was founded by Kempegowda. “The locality was earlier called Halasuru. The eastern gate, number four, of Kempegowda Fort, was named Halasuru Gate, which was the gateway to a village of the same name. The village was dominated by a Tamil-speaking population, who dotted the landscape towards the end of the 10th Cenutry,” he says.
Strong presence of Vijayanagara style
Someshwara Temple and Sri Subramanya Temple are among the oldest temples in the city. Both temples are located on either side of Old Madras Road. “The entrance was originally on the west side, facing Old Madras Road. The base of the gopura (main gatehouse tower) suggests that it could have been a huge embellished Rajagopura, similar to the one at Someshwara Temple, which is not there today. It might have probably collapsed,” he says. At the entrance, you see a wooden doorway today, with rows of pilasters in the Vijayanagara-style of architecture, which opens up to a small shrine with the idol of Vishnu.
The garbhagriha (sanctum sanctorum) houses lord Subramanya, or Muruga, as popularly called by localites. The idol is flanked by Valli and Devasena (Muruga’s wives) on either side. “The deity is also referred to as Ananda Murugan. It is said to be a replica of Thiruthani Murugan Temple in Tamil Nadu,” he says. “In front of the garbhagriha there is nava graha (nine planets) and interesting stone pillars that hold the heavy granite roof. The temple premises also houses an interesting mantapa with a row of stone pillars adorned with detailed sculptures in the typical Vijayanagara-style. Today, they call it bhajana mantapa.
There is an old inscription in Tamil and Telugu on the base of the mantapa that denotes that this structure was built by Subramanya Mudaliyar in 1821,” he adds. The temple has an old kalyani (pond) towards the north-eastern side, and is flanked by naga linka. The most prominent festival, Teppotsava, is held here during the jatre around the kalyani. Believed to have been Shiva templeThere are many stories and legends attached to the temple. Arun says, “The temple is believed to have been a Shiva temple once. There are statues of Nandi on the walls of the temple.”
Ramnath Dixit, the temple’s head priest, says the locality had a large snake population, and devotees would worship them. “Devotees used to do pooja on Shasti dates. One day, when the-then Mysore Maharaja was passing by the temple with his mother, who had an eyesight issue, he stopped to ask people what was going on. He was told that if he worships the snakes there, his mother will recover. He promised to build a temple if she got better. Her eye issue resolved, and hence, this temple came into being,” he narrates.
There is also a sculpture of Sage Mandavya in the mantapam. Legends has it that the sage had this temple built after directed by the Lord. The priests at this temple belong to the Dixit community, who have being doing pooja at both Someshwara and Sri Subramanya temples for generations. His brother, Suresh Dixit, is also a priest at the temple. Suresh says, “It is believed that you can get rid of all your doshas if you offer your prayers here. About 500 people visit the temple daily, with a footfall of around 3,000 on special occasions.
Prominent Festivals
One of the main festivals celebrated here is Teppotsavam, which is usually held in January or February. Ramnath says, “It’s a three-day festival. We take the deity around the temple tank in the evening and do pooja.” Suresh adds, “Apart from this, we also hold annadanam regularly on Tuesdays.” The temple also conducts Silver Chariot Festival, where the devotees accompany the idol on a chariot and walk on the pradakshina path around the temple. The temple is open from 6 am to 12 noon and 5.30 pm to 8 pm. “The deities in the temple are Ganesha, Durga, Subramanya, Valli, Devasena and Ardhanarishvara,” says Suresh.
Historical value being lost
Arun says he’s disturbed to see the present state of the temple. “It is saddening to see that the temple stands fully-renovated and enclosed within a new compound. A new frontal gateway has been built on the eastern side of the temple, and it is not being maintained well. The temple is surrounded by debris dumped on the roadside. New and the modern structures were built over the old structures, which reduces its historic value.” However, priest Ramnath says the old architecture has been maintained, with only some parts being renovated about 20 years ago.