‘Southadka’ is a pilgrimage centre located at a distance of 3 km from Kokkada in Belthangadi Taluk of Dakshina Kannda district. The uniqueness of the place is Lord Maha Ganapathi is out in the open field without a ‘Garbha gudi’ and temple structure. It is surrounded by fascinating greeneries and open round the clock for offering prayers. About 35km from Kukke Subramanya Temple is ‘Southadka Shree Mahaganapathi Kshetra’ in the interiors of Kokkada. This is about 16km from Dharmasthala. The temple is decorated with lot of Bells mainly, offered by worshippers who have special wishes. One can find lot of monkeys inside the temple. The Mahapuja is performed every year in the month of January. The temple also serves food to all the devotees in the form of prasadam.Temple is 6 km from Patrame on the banks of river kapila.

Belthangady’s hidden gem, It’s a unique temple with vast expanses of lush greenery. Sitting cozily in the lap of nature amidst such a tranquil atmosphere is Lord Ganapati. Welcome to Southadka, the abode of Lord Ganapati.

Popularly known as Maha Ganapati Kshetra, Southadka in Belthangandy taluk of Dakshina Kannada district is hailed as one of the many siddhi kshetras of the district. Surprisingly, not many from outside the district are aware of the existence of this temple which is located just 20 km away from the pilgrim town of Dharmasthala. Away from the hustle and bustle of the main road, this temple with no formal structure surrounding it, offers a unique experience.

A spacious goshala (cow shed), a row of petty shops vending pooja materials, a small temple office where seva tickets and prasada can be bought and a modest temple kitchen that dishes up tasty naivedya prasada is all that Southadka houses. The idol of Lord Ganesha, installed majestically under the bowers of an ancient tree, is spectacular, to say the least. A shining arch is all that surrounds the beautiful idol in black stone and, of course, huge brass lamps. Right in front of the Lord’s idol are rows of brass bells tied to wooden beams which are offered by the devotees. These bells in various shapes and sizes are a great attraction among children. If a temple without walls sounds intriguing, equally fascinating are the stories that the temple relates.

History:

According to the sthala purana of Southadka, a Ganapati temple revered by a royal family was once destroyed by enemies. Not to let the enemies destroy the beautiful idol of Ganapati that was at the temple, cow herds of the place carried it along with them and installed it in a place where cucumber was grown in plenty. Since southe means cucumber and adka means meadow in Kannada, the place soon gained popularity as Southadka. The farmers of the place reaped huge harvests of cucumber, offered it to Lord Ganapati and even wished to build a temple there. But, according to a popular belief, Ganapati graced their dreams and asked them not to build a temple for him at Southadka as that would mean restrictions on devotees visiting the place to seek his blessings. The Lord expressed his wish to remain in open air with no formal structure surrounding him so that devotees could access him round-the-clock. Lord Ganapati’s wish was the farmers’ command and to this day the Lord sits majestically in the lush green surroundings of Southadka, blessing his devotees 24/7.

Specialties:
According to temple authorities, of the many sevas offered at the temple, the most popular one is the avalakki panchakajjaya seva (a delicious mixture of beaten rice, jiggery, til, coconut, honey and banana) performed on a regular basis. The laddu prasada too shouldn’t be given a miss. One word of caution though: whoever performs the avalakki panchakajjaya seva has to share a fair amount of Lord’s prasada with the many cows around.

Devotees can also offer prayers to Mahaganapathi in the form of “Appa(or Appam)”, Southadka’s famous prasad, is a very tasty preparation. This is prepared daily and anyone offering prayers can avail these at the counters. Among the special poojas that are performed, “Moodappa Seve” is very prominent, which involves covering the Mahaganapathi statue with Appam.

Postal Address:
Southadka Sri Maha Ganapathi Kshetra,
Kokkada Post,
Belthangadi Taluk,
Dakshina Kannada district
Pin code: 574 198
Ph: 08251 – 254 351, 254 161

Distance from Southadka:
Dharmasthala: 20 km
Mangalore: 82 km
Kukke Subrahmanya: 45 km

How to get there:
Southadka is 20 km from Dharmasthala, 45 km from Subrahmanya, 82 km from Mangalore and 2 km from Kokkada and 6km from Patrame. From Bangalore, Southadka can be accessed on the road between Nelyadi and Dharmasthala. About 13 km before Dharmasthala is a huge arch on the left side of the road that leads to Southadka after a drive of about seven km.

‘Southadka’ is a pilgrimage centre located at a distance of 3 km from Kokkada in Belthangadi Taluk of Dakshina Kannda district. The uniqueness of the place is Lord Maha Ganapathi is out in the open field without a ‘Garbha gudi’ and temple structure. It is surrounded by fascinating greeneries and open round the clock for offering prayers. About 35km from Kukke Subramanya Temple is ‘Southadka Shree Mahaganapathi Kshetra’ in the interiors of Kokkada. This is about 16km from Dharmasthala. The temple is decorated with lot of Bells mainly, offered by worshippers who have special wishes. One can find lot of monkeys inside the temple. The Mahapuja is performed every year in the month of January. The temple also serves food to all the devotees in the form of prasadam.Temple is 6 km from Patrame on the banks of river kapila.

Belthangady’s hidden gem, It’s a unique temple with vast expanses of lush greenery. Sitting cozily in the lap of nature amidst such a tranquil atmosphere is Lord Ganapati. Welcome to Southadka, the abode of Lord Ganapati.

Popularly known as Maha Ganapati Kshetra, Southadka in Belthangandy taluk of Dakshina Kannada district is hailed as one of the many siddhi kshetras of the district. Surprisingly, not many from outside the district are aware of the existence of this temple which is located just 20 km away from the pilgrim town of Dharmasthala. Away from the hustle and bustle of the main road, this temple with no formal structure surrounding it, offers a unique experience.

A spacious goshala (cow shed), a row of petty shops vending pooja materials, a small temple office where seva tickets and prasada can be bought and a modest temple kitchen that dishes up tasty naivedya prasada is all that Southadka houses. The idol of Lord Ganesha, installed majestically under the bowers of an ancient tree, is spectacular, to say the least. A shining arch is all that surrounds the beautiful idol in black stone and, of course, huge brass lamps. Right in front of the Lord’s idol are rows of brass bells tied to wooden beams which are offered by the devotees. These bells in various shapes and sizes are a great attraction among children. If a temple without walls sounds intriguing, equally fascinating are the stories that the temple relates.

History:

According to the sthala purana of Southadka, a Ganapati temple revered by a royal family was once destroyed by enemies. Not to let the enemies destroy the beautiful idol of Ganapati that was at the temple, cow herds of the place carried it along with them and installed it in a place where cucumber was grown in plenty. Since southe means cucumber and adka means meadow in Kannada, the place soon gained popularity as Southadka. The farmers of the place reaped huge harvests of cucumber, offered it to Lord Ganapati and even wished to build a temple there. But, according to a popular belief, Ganapati graced their dreams and asked them not to build a temple for him at Southadka as that would mean restrictions on devotees visiting the place to seek his blessings. The Lord expressed his wish to remain in open air with no formal structure surrounding him so that devotees could access him round-the-clock. Lord Ganapati’s wish was the farmers’ command and to this day the Lord sits majestically in the lush green surroundings of Southadka, blessing his devotees 24/7.

Specialties:
According to temple authorities, of the many sevas offered at the temple, the most popular one is the avalakki panchakajjaya seva (a delicious mixture of beaten rice, jiggery, til, coconut, honey and banana) performed on a regular basis. The laddu prasada too shouldn’t be given a miss. One word of caution though: whoever performs the avalakki panchakajjaya seva has to share a fair amount of Lord’s prasada with the many cows around.

Devotees can also offer prayers to Mahaganapathi in the form of “Appa(or Appam)”, Southadka’s famous prasad, is a very tasty preparation. This is prepared daily and anyone offering prayers can avail these at the counters. Among the special poojas that are performed, “Moodappa Seve” is very prominent, which involves covering the Mahaganapathi statue with Appam.

Postal Address:
Southadka Sri Maha Ganapathi Kshetra,
Kokkada Post,
Belthangadi Taluk,
Dakshina Kannada district
Pin code: 574 198

Distance from Southadka:
Dharmasthala: 20 km
Mangalore: 82 km
Kukke Subrahmanya: 45 km

How to get there:
Southadka is 20 km from Dharmasthala, 45 km from Subrahmanya, 82 km from Mangalore and 2 km from Kokkada and 6km from Patrame. From Bangalore, Southadka can be accessed on the road between Nelyadi and Dharmasthala. About 13 km before Dharmasthala is a huge arch on the left side of the road that leads to Southadka after a drive of about seven km.

The post ಸೌತಡ್ಕಶ್ರೀ ಮಹಾಗಣಪತಿ ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನ first appeared on Shivalli Brahmins.

Shishila is a small village about 32kms from Dharmasthala in Dakshina Kannada district. It has a beautiful Shiva Temple. It is believed that the idol, in the form of a Linga, surfaced on its own and was never established by anyone (Udbhava Linga). The temple is on the banks of the river Kapila (a small river which later merges with Netravati).

This place is also referred as Matsya Theertha. The Mahashir (in Tulu ‘Peruvelu’) fish is found in huge numbers in the Kapila river.

The fish in the Kapila River at Shishila are believed to be sacred and Naivedyam is offered to them after offering daily pujas. It is also believed that one can get rid of all types of skin disease after worshipping at Shishileshwara temple and feeding the fish in Kapila River. Fishing is restricted in Kapila River in and around 2 kilometers from Shishileshwara temple.

The other attractions of this place are two rocks, ‘Huli Kallu’ (rock named after tiger), and ‘Dana Kallu’ (rock named after cow). It is believed that, a tiger and a cow reached the river and tiger chased the cow. To avoid violence, Shishileshwara converted tiger and cow into rocks. These rocks are also worshipped during the annual festival.

The annual festival at Shishila is held at the end of May and celebrated for 9 days with unique feature in each day.

The main deity here is Sri Shishileshwara. Along with this, idols of Sri Durga and Mahaganapati are also present.

The main bhootas in this temple are Pili Chamundi, Rakteshwari and Rudrandi.

Address: Shishila, Belthangadi Taluk, Dakshina Kannada – 574198

How to get there: From Dharmasthala, take the road towards Kokkada and travel 16kms. On the Kokkada-Shibaje road, turn towards Shibaje and travel a further 16kms to reach Shishila.

Distance from Shishila:
Mangalore: 110 km
Dharmasthala: 30 km
Belthangadi: 45 km
Kokkada: 15 km

The post ಶ್ರೀ ಶಿಶಿಲೇಶ್ವರ ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನ first appeared on Shivalli Brahmins.

1. Shri Manjunatheshwara Temple, Dharmasthala
2. Shri Janardhana Temple, ujire,
3. Shri sadashiveshwara Temple, Surya,
4. Shri Ananteshwara Temple, Ballamanja,
5. Shri Mahaganapathi Temple, Soutedka,
6. Shri Shishileshvara Temple, Shishila,
7. Shri Durgaparameshwari Temple, Mottethadka,
8. Shri Mattur Panchalingeshwara Temple, Charmadi,
9. Shri Umapanchalingeshwara Temple, Appila, Neriya,
10. Shri Gopalakrishna Temple, Bendrala, Thotathady
11. Shri Parashurama Temple, Sanyasikatte, Mundaje,
12. Shri Lakshminarayana Temple, Gundi, Mundaje,
13. Shri Mahaganapathi Temple, Nidigal,
14. Shri Lokanatheshwara Temple, Nidigal,
15. Shri Sadashiveshwara Temple, Pajiradka,
16. Shri Vanadurga Temple, Tangai, Ujire,
17. Shri Santhana Gopalakrishna Temple, Chavadi, Ujire
18. Shri Vaidyanatheshwara Temple, Kokkada
19. Shri Durgaparameshwari Temple, Anar,
20. Shri Mahavishnumurthi Temple, Patrame,
21. Shri Somanatheshwara Temple, Belthangadi
22. Shri Durgaparameshwari Temple, Nala
23. Shri Mahalingeshwara Temple, Karaya
24. Shri Mahalingeshwara Temple, Haleji
25. Shri Panchalingeshwara Temple, Uruvalu,
26. Shri Umamaheshwara Temple, Malengallu,
27. Shri Vishnumurthi Temple, Bandaru,
28. Shri Mahammayi Temple, Kalleri,
29. Shri Gopalakrishna Temple, Uli,
30. Shri Panchadurgaparameshwari Temple, Kakkebeedu,
31. Shri Durgaparameshwari Temple, Parenki,
32. Shri Umamaheshwari Temple, Odilnala,
33. Shri Vishnumurthi Temple, Tenkakarandur,
34. Shri Mahalingeshwara Temple, Balanja
35. Shri Somanatheshwara Temple, Aladangadi,
36. Shri Siddhivinayaka Temple, Aladangadi
37. Shri Durgaparameshwari Temple, Chandkur
38. Shri Mahalingeshwara Temple, shirlal,
39. Shri Lokanatheshwara Temple, Badyaru,
40. Shri Nandikeshwara Temple, Venur,
41. Shri Mahalingeshwara Temple, Venur,
42. Shri Suryanarayana Temple, Naravi,
43. Shri Gopalakrishna Temple, Kurangala, Perinje
44. Shri Durgadevi Temple, Kolli,
45. Shri Gopalakrishna Temple, Sulebettu,
46. Shri Mayamaheshwara Temple, Maya, Belalu,
47. Shri Ganapati Subrahmanyeshwara Temple, Malebettu,
48. Shri Mahalingeshwara Temple, (Kaliya) Kalanja,
49. Shri Panchadurga Temple, Koyyur,
50. Shri Durgaparameshwari Temple, Mundur,
51. Shri Lakshmijanrdhana Temple, Majaru,
52. Shri Subrahmanaya Temple, Kolpadi,
53. Shri Vanadurga Temple, Malebettu, Koyyur
54. Sri Balasubramanyeshwara Temple, Icchur, Ilanthila

The post Temples of Belthangadi Taluk first appeared on Shivalli Brahmins.