Mysore Chamundeshwari Temple - Karnataka

Address

Mysore Chamundeshwari Temple – Karnataka

Chamundeshwari Temple road, Chamundi Hill,

Mysuru (Mysore),

Karnataka 570010

Amman

Chamundeshwari

Introduction

The Chamundeshwari Temple is a Shakthi temple located on the top of Chamundi Hills about 13 km from the palace city of Mysuru in the state of Karnataka in India. The temple was named after Chamundeshwari or, the fierce form of Shakti, a tutelary deity held in reverence for centuries by the Maharaja of Mysuru. Chamundeshwari is called by the people of Karnataka as Naada Devi, which means state Goddess. It is situated at the elevation of around 3300 ft from the mean sea level.

Puranic Significance

It is believed that Goddess Durga slayed the demon king Mahishasura on the top of this hill which was ruled by him. The place was later known as Mahishooru (Place of Mahisha). The British changed it to Mysore and later Kannadized into Mysuru.

The original shrine is thought to have been built in the 12th century by the Rulers of the Hoysala Dynasty while its tower was probably built by the Rulers of the Vijayanagara Empire in the 17th century. In 1659, a staircase of one thousand steps was built leading up to the 3000-foot summit of the hill. At the temple are several images of Nandi (the bull mount of Shiva). There is a huge granite Nandi on the 700th step on the hill in front of a small Shiva temple a short distance away. This Nandi is over 15 feet high, and 24 feet long and around its neck are exquisite bells. The unique feature of the temple is that the idol of the Goddess is made of solid gold. Temple gates are made of silver. The temple is also believed to have a jewel Nakshatra-Malike which has the inscriptions of 30 Sanskrit shlokas on it.

Another major attraction of the temple is a 16-foot-high statue of demon Mahishasura installed near the temple. The reason behind is that it was goddess Chamundeswari (Parvati) who killed demon Mahishasura and protected the area and hence Devi Chamundi is also affectionately called as the Goddess of Mysore. The word ‘Chamundi’ literally means ‘terrible’ and it is the other name for Parvati, who assumed an angry mood to kill the demon.

Special Features

Mahishasura Statue: Mahishasura statue, holding a snake and a sword welcomes visitors to Chamundi Hills. This scary looking demon was killed by Goddess Durga, to bring relief to the people. Goddess Durga is also referred to as Mahishasura Mardini (Goddess who assassinated Mahishasura)

Nandi Statue: On the way to Chamundi Hill visitors can see a large monolithic statue of Nandi, 15 ft in height, 24 ft in width complete with extensive ornaments around the neck, one of the biggest of its kind. Nandi statue is white in color but often appears black due to oil deposits.

Festivals

The most important festival celebrated here is Navaratri. Mysuru Dasara is celebrated as the state festival of Karnataka, called Nada habba in Kannada. During Navaratri, the idol is decorated in 9 different ways to depict the nine different aspects of the goddess known as Navadurgas. On the 7th day of Navaratri that is dedicated to the goddess Kalaratri, valuable jewels donated by Maharajas are brought from the District Treasury of Mysuru and are given to the temple to decorate the idol.