City readies for Maha Shivaratri

Preparations are on in the Shiva temples across the city for Maha Shivaratri, which will be widely celebrated by the people on Monday, February 20. Already, residents are gearing up for the celebration in a grand manner. To mark the occasion, several religious and cultural programmes have been planned to help devotees keep awake ("Jaagarane") that night in the Shiva temples.
Thousands of devotees are expected to throng before historic temples, namely, the Someshwara and Chandramouleshwara temples at Halasuru, Gavi Gangadhareshwara at Gavipuram, Mallikarjunaswamy and Dodda Basavanna temples at Basavanagudi, Rameshwara at Chamarajpet, Kasi Vishwanatha at Balepet, Kadu Malleswara and Nandi Theertha at Malleshwaram, Sringeri Shankara Math at Shankarapuram, Avani Sringeri Math near Kurubarahalli, Ramachandrapura Math at Girinagar, Taralabalu Math, Meenakshi Sundareshwara at Hulimavu, Nagareshwara at Nagarthapet and Ekambareshwara at Shivajinagar.
Necessary arrangements including security, volunteer service, accommodation of devotees and cleaning of temples are going on. Also, preparations will be made to make sure that devotees get easy access to the temple for worship. Drinking water, medical and other emergency services would be made available at places like the Someshwara Temple at Halasuru and other places, where thousands of devotees arrive. Last year more than 20,000 people took part in the festivities.
Cultural programmes like singing devotional songs, Bharathanatyam, plays and Harikathe will be arranged at these temples. The Shiva temple on old Airport Road, which is known to be the tallest Shiva temple, has organised a grand puja on the occasion of Maha Shivratri.
The Someshwara Temple located in Halasuru is the centre of attraction. The temple is one of the oldest in Bangalore. It is dedicated to Lord Someshwara (Lord Shiva). Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma are also worshipped here.
The Halasuru Someshwara Temple was constructed between 12th and 13th century in the ancient style of Indian architecture (mixture of Hoysala, Chola and Vijayanagara architecture). It was renovated and beautified in 16th century by Kempe Gowda I, the founder of Bangalore.
The village of Halasuru is said to have been gifted to Kempe Gowda I (1513-1569) by the Vijayanagar emperors. The Ulsoor Lake was built by his successor, Kempe Gowda II. The first British military station was set up in Halasuru in 1807. During the British rule, the name was Anglicised to 'Ulsoor'.
The other deities housed in Halasuru Someshwara Temple are Kamakshamma, Arunachaleswara, Bhimeswara, Nanjundeswara and Panchalingeswara.
The shrine is particularly known for its magnificent architecture. There are a large number of elaborately carved pillars inside the temple. The pillars are said to produce the sounds of musical instruments when tapped. You can also take a look at the ancient scriptures inscribed on the walls. Some of the most striking features of the temple include the Rajgopuram or the temple tower and the Dhwajastambha which is a huge pillar placed right in front of the temple. Gifted with splendid architecture, the temple bears evidence for the architectural expertise of Chola period.

A unique Shiva temple
The Gavi Gangadhareshwara Temple was cut out of a rock sometime around the 9th century. It was later renovated by Kempe Gowda. Dedicated to Lord Shiva, this temple is situated in the Gavipuram-Guttahalli. It houses a unique image of Agni, the God of Fire, probably the only one of its type in the entire South India. To the left of the main entrance is a splendid image of Shakti Ganapathi, with 12 hands. There are four monolith pillars in the courtyard, which represent Damaru, Thrishula and two fans.
On Makara Sankranti day, you can witness a unique phenomenon. On this day, for one hour, the sunrays fall on the Shiva Linga after passing through the two horns of the image of Nandi Bull, the vehicle of Lord Shiva.

--CITYPLUS NEWS DESK