Lepakshi: Rise, O Bird! Rise Above The Possibilities

Mystery, mythology, science and architecture when coexisting in one place create wonders. When something usual becomes unusual catches the attention of every passerby. We go around finding the truth, but end up unfolding many different stories and are left with a bigger question; Which one to believe?

Legends Of Lepakshi, source: LBB

They say that giants put the stones together, for maybe it was easier for them than the beings of this age. Lepakshi is a small village in the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh where every stone sprouts stories. Before bringing light upon the carvings and creations, a sight that makes stand every hair strand on our body is a giant footprint found in the famous Veerabhadra temple of Lepakshi. Seeing which many people claim that the temple is built by giant humans. On the other hand, some people believe that the footprint is of Mata Sita as it never dries off because the water refuses to go away. The footprint is around 2.5 feet long and it is believed that when Ravan was forcefully taking goddess Sita to his kingdom they rested there for a while. And that is when this footprint was left behind and today, water cleanses the holy print in respect of the goddess.

A Giant Footprint, source: Twitter

If seen from a distance this temple seems to be standing upon a tortoise's back because of the shape of the hill. The idols of Ganesha, Vishnu, Nandi, Veerbhadra, Shiva, Bhadrakali and Laxmi are worshipped in the Lepakshi temple. But what adds to the mystery of this temple is the hanging pillar that defies the law of gravity. The pillar is said to be 1 inch above the ground and to test this, visitors pass their handkerchiefs below it, but while doing it the handkerchief gets stuck around a corner, which seems like a joining between the pillar and the ground. Now, if this is the case, then why do people call it the ‘Hanging Pillar of Lepakshi’?

History and cities go through a lot of modifications and so did the Lepakshi temple. The small fragment bridging the gap between the pillar and the ground definitely cannot hold the weight of the pillar. Hence, assuming that this is the reason why the pillar stands is not appropriate because curiosity wasn’t stuck under it since the beginning.

Levitating Pillar Of Lepakshi, source: Atlas Obscura

Britishers have always been fascinated by our country. In 1902, the mystery of the levitating pillar caught their attention and to understand its genius engineering the British government appointed an engineer named Hamilton. While testing the pillar when he tried to dislocate it with an iron rod, other pillars too started to shake, because of this the roof alignment of the temple got disturbed. Seeing this, the Britishers had to stop. And to strengthen the pillar again, they repaired it and left some construction material below the pillar, where today the handkerchief gets stuck.

Not only the architectural style of Vijaynagar has crafted several tales for us, but the name ‘Lepakshi’ too has stories to share. Travelling back to the epic Ramayana, it is believed that Jatayu who followed Ravan’s Pushpak Viman to help Mata Sita, had its wings chopped off by Ravan and he fell on the same land which today is known as Lepakshi. When Rama and Laxman found Jatayu breathing his last breaths, Rama said to Jatayu “Le-Pakshi '' meaning “Rise, bird” and hence, some believe the village is named so because of this mythological story.

Another belief regarding the name of the village is around the construction of Kalyana Mandapa. It is said that the Mandapa is where Lord Shiva and Mata Parvati’s wedding was supposed to take place. Though wonderful carvings of Shiva and Parvati can be seen on the pillars, due to its incomplete construction the auspicious wedding never happened here. In fact, something barbaric happened.

Stains That Haunt Till This Day, source: Santhipriya Pages

Virupanna and Veerana were the two brothers who served in the court of Achyutaraya and are known for building the Lepakshi Temple. Virupanna was the treasurer of the empire and used to manage the funds. It is said that after the death of Achyutaraya, the king’s son-in-law was transferred the responsibility of the throne. Conspiracies were made when the new king was out of the state. When he returned, he was informed about the misuse of funds by Virupanna for the making of Kalayana Mandapa, without any prior notice to the king. Agitation arose and the king ordered to blind Virupanna. Felt insulted, Virupanna blinded himself and flung his eyeballs on one of the walls close to Kalyana Mandapa. Two red stains are still visible on the wall and as tested by the Britishers it was proved to be a human’s blood. Following this story many people believe that the village got its name from this story, ‘Lepa-akshi’ meaning a village of the blinded eye. It is also said that during the Dussehra festival the stain gets darker giving a shred of legendary evidence to the story.

Coming back to the temple and its priests. Nothing here is ordinary as it seems. Even the priests speak multiple languages. As one enters the temple the first thing a priest asks is in which language we are comfortable speaking. He may speak to us in Hindi, English, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil or Telugu and will greet us with a welcoming smile. There are more than one Shiva Linga in the temple and the 4th one is the most unique but is not worshipped by the priests. The 4th one is covered with multifaceted Naag that are protecting the huge Linga hence, known as Nagalinga. This Nagalinga is also considered as Khandit Murti because it has 3 cracks so it is only kept for display.

Nagalinga Carved With Single Stone, source: TwinsOnToes

The Nagalinga and Nandi are separately carved out of a single stone. But surprisingly contrary to what is followed in Hinduism, Nandi cannot be seen anywhere near the Shiva Linga. In fact, the Veerabhadra temple is between Nagalinga and Nandi. In ancient times people used to follow this tradition of viewing Nagalinga by placing their thumb and a finger on the horns of Nandi. And if today one tries to do so by climbing upon the huge structure of Nandi then they can see the top of the Nagalinga.

The statue of Nandi and Nagalinga is one of the biggest in India. This proportionate idol is 27 feet in length and 15 feet in height. Such a huge creation is said to be created by the giants. Although archaeologists claim the temple to be created 500 years ago, the residents believe that Nandi and Nagalinga were created thousands of years ago.

Nandi: Shiva's Avid Worshipper, source: Telugu Basha

If we look at archaeological excavations then we can find evidence of the existence of giants. 15 feet of a skeleton were found beneath the land of America. Additionally, somewhere near Kolkata was also discovered a 31 feet 6 inches monkey’s remains. These findings make us wonder about the possibility of the beliefs to be a truth.

The myths and mysteries do not end here. Visiting this place may uncover more stories about it. Because history repeats itself and history may never become the truth. It may remain forever a possibility.