Sri Kanaka Mahalakshmi temple in Vizag | Fusion - WeRIndia

Sri Kanaka Mahalakshmi temple is located in Burujupeta of Vizag city in Andhra Pradesh. Generally, devotees are not allowed into the sanctum sanctorum. But, here, devotees can worship the goddess Sri Mahalakshmi directly inside the sanctum sanctorum.

They can perform puja without the help of a priest and offer various things like turmeric, kumkum, coconut, milk, flowers etc., to the goddess. The idol is covered with long curtains.

Devotees offer gold coins to the goddess seeking her blessings. They also bring newborn babies to the temple.

Sri Kanaka Mahalakshmi temple is one of the oldest temples in the country. It is a more than 126 years old temple.

Devotees believe that their prayers are heard by the goddess. That’s why not just locals but from all over the country visit the temple.

Apart from allowing devotees into the sanctum sanctorum, the temple has many specialities. It has no roofs at the sanctum sanctorum. It is because devotees can worship the goddess Mahalakshmi in the presence of five elements or Pancha Bhutas.

In addition, the priest says that gods from heaven also view the goddess. The roof is covered with coconut shells.

The idol of the goddess has only the right hand to give blessings to devotees. There is a story for this. Visakha kings worshipped the goddess to reign for many years. They hid the idol of the goddess in the well to protect their power when their enemies invaded the kingdom.

After some years, a Brahmin who was going to Varanasi saw the idol in the well. Then the goddess asked him to take the idol out of the well and consecrate it. But he refused to do so as he was in a hurry to go to Varanasi. The angry goddess tried to kill him with a weapon. The Brahmin prayed to Lord Shiva. He cut the left hand of the goddess to subside her anger. Thus, the goddess changed into a peaceful form.

Margashirsha month is considered the auspicious month to visit the temple. Thursdays are precious in the week. As per legend, the goddess was self-manifested on a Thursday in Margashirsha.

There are plenty of buses and trains to reach the place. One can also go there by aeroplane since the distance from the airport to the temple is 30 km.

Image Credit: Rajapolipilli, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Image Reference: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sunrise_in_the_mornings_at_Tenneti_Park,Visakhapatnam%28Vizag%29.jpg