Temple Restoration
Temple restoration is called Tirupanni in Tamil. It is considered a great boon to support the restoration and improvement of a temple.
Kuruvimalai Shiva Temple: Project GANESH is very pleased to have partnered with the recently formed Kapilaranyam Charitable Trust to participate in the renovation of an ancient Shiva temple in the village of Kuruvimalai, near Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu. Tiruvannamalai is an important temple town, and houses one of the largest and most impressive temple complexes in India, the Arunachaleswarar temple. It is also home to many yogis and siddhars, and was the place of residence of Ramana Maharshi, a great 20th century sage. Kuruvimalai is within 3 yojanas (ancient measure for distance) or 25 kms (15 miles) from the holy hill of Arunachala in Tiruvannamalai and according to Ramana Maharshi, spiritual souls living within such a short distance from the holy hill attain the highest state of mind – Enlightenment.
Lord Karaikandeeswarar of Kuruvimalai is one of the seven Shiva Lingas believed to have been installed by Lord Muruga Himself near the holy hill of Arunachala (Tiruvannamalai), many centuries back, to be rid of the Shiva dosha borne out of killing Surapadman, a devotee of Lord Shiva. Of the seven lingas on the banks of the holy river Cheyyar, only one linga located in Kuruvimalai (originally known as Guru Moolai) village is in a dilapidated condition and needs restoration and renovation. The temple was originally built around the Shiva lingam during the 10th century by the Chola rulers, purely by using stones and without an appropriate foundation. Over the centuries, the temple has tilted and started sinking into the earth due to the weight of the structure.
A Rs 20 lakh ($48,000) program is currently underway to renovate this ancient shrine and restore it to its original glory, so that regular worship may be offered. On successful completion, this temple will comprise five major shrines for Lord Shiva, Goddess Brihadambal, Lord Vinayaka, Lord Muruga and the Navagrahas. This will also include a Maha Mandapam, meant to be the resting place of Vilva Arani Murugar during His yearly visit, after the MahaSkanda Shasti festival in September/October. A mahakumbhabishekam (inauguration ceremony) was performed in June 2007.
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Kuruvimalai Shiva temple
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Gopuram close up |
Renovation work - Feb 2007 |
Karaikandeswar lingam |
Kadalur Temple Renovation: Project GANESH first visited the Kadalur Shiva temple in November 2004. The magnificent temple complex, at least 1,000 years old, was in a sorry state of disrepair and neglect. Plants and weeds grew from the temple's side and roof, and bats filled the interior of the Shiva temple. A murthi of Sri Ganesh was left inside the Shiva temple, with no existing Ganesh temple evident. A dilapidated and forlorn Devi shrine stood nearby, though a larger Subramanium temple had managed to survive in a slightly better condition, with pujas still being conducted on an occasional basis. The complex stood silently amidst the Tamil Nadu countryside, surrounded by the tapestry of rural life, a mere shadow of its former majesty.
All plans for renovation, however, were swept aside by the massive tsunami that hit India in December, 2005. Coastal villages along the Tamil Nadu coast were hit hard, including Kadalur. Project GANESH undertook numerous relief activites (for details see Tsunami Relief) and renovation efforts were put on hold. At long last, however, the occasion arose for Project GANESH to help renovate this worthy site, as the Kanchi Health and Education Society made a concerted push to restore the complex to its previous glory. The first order of business was to restore the missing Ganesh shrine, and Project GANESH was pleased to be able to meet this need. On September 24th, 2006 both Richard Stocker and Paul Throne attended a bhumi puja (groundbreaking ceremony) for the Ganesh shrine. A number of dignitaries from the KHES attended, as well as a large number of local villagers. The foundation was laid for the temple, with construction to start immediately thereafter. As of April 2007 great progress had been made, with the Ganesh temple essentially completed. In March 2008, Sri Rajesh of the KHES engaged the local residents in the construction of a compound wall around the temple complex and construction is on-going.
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| Bhumi Puja (groundbreaking) | All hands join in! |
Spectators |
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Welcome! |
Kadalur Shiva temple |
Ganesh temple under construction (Feb 2007) |
Completed Projects:
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Kovalam Vidya Vinayaka: The first project sponsored by Project GANESH was the installation of a Vinayaka murthi by the roadside in a tranquil setting
in the hamlet of Kovalam, Tamil Nadu. Known as Vidya Vinayaka, The Lord of Knowledge, He bestows His blessing on passing school
children, and gazes serenely past a nearby temple water tank.
Padupakkam Ganesh Shrine: Project GANESH was pleased at the opportunity to work with the Kanchi Health and Education Society, headed by the renowned B. Rajesh. Sri Rajesh has over 15 years of experience in temple renovation and development, and is committed to the well-being of India's villagers. Padupakkam is a small hamlet one hour's drive south of Chennai, close to Mahabalipuram. Project GANESH sponsored the construction of a new Ganesh shrine in a Shiva temple complex being newly constructed for the local villagers. As Sri Ganesh is worshipped first before the start of any endeavor, it seemed particularly auspicious for Project GANESH to provide such sponsorship.
Before commencement of construction Sri Ganesh, as well as the other Deities of
the temple compound, were residing in a flimsy palm leaf building, as seen above to the left. An architecturally congruous
Ganesh shrine was constructed within the temple compound, and construction
is still ongoing on the main Shiva temple, as well as the Subramanium and Navagrahas temples. The new Ganesh temple is
shown to the left. The Kumbha Abhishekam for the entire temple complex is expected in April or May, 2007.
Pasupatheeswar hill temple: The Pasupatheeswar hill temple is located near Acharapakkam,
100 kms from Chennai.The temple at the top of the hil is currently a thatched shed. Preliminary investigations into
constructing a premanent Garbha Graha, Ganesha sannidhi, Navagrahas, and Amman sannidhi are underway. The first stage of
the project is to construct proper steps up the hill, which will total around five hundred in number.
Permission has been obtained from the Forest Deparment, and an initial 27 steps have been constructed. These represent
the 27 nakshatras of Indian astrology. See current condition of steps below in future projects
Future Projects:
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Om Purnam Adah Purnam Idam, Purnat Purnam Udacyate, Purnasya Purnam Adaya, Purnam Evavasisyate
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