Sri Janardhana
अविनयमपनय विष्णो दमय मनश्शमय विषयमृगतृष्णाम् ।
भूतदयां विस्तारय तारय संसारसागरता ॥
The form of Vishnu represented here as Janardhana, who destroys janma (birth) brought about by avidya(ignorance) and bestows on the worshipper the awareness of his identity with the lord. The origin of this temple is traced to Sri Jnanaghanacharya (9-10th century A.D) the 4th acharaya of the Sri Matha Gururparamapara.
The temple has a garbhagraha, antarAlA and navaranga.
The exquisite form of janArdhana carved in granite flanked by Sridevi and bhudevi on two sides, has chaturbhuja with shanka, chakra abhaya mudra and varada mudra, a gadha and a prabhavali. The prabhavali is an ornate piece, rich in flowery decorative details. On close observation one finds that the kireerta is very intricately carved to details.
Throughout the year the deity is covered by smearing sandal paste. Abhishekam is performed once a year on Krishna Ashtami day.
Daily pavamAna abhishekam is performed for the Vishnu sAligrAma only. The Vishnu salagrama is another murta-amurta form expressive of the virat aspect of Parabrahman.
There is a copper venkatachala pathy yantra placed for worship at the foot of Lord janardhana.
There is a separate Sudarshana Chakra for which special pooja is performed.
Sudharshana Chakra
There is a large circular copper yantra of Lord Sudharshana placed in the anatarAla. Its diameter is approximately 3ft. Prayers are offered to ward off the feeling of enmity in us towards our fellow human beings and to cure psychological problems.
Su darshan means one who gives darshan easily, makes the devotees happy making the mind tranquil. Lord Sudharshana dispels His fierce form and comes to their rescue and uplifts them.
The Sudharshana Chakra or the divine discus missile of Lord Sriman Narayana is one of the Lord’s powerful weapons in annihilating evil forces and to reinstate Dharma or the righteousness on the earth.
Maha Sudarshan Yantra is the highly Protective Yantra. The Sudarshan refers to the discus of Vishnu, weapon to repel and punish evil and it is constructed from the pure flame of the sun. It is a dynamic Yantra in that the construction represents a whirling wheel of sacred flame that keeps all negativity, illness, misfortune and so on at bay. Within the body of the Yantra are inscribed sacred bija mantras or seed syllables that have proven their efficacy as protective talismans. When worshipping this Yantra, the devotee visualizes herself being in the centre of this sacred circle of sun-fire, secure and protected from all harm and ill that might befall him/her.
“One of the functions of the Sudarshan Cakra is to chastise the demoniac attitude in human beings, but another is to uplift the consciousness of the living beings”
Puranas state that when the devotees are suffering from the afflictions caused by incurable diseases, sorcery, or enemies which are due to ones karma phala worshipping this yantra wards off the danger or perils, avoiding accidents which may possibly occur in future.
Sri Krishna JansmAshtamai is observed in grandeur. Abhishekam is performed to Janardhanaswamy in the noon with chanting of the pavamana suktha from the rig veda, and purusha suktha, Vishnu sukta and narayan sukta and sri sukta pandits. The utsava murthy of janardhana swamy, sirdevi and Bhudevi are taken in a procession in the streets of Sringeri.
Every Pournami Sri SatyanatayaNa puja is performed. Devotees can participate in the puja.
Chatra(March-April) Shukla dasami Hanumanutsava is celebrated. Special pavamana abhishekam, alankara, vadesara, betel leaves garland are offered to Lord hanuman.
JanArdhana is one of the names of Lord Vishnu. This nama occurs as the 126th nama in the Vishnu sahsranamam.
Kshirabdhi dvadashi
The meaning of the word janArdhana is
- the tormentor of people
- the one who is sought after by people for libereation.
He is called JanArdhana because janAn ardhayati – He chastises, inflicts sugffereing on people. This does not mean that he goes about punishing and destroying every one. He does not do this to all, but only to those who follow adharma committing sinful deeds (pApa karma). Those who do pApa karma ask for it and they get it. As karma phala dAta, bhagavAn inflicts sorrow when necessary according to the laws of karma.
The verbal root’ardh‘ has also the meaning of ‘yAchana‘ – imploring, pleading, appealing, and praying. Janaihi yAchyate‘ – because He is prayed to, sought after by the devotees for moksha liberation, He is janArdhana. They may seek Him as their pururshArtha – human pursuit, which is seeking nisshreyas, moksha liberation, or they may seek Him for abhyudaya purushArtha- such as artha, kAma and dharama. – security, pleasure and the results of punya.
Shankaracharya in the Vishnusahsranama bhashya quotes from the Vishnu purana to show that, one Lord alone assumes various names and functions and that even the puranas talk of advaita as the ultimate truth.
“ It is one Lord janardhana alone that assumes different names as Brahma, Vishnu , shiva and so on, depending on the functions of srishti, sthiti or samhara – creation, sustenanace and resolution” (vi. Pu. 1.2.64)
The nature of Sringeri Matha under Shankara and his sucessors has been like that of an ashrama where the Acharaya has been surrounded by a band of devoted scholars whose main occupation was the study of the scriptures, shastras, vyakarana, mimamsa, nyaya and Vedanta in an ideal and quiet surrounding with moksha as their purushartha- something like the ashramas we read in the purAnAs and epics. The primary avocation being a centre for learning which to this day the 1200 year old tradition has been kept up by the revered AchAryAs. So it has been thoughtful and befitting that one of the earlier Jagdagurus who adorned the Sringeri PItha, installed Lord Janardhana swami to be prayed to and sought after by the disciples and devotees, as He is the bestower of moksha.
The adjoining shrines are of Hanuman and Garuda.
Darshan Timings
- Morning – 7:00 AM to 1:00 PM
- Evening – 5:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Sevas
For conducting Seva to Sri Janardhana Swami see seva page
For conducting Seva to Sri Sudarshana Chakra, see Seva Page