Sri Durgamba

Front view of Sri Vana Durga Temple

दुर्गे स्मृता हरसि भीतिमशेषजन्तोः स्वस्थैः स्मृत मतिमतीवशुभां ददासि ।
दारिद्र्यदुःख भयहारिणि का त्वदन्या सर्वोपकारकरणायसदार्द्रचित्ता ॥

Main entrance from road

Sri Shankara consecrated the temple of Sri Durgamba in the south of Sringeri.  Owing to the remote location of this temple amongst the woods, the Goddess is famous as Vana Durga.

When plague threatened Sringeri, Sri Sacchidananda Shiva Abhinava Nrisimha Bharati prayed to Durga and since then not a single case of plague has occurred here.

The temple structure

Side view of temple

The temple structure is of the style of Malnad architecture, built of wood and tiles.  It has a navaranga, where there is a nandi facing the sanctum, then the antarala, where the idols of Lord ganesha and Lord Subrahmanya are installed. The wide and spacious garbha griha has a very attractive and beautiful icon of devi vanadurga istalled by Sri Adi Shankara. Behind the Devi to the right there is a Shiva linga, believed to be an udbhava linga in the name of Mallikarjuna. The origin and time of consecration of this linga is not known. It seems to have been there even before Adi Shankaras arrival at Sringeri.

Sri Durgamba

There is a circumambulatory path around the temple with wooden parapet structure. The entrance door is very wide, unusual for a gribhagriha of a temple. There is a stone dvaja sthambha outside the temple.

Festival

The annual Rathotsava is conducted on a grand scale on Phalguna Shuklapaksha Mrigashira nakshatra when a special Puja to the Goddess Durgamba is performed by the Jagadguru. The decorated utsava murti is placed in the decorated chariot and is taken in the streets of Vidyaranyapura accompanied by the naadaswaram and the veda chanting by the pandits.

The temple is decorated very beautifully with flowers. The villagers from in and around Sringeri visit this rathotsvava, an important jaatra (religious fair whose custom is to offer some percentile of their yield from their fileds) to be attended by them with their families.

Deepotsava is conducted  in the evening in the presence of His Holiness.

Archana, Durga Saptashati parayana and lamps are lit in this temple as an offering by the devotees. The Friday afternoon puja is a divine sight to watch and participate

Seva

• Panchamrita Abhishekha
• Panaka Abhishekha
• Archana – Ashtothra, Tirshati and Sahasranama
• Panaka Naivedya
• Dadhyanna Naivedya
• Tulabhara
• Durga Saptashati Parayana

For further details see Seva page