Description

Dharmapuri is situated at a distance of about 28-30 km from Jagityal town and 51 km from Peddapalle railway station on the Kazipet-Balharsha Section of the South Central Railway. The Dharmapuri Laxmi narsimhan Swamy Temple is based in a quaint town called Kareemnagar in Andhra Pradesh. The Dharamapuri Laxmi Narasimhan Swamy Temple is the temple that is responsible for the Laxmi Narasimha Swamy Jatara, a festival that is conducted by it. The temple is situated in Dakshina Vahini of the Karimnagar District. The temple attains its significance from the fact that that it comprised of a shrine devoted to a form of the great Lord Vishnu.

History

The foundation if the shrine was layed by the great king of Dharmapuri himself. The name of the King was Dharma Varma and the town derived its name Dharmapuri from the name of the king, who happened to be a devotee of Lord Narasimha. The Lord Yama Dharamaraj temple and the idols of Lord Indhra dev, Lord Bramha dev, Lord Kuberswamy and Lord Balaram Krishna are found near the vicinity of the Narasimhar Swamy Temple.

Importance/Significance

It has been known due to findings of historians that Dharmapuri has been one of the biggest settlements of Vedic Brahmans in Telangana since a very long time. Even the current population of vedic Brahmins speak volumes about this very fact. The area has evolved upto an extent that there is a Sanskrit College and even upto this date there are some traditional and culturally orthodox families that practice the Vedic Hymns. Some families even possess the ancient Talapatra scriptures. Dharmapuri has numerous tiny temples scattered in almost every corner the city. Even now people, mostly brahman scholars, would bathe in the river Godavari before performing vedic rituals in temple. Also there exists one exceptional temple of the God Duttatreya (Lord Brahma's son) which indeed is hard to come by in these times.

Facts/Mythology

Located in the banks of the holy River Godavari, the Dharmapuri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple is several centuries old. Historians and archeologists estimate that the temple can be dated to have originated as long before as the 13th century AD. The temple attained its importance due to being one of the only few shrines to depict the worship of Narasimha Swamy, who was widely believed to have been a manifestation of Lord Vishnu. Ramalingeswara Temple which is close to 1000 years old is in the proximity of the Dharmapuri Laxmi narsimhan Swamy Temple. It is said in common folklore that the Shiv Lingam installed in this temple was placed by Lord Rama during his exile on way to Lanka in search of Sitha Maata.

Festivals/Events/Gatherings

A colossal number of devotees turn up daily in Dharmapuri. It is estimated that close to 1,000 people visit the Sri Laxmi Narasimhan Swamy temple on a daily basis. Legends state that 'Once if a devotee visits the sacred place Dharmapuri there will not be Yamapuri'. Apart from the holy River Godavari, there are some other places in Dharmapuri where people can perform a holy bath. Some of these places are Brahma Gundam, YamaGundam, SatyavathiGundam and Pala Gundam. The village of Dharmapuri witnessed the rise of some of the countries finest Sanskrit Scholars.