Serenity of Mathanantheswara

Situated along the banks of River Madhuvahini, the Madhur Temple is believed to have been constructed by the Mypadi rulers of Kumbla in the 10th century. The current temple structure is renovated by rulers in the 15th century. The temple is a combination of Jain & Hindu architectural styles. The 3-tier structure is divided into two forms of construction with the lower tier having normal terracotta tiles while the upper 2 tiers have copper tiles on the outer structure. Inside the temple one can find beautifully carved wooden pillars & beams which are well placed by artisans. The walls & roofs also are adorned with beautiful stucco images depicting the scenes of the Hindu Mythology. The carvings inside the namaskara mandapam also relate to Ramayana stories.

 

The temple is also known by the name Madanantheswara & is based on the legend which relates to the event when Lord Shiva killed Kama, the lord of desires. The temple may be dedicated to Lord Shiva but devotees worship Lord Ganapathy here. The Ganapathy here is considered to be one among the 6 most revered Ganapathy temples of the ancient world. The other temples which have this importance are Sharavu Mahaganapathi in Mangalore, Anegudde, Hatiangadi, Idagunji & Gokarna. The legend behind this belief of Ganapathy is based on a story of a small boy who played at the temple once drew a picture of Ganapathy on the south wall. Over several days the picture of Ganapathy grew bigger & the boy out of love called him Bodda Ganesha. Seeing this happen, the rulers decided to have a temple of Ganapathy inside the Sanctum of Lord Shiva. The idol of Shiva is Udbhava Murthy (not made of human hands) & was found in the river by a local Tulu woman.

 

The one reason why the temple came into prominence is based on a story related to Tipu Sultan. It is said that during the invasion by the Mysore King he demolished all temples that came in his path. When he reached the Madhur temple, he felt thirsty & drank water from the well. The simple act made Tipu stop short of demolishing the temple, but he could not let the morale of his army down and as a gesture just made a small cut on the wall with his sword. One can still see this cut on the wall. The great ruler of Kumbla dynasty Jaisimha I is said to have worshipped at this temple during his rule over these parts. The well which is inside the temple has significance other than quenching the thirst of Tipu. The water in this well which is quite deep is said to have never been touched by sun rays & so the water has curative properties.

 

Lord Ganapathy is said to love food & so any devotee who comes to the temple can offer appam to the lord & take a part of the offering as prasad. There are two important offerings here, one is called Sahastrappams which is 1000 appams to the God & the other is called Moodappam where the idol is covered with appams. The rituals followed here are based on the culture of the Tulu community & the priests here belong to the Shivali Brahmin community. The temple is a marvel of architecture & though one will never know when the temple came into being its divinity & social structure does invite everyone to its steps.