By: R.K. Bhat, Team Mangalorean

Mangalore Aug 26: With the 10-Day-long celebrations of Ganesh Chaturthi beginning Sunday, Colourful idols, marquees, hectic buying, night long cultural programmes, well decorated mandals - shows the significance of this festival celebrated in Tulunadu. Hectic preparations were already seen in and around Mangalore today people preparing to receive Ganesha in their homes or neighbourhood.

Tulunadu, that includes a stretch between Kasargod to the North Kanara border is famous for two things.  One for the number of temples in the vicinity and the other for its attractive beaches. According to the Sanskrit Shloka “Raupyapeetha Kumaradhri Kumbhasi cha Dhwajeshwara, Kroda Gokarna Mukamba Saptete Mokshadayaka” there are seven holy places in the Coastal Districts. The seven places as mentioned in the Shloka are Udupi, Kukke Subramanya, Anegudda, Shankarnarayana, Kroda, Gokarna and Kollur.

These seven places have deities portraying harmony in the region. The worship of Lord Ganesha is important for Hindus and he is also worshiped by offering Ganahoma. A number of temples of undivided Dakshina Kannada are known for Ganesha worship. A handful of them are very famous and attract people from various parts of the State too.

Kumbashi or Anegudde as it is known, is about nine kilometers from Kundapur and very close to the National Highway 17, on the way to Udupi. It is believed that the name Kumbashi is derived from Kumbhasura who was slain by her.  Though it is close to the national highway, the temple is on a hill and has peaceful surroundings.  The ancient temple was renovated in 1985 and now has a new compound wall, main entrance, tower (Mahagopura), Yajna Mantap, dining hall, guest house, dormitory and adequate water supply.  The temple is open for visitors from 6 am to 9 pm. Rathostsava is held on Ganapathi Vrutha during a marriage or when their wishes are duly met.  An important fact about the idol is that, it is gigantic and not chiselled.

Mahalingeshwara Mahaganapathi Temple of Padubidre is well known in undivided DK. Padubidri is located on the National Highway 17 and is about 24 kilometres from Udupi. The temple is situated about half kilometer from the Padubidri bus stand. The idol of Lord Ganapathi is about 2.5 ft tall and has been carved out of Rudrakshi shila(stone). Pottappa seve, is an important offering made here. Katahadappa seve is another seva at the temple.

Siddhivinayaka Temple, Hattiangady  The Siddhivinayaka Temple at Hattiyangady in Kundapur taluk is one of the oldest temple dating back to the 8th century.  Hattiyangady is about 8 kms to the north east of Kundapur. The temple though small, when compared to the rest, attracts people due to the mountain and the river Varahi.  The speciality of the Lord Ganesha here is that he is a Jata Dhari. The idol is about 2.5 ft high and made up of Saligrama Shila.  Ganesha’s right hand is situated inside the basement and holds a vessel full of modakas in its left hand. S ince the God is supposed to grant the wishes of the devotees, the title ‘Siddi” has been conferred on Lord Vinayaka.

Siddhi Vinayaka Temple, Uppur At  Uppur, the Shiva Linga has Ganapathi Mandala on it. According to scholar P Gururaj Bhat, Ganapathi Mandala on Shiva Linga was being worshiped prior to the installation of the idol of Lord Ganapathi. A separate shrine was constructed for installing the Shiva Linga in the 1960s.

Guddattu  Vinayaka Temple The temple is situated in the border area of Udupi and Kundapur Taluks.  The Ganapathi idol at the temple is in the sitting position. Apart from regular poojas, there are two kinds of special pujas offered in this temple. One is the Ayurkoda Abhisheka, that is bathing the idol with one thousand pots of water, which is performed every morning. The other famous  worship is the Akki Kadubu seve. The temple is situated about 1.5 kms from Hunsemakki.

Mahatobhara Siddhivinayaka Temple  It should be noted that Udyavara (Udayapur) was once the capital of Alupas, and is about 3 kms away from Udupi.  The idol of Lord Vinayaka is in sitting posture and has two arms.  Doni Panchakajjaya on Margashira Shuddha Chauthi every year is considered to be an important seva here.  Navadhanya Panchkajjaya Seva is offered once in a year and Apoopa (Appam) in Mithuna Masa is also offered.
    
Sauthadka  The unique feature of the temple is that there is no roof for the Lord.  This is the only Ganapathi temple with a distinct feature in the district.  According to scholars, the Gollas established the idol.  Since they had nothing to offer, they offered Sauthekai or cucumber that grew in abundance. Hence the place came to be called as Sauthadka. The place is situated 3 kms from Kokkada which is 5 kms from Periashanthi.  The Mudappa Seve is a famous offering made here.
    
Sharavu Mahaganapathi Temple  This is an renowned temple in Dakshina Kannada, situated in the heart of Mangalore and has very great historical significance.