The 22-year-old ‘Vijaya Ganapati’ temple located in Madhuranagar is popular for three main reasons. One, the trunk of the Lord Ganapati is curved towards the right side. The faithful believe that those who pray the lord with the right-sided trunk will have their wishes granted. Secondly, the banyan tree (marri chettu) that lies in the north-east corner of the temple premises adds to its prominence as the tree is worshipped as Brahma-Vishnu-Rudra. The third reason: when the sun travels towards Uttarayana (north) to Dakshinayana (south) and vice-versa on the celestial sphere, the first rays of the sun will fall on the deity. This has a special significance and is considered to be auspicious.
During ‘Ganesh Chaturthi’, ‘Sankatahara Chaturthi’ and the month-long ‘Dhanurmasam puja’, devotees throng the temple. Another common tradition followed here is offering ‘poorna-phala mala’ (string of coconuts) to Lord Ganapati.
“For this year, the advance booking for the garland is closed. Devotees from places like Anakapalle, Srikakulam, and Vizianagaram apart from the city visit the temple for the purpose. Except on a few occasions, the idol is decorated with ‘poorna-phala mala’ almost everyday,” says G. Swaminathan, a colony resident who has been associated with the temple since its inception.
The age-old temple continues to attract a large number of devotees from across the district. And the colony which was predominantly occupied by Brahmins earlier also has a mix of Telugus, Marwaris, Tamilians, Yadav and Gavara communities, making the place a perfect reflection of unity in diversity.
