Arasavalli temple wore a festive look on Thursday itself with the arrival of thousands of devotees to have darshan of Lord Sri Suryanarayana Swamy on Rathasaptami to be celebrated on Friday.
Flower decoration
The Endowments Department officials decorated the temple with flowers brought from different places of the State. The devotees of North Andhra give top priority for the darshan on the day of Rathasaptami while hoping that the Sun God would bless them with health and wealth.
The temple is believed to have been built in the 7th Century AD by the Kalinga rulers Devendra Varma of Odisha. A black granite image of Surya about 5 ft in height bearing lotus buds, flanked by his consorts Padma, Usha and Chhaaya, on a 7-horse driven chariot is the object of worship here. At the base of the image are the gatekeepers Pingala and Danda and the saints Sanaka and Sananda. Surya’s charioteer Aruna (Anoora) is also depicted in the image.
Inscriptions reveal grants made by Aditya Vishnu Sarma and Bhanu Sarma of the Kalinga clan. The present structure is largely a result of 18th century renovations.
Panchayatana temple
The temple is a panchayatana one with Aditya in the centre, and Ganesha, Siva, Parvati and Vishnu in four corners of the quadrangle. The temple authorities have prominently displayed the history in a plank at the entrance to catch the attention of the devotees.
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