Veerabhadraswamy jathra draws huge crowd

Thousands of devotees thronged Chennappanapura village in the taluk to celebrate Jade Veerabhadraswamy rathotsava, which is being held after a gap of three years on Tuesday.

The car festival was observed by taking out a procession of the idol on the main roads. As the rathotsava is being held after a long hiatus, the whole Chennappanapura village, and the surrounding 18 villages including Amachavadi were decorated with buntings and flowers for the occasion.

While the children were seen content with umpteen choices of play articles, women were seen crowding near the shops selling bangles. The sweet stall owners were doing roaring business and police security was beefed up to prevent any untoward incidents.

This temple has a long history and was said to have been built during the time of Cholas.
Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar’s wife Lingarajammanni renovated the temple and currently is under the Muzrai department.

But, the temple is in a dilapidated condition due to lack of maintenance. The villagers’ demand of rejuvenating the temple by the state government has fallen on deaf ears.

The idol in the temple which is 12 feet high depicts the peaceful form of Lord Shiva after the ‘samhara’ of Dakshabrahma. As a long braid is found on the back of the idol, it has derived the name ‘Jade Veerabhadra.’

The idol is covered with silver mask and the embellishment is done only during the rathotsava. According to mythology, it is said that Lord Shiva killed Dakshabrahma in the afternoon and hence the jatra mahotsava festival is started only at 12 noon, which is a unique feature, say the locals.