11.) LORD ALLARNATH TEMPLE , BRAHMAGIRI, PURI

LORD ALLARNATH TEMPLE , BRAHMAGIRI, PURI

Temple view

Entrance to Temple

Lord ALLARNATHJI

There is a saying  that in Satya Yuga, Lord Brahma came and worshipped Lord Vishnu  on top of a hill. One day, Lord Vishnu appeared and said, “I am very pleased with your worship. Make a four-armed Deity of Me holding shankha (conch shell), chakra (disk), gada (club), and padma (lotus). The Deity should be made from a piece of black stone. Also install a Deity of Garuda”. Lord Vishnu also said, “This place will be called Brahmagiri (Brahma’s hill) because you have worshiped me here”.

According to mythology, the rulers of Alwar in Rajasthan had established the temple here. The temple was later known as Alwarnath or Alarnath.

The History depicts, in 1610 A.D., Chaitanya Mahaprabhu stayed at Alarnath during anavasara period of Lord Jagannath. Anavasara is the two weeks period when Lord Jagannatha take rest in isolation from the rest of the world after suffering from fever due to the annual bathing festival (Snana Yatra). Lord Chaitanya claimed that he visualised the appearance of Lord Jagannath in Alarnath and spent a long period in worshipping the deity here. It is believed that those who can not worship Lord Jagannath during his stay in the sick chamber can get the blessings of the deity if they visit the Alarnath temple.

Sri Vigraha’s Love of Devotees: There is a Legend relating to the eruption marks on the right hand, on the face, on the chest of the Lord. In the long past a poor Tamil Kama Brahmin priest named Sri Ketan was serving the Lord on bagging alms. He had a 12 yr old son Madhasudan by name. On one occasion, the Tamil priest remained absent for a long time as he was out to a distance place, The boy was serving and doing pooja in the absence of the father. One day the boy prepared ‘Khiri’ in the Kitchen and took the container and placed it before the Lord. He offered it as “Naivedya’ to the Lord and closed the door of the temple. There after, boy played with other children for some time. Then he came and opened the temple door and found that ‘Khiri’ had remained in the container as he had placed it. The boy felf that the Lord had not accepted his offer of Khiri and so began to cry in grief. He prayed to the Lord.

Oh Lord! Please eat this Khiri, Father has been to a foreign land I don’t know the process of Pooja and offerings, So I am praying at your lotus feet.

The boy’s this emotional entreaty moved the heart of the Lord. To please the boy, the Lord accepted and ate the ‘Khiri’. The container fell empty. The boy returned home in joy. On seeing the empty Container the mother asked the boy- where is Prasad ? The boy replied “The Lord ate up the “Khiri’. How will then be any Prasad ? A doubt cropped up in the mother’s mind. She thought like this.

‘Even though her husband does the offering after this sixteen procedures of Pooja, Prasad reaches home in the container, How is it that the Lord ate up and emptied the pot without any utterance of Mantra’ ?

On the second day, the mother watched the offering made by her son through a small hole on the door. To her utter astonishment, she found that the Lord descended from the Singhashan and began eating the Khiri.

After some days when the priest Sriketan returned home his wife told him about this matter. The mind of the Brahmin was filled with suspicion, So he also watched through the hole the offering of ‘Khiri’ made by his son to the Lord and was amazed to see the Lord part taking ‘Khiri’. To prove the truth, innosence and simplicity of the boy the Lord started eating the ‘Khiri’ even through it was too hot. While the Lord was in the state of eating the hot ‘Khiri’ the Brahmin opened the door and as a result the hot khiri spilled over the body of the Lord which left these eruption marks for all times. The Lord bore the brunt owing to his love for his devotee.

Priest Sriketan implored to the Lord if you eat away all the ‘Prasads’ how will we live? The Lord replied “I ate up the Naivedya’ as the boy offered it with love and I appear before you also because of the boy’s love and reverence. The Lord asked the priest to beg him any boon that he liked. But the priest instead of listening to the Lord went on repeating his question. As a consequence the Lord got annoyed and cursed him to be extirpated along with his clan. He took Madhusudan, his dear devotee to Baikuntha or heaven.

After this event, due to the absence of priest the Lord remained un worshipped for several years. When Gajapati Maharaja Sri Purusottam Dev was returning home after his Victorious Kanchi campaign, he visited the Lord and got to know about plight. He made the arrangement for his pooja by sending two Brahmin families from Bashista gotra and one family from Bhara dwaja gotra. These three Brahmin families carried on the pooja of the Lord according to the scriptures. The kind made all arrangements for the maintenance of the servitors. The Progenitors of these three families are carrying on the Pooja system with pump and ceremony to this day.

Ref : http://odialive.com/alarnath-templebrahmagiri 

NB : More information can be obtained from Sri Sudhakar Suar, Contact No: +918338895563
          and information on MAA LAKHMI temple from Sri Debabrata Suar, No:+917681061037

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HE gives Response to Call with Devotion :

Undaunted devotion and trust is the key to reach at HIM. Even if somebody do not go to temples, do not put efforts to offer flowers and prasadam (Naivedya) to God but has full selfless devotion in mind, then he/she can make the impossible to possible. According to Shakespeare: “Impossible is a word found in fool’s dictionary.” God immediately responds to those who surrender to HIM with selfless devotion. Within twinkling of an eye, the desires of those devotees are fulfilled by God.

Such an incident was happened in the remote village ‘Palanka’ adjacent to ‘Brahmagiri’ where the temple of Lord Allarnath exists. The incident has been heard from one of the sevayat (devotee) of Lord. The true story was heard by one of the joint secretary of the revenue department of govt. of Odisha, Sri Sudhasu Sekhar Bhuyan.

One Muslim family was residing in ‘Palanka’ village adjacent to ‘Brahmagiri’. Dildar Hussein was the jaminder in that village. He had lot of property and uncountable grains of paddy and rice which were stored in a house called ‘Khamar’ (grain go down).In the event of famine or any calamity as needed by the villagers, the grains were distributed to them by the jaminder.

The old grain go down of the jaminder in course of time converted to the Tahsil office of the government.

In the year 1991-’93, the khamar or the grain go down was the office of the Regional Revenue Department of state govt. By the grace of Lord Allarnath the secured khamar still exists. In the first part of 20th century, there occurred a dangerous cyclone. The whole area was devastated. Lot of big trees got uprooted and fell lie on the ground. The age old houses were collapsed. The terrible sound of the cyclonic storm mingled with the cries of the living being including animals and birds of that village were really heart touching. Villagers of the ‘Palanka’ village were very much effected and afraid of the situation called for by nature. Dildar Hussein, the jamindar, was in deep grief stricken thought – what will happen to the khamar (go down)? If the grain go down is completely destroyed, then after the cyclone what the villagers will be fed ? Being disappointed, he reached at the Allarnath temple, situated in front of the khamar. Being a Muslim, he had no rights to enter the Hindu temple. Standing in front of the Lord Allarnath temple, with folded hands, he prayed to Lord Allarnath saying: “ Oh, my beloved Lord Allarnath, kindly bless to protect the khamar as well as the grains stored inside. If protected, then the villagers will be fed and they will be saved from starvation.”

Surprisingly, just after 15 minutes of his prayer to Lord Allarnath, at once, the cyclonic storm subsided miraculously. There was no harm to the khamar or the grains stored by Dildar Hussein.

Dildar never went to the temple nor offered any puja in his past days but he had undaunted selfless devotion to the Lord. Although a Muslim by religion, he understood the Almighty God is one. He never prayed for his self anything to the God but when the danger was faced, he prayed selflessly with folded hands to the Lord Allarnath for the sake of the villagers, for the welfare of the mankind. His selfless prayer and emotional entreaty melted the heart of the Lord.

Due to the grace of Lord Allarnath, the khamar got untouched by the devastating cyclone and at present the same khamar building stands as the revenue office there. In 1991 – ’93, it was a thatched house but presently it stands as a pucca building.


It is the grace of Lord Allarnath believed as Lord Vishnu, the Lord Jagannath.

Source : Information collected from Odia daily newspaper “PRAMEYA”- dt.14th July 2015 

Allar nath Temple(Dt.10.7.15)

Blogger&his wife in temple premises(Dt.10.7.15)

Allar nath Temple Dt.10.7.15.                                           

The stone in front of Lord Allarnath in which
Sri Chaitanya melted his full body-imprint.

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