تويت
Bangalore temples are ancient treasure troves
Karnataka has more than 34,000 temples, whose collections topped Rs 194.96 crore for the year 2010-11. Bangalore, with a little over 1,000 temples, raked in Rs 9.45 crore through offerings.
According to the muzrai department, Kukke Subramanya temple is the richest outside Bangalore with an earning of Rs 35 lakh. M M Hills temple is ranked second at Rs 18 lakh, Kollur temple No. 3 at Rs 15 lakh, Kateel temple four at Rs 9 lakh and Nanjangud No. 5 at Rs 7 lakh.
In Bangalore, the Banashankari temple is matched in collections by one major private temple, Iskcon, which earns approximately Rs 2.5 crore to Rs 3 crore per year and attracts around two million people a year. "The uniqueness of Sri Banashankari Amma Temple is that the presiding deity, Banashankari Amma, is worshipped in Rahukala, an inauspicious time according to Hindu belief. The area, Banashankari, is named after the Goddess. Situated on Kanakapura Road, it is one of the most popular temples of Bangalore," says a devotee. Devotees believe that by worshipping the Goddess, one's hardships and poverty will be removed.
Considering the large number of devotees who come to the temple, the Government of Karnataka has taken it into the purview of the Endowment Department. Though the temple is opened to devotees every day, Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays are special days when thousands of devotees throng the temple from dawn to dusk to offer special pujas. The temple was built in 1915 by a devotee, Somanna Shetty who installed a deity of Banashankari Amma brought all the way from Badami in Bijapur district.
There are three big cultural ceremonies that are held annually at the temple. The first one on September 13 every year celebrates the birthday of Banashankari Amma. The temple also conducts the Dasara Festival in October and the temple anniversary in Pushya Maasa, which falls either in the end of December or in the first week of January.
The Dodda Ganapathy temple which receives around one million people a year, hosts Lord Ganapathy, the God who removes all obstacles. Over 500,000 devotees visit the Subramanya temple in Hanumanthnagar seeking good health.
