Madhya Kailash

"This article refers to a temple in Chennai. For the temple in South Africa, refer Madhya Kailash Temple Midrand"

Madhya Kailash is a Hindu temple in South Chennai, located at the junction between Sardar Patel Road, Adyar and Old Mahabalipuram Road. It is located opposite the Central Leather Research Institute and is close to the Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai.

Temple

The "Moolavar" or main deity, Venkata Ananda Vinayakar, is surrounded by shrines to Lord Siva, Surya, Devi and Vishnu. In response to the wishes of the people, there are also "Sannidhis" to Anjaneya, Swarna Bhairavar and Onpankol, though these fall outside Ganapatyam practices.

On Vinayaka Chaturthi day, the rays of the sun fall on the presiding deity, striking an auspicious note. Since Vinayaka is the form of the first sound "Om", eight bells have been installed. They represent the seven notes Sa, Ri, Ga, Ma, Pa, Da, Ni, with the eighth bell signifying the Sa that follows. In the "Mandapam" before the sanctum sanctorum is a shrine to Vinayaka’s brother Muruga.

The temple has become famous for its unique idol of "Adhyantha Prabhu", which is part Ganapathy and part Anjaneya. The right side is Ganesh and the left Hanuman. The idol was crafted after a vision of such a form was seen by one of the temple officials. In Maharashtra style, one can light the camphor to this deity himself, giving a great sense of satisfaction. Lord Vinayaka himself takes on the onus of propitiating the ancestors. Every afternoon, the priest has a bath and in his wet clothes begins the rites. He takes the Darba garb, earlier placed at the Anandavinayaka idol’s feet and goes to the shrine of Lord Vishnu. From there he takes the white rice offered to the Lord and comes to the Siva shrine. There the rice transforms into the "Pindam". The rice "Pindam" is taken from the Surya shrine and offered to the crows on a platform. People of all caste and creed can avail of this service.

Bus stop

Madhya Kailash is famous for its associated bus stop, which is an important stop for MTC buses. There are actually two bus stops: one on Sardar Patel Road, and the other at the beginning of Old Mahabalipuram Road. The bus stop on Sardar Patel Road is the more important one, and all MTC buses are supposed to stop here. The bus stop is also called the CLRI bus stop because CLRI is located opposite it.

Madhya Kailash is also a terminus for many buses operated for private companies such as Tata Consultancy Services.

External links

* [http://www.madhyakailas.org/ Madhya Kailash temple official website in Tamil]