Just lately, a superb discovery was made that has enormously enriched the historical past of an already vibrant temple. Twenty-one medieval period copper plates have been unearthed by the Srisailam authorities on the Mallikarjuna Temple in India, that are dated to the Sixteenth century, and even earlier. The plates have been inscribed within the subcontinental languages of Sanskrit, Kannada and Telugu.

The doorway to the Shiva-devoted Mallikarjuna Temple in Srisailam, Andhra Pradesh, India. (Arpita Tripathy / CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Final Few Months Have Yielded Many Artifacts at Srisailam

Six units of copper plates (18 leaves) have been discovered in the course of the course of renovation work in Ghanṭa Maṭham at Srisailam, carried out by the temple authorities. Out of 6 copper plate units, 4 units are written in Sanskrit language and Nandi-Nāgarī script, and the opposite 2 plates are within the Telugu language, though they’re but to be deciphered. “All of the plates might be assigned between 14th-Sixteenth century CE [AD],” stated Chenna Reddy, Dean of Archaeology at Telugu College Campus and Director of Archaeology and Museums, in The Deccan Chronicle. 

And that’s not all. That is the third of a latest spate of such discoveries over the previous few years!

In October, 2020 a brass field was found the traditional Ghanta Matham, which contained 15 British-era gold cash, 18 silver cash and a gold ring at, as per a report by The Hindu. Srisailam Publications Editor Anil Kumar stated in a launch that the gold cash have been minted between 1880 and 1911, whereas the silver cash have been minted between 1885 and 1913, and one other silver coin discovered individually was minted in 1892.

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I 2017, a stash of treasures together with 700 grams of gold ornaments, comprising three gold kadiyams weighing 525 gm, 18 gold cash and 4 rings. The silver element of the hoard was 147 silver cash, silver vessel weighing 395 gm and a pitcher weighing 133 gm.

Ornaments, silver vessels and cash discovered on the Ghanta Matham in Srisailam in 2017. (Deccan Chronicle)

Historical past of the Srisailam Mallikarjuna Temple 

Mallikarjuna Temple in Srisailam within the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh is devoted to the deity Shiva, probably the most in style and extremely worshipped gods from the Hindu pantheon. It has obtained patronage from royal kings and empires, significantly in the course of the medieval period, together with the Kondavidu Reddi kingdom (1325-1448 AD), Kakatiyas(1163-1323), and the well-known Vijayanagara Empire (1336-1646). Inscription proof from the time of the Satvahanas signifies that the temple has been round at the least because the 2nd century AD. 

The legend of the temple says that Shiva and his associate, Parvati, had their son Ganesha (the elephant god) marry Buddhi, Siddhi and Riddhi (the deities of mind, religious energy and prosperity, respectively). In India, it’s customary to have mother and father select companions for his or her youngsters. Their different son, Kartikeya, was enraged at being denied the identical stage of affection by his mother and father and went away alone to remain on a mountain prime.

His mother and father, significantly Shiva, got here to pacify him and the place they stayed was a spot referred to as Srisailam. By the way, one other Shiva legend locations him as an infinite pillar of sunshine, worshipped within the type of a phallus, or the  jyotirlinga. Shiva appeared in 64 of those jyotirlingas in his completely different types, avatars or rebirths, of which 12 are thought of auspicious and holy. Mallikarjuna Temple is one in every of these 12 jyotirlingas, getting its identify from the worship of the jasmine flower or  Mallika.

A Shiva lingam might be the most typical image of Shaivism. The Shiva illustration on this picture is the erect stone column within the center, surrounded by what’s held because the ‘yoni’ or feminine genitalia. (viktorov.pro / Adobe Inventory)

Shiva and Phallocentric Worship within the Hindu Religion

In Shaivism, an enormous denomination of the Hindu religion, the illustration of Lord Shiva is thru the  linga or lingam, an iconic kind. The  linga is a phallic illustration of Shiva, significantly alluding to the religious understanding of fertility and cosmic regeneration. It holds a pious and particular place within the Hindu religion, being utilized in all types of Shiva associated worship.

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In faiths the world over, together with historical Egypt and Greece, the phallus has been utilized in differing contexts however universally signifies the male sexual organ, fertility, and the male orgasm. Even in India, proof of phallic worship has been present in a number of historical Indus Valley websites, exhibiting that it was prevalent as a magical ceremony from the Chalcolithic interval onward. 

With the event of faith in India, the  linga was proven with the  yoni, the feminine sexual organ, who collectively represented the mix of microcosmos and macrocosmos. Followers of the religion deny any allusions to sexual organs, as a substitute argue that the  lingam represents the start of inventive power, and religious fact.

High picture: Six units of copper plates that have been found on the Ghanta Matham in Srisailam in June 2021.                                                        Supply: The Hindu

By Rudra Bhushan