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This
reputed Saiva kshetra claims several special features and enjoys a
steady influx of devotees throughout the year. It was built by
Chalukya kings, and munificently endowed by Vijayanagara dynasty
also. Built by Rasasiddhi, a great sculptor, it has all the
principal parts like towers, mini-shrines, courtyards, prakaras etc.
built superbly at it.
Among
the special features worthy of mention is - the invisible water
spring that lies under the Sivalinga. The water flowing through the
mouth of a big size image of Nandi, the divine vehicle, installed
outside of garbha griha falls into a square shaped tank. Its
perennial flow is irrigating hundreds of acres of nearby paddy
fields. Secondly the Sivalinga bears the hoof-prints of a cow. It is
irregularly shaped, yet is demonstrating numerous Sivalilas since
inception. On account of that huge Nandi, and the unending
flow
of crystal clear water, it is called Mahanandi. The pilgrims of
Srisailam invariably visit this kshetra and worship the Lord Siva
with exceptional fervour. And there is a belief current that, he who
visits all the nine Nandi kshetras, like Padmanandi, Naganandi,
Vinayakanandi, Garudanandi, Brahmanandi, Suryanandi, Vishnunandi,
Somanandi, Sivanandi, in a day from dawn to dusk, gets Sivasayujya
mukti. Many devout bhaktas are visiting them with great fervor,
since all these nine are located in a radius of 15 km.
It
lies at a distance of 16 km to Nandyala, one of the premier towns of
Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh.
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