Sri Gnana Saraswathi temple at Basara on the banks of river Godavari in Nirmal District in Telangana is the temple in South Bharat dedicated to the Goddess of learning.
The legend has it that after the Mahabharata war, sage Veda Vyasa went on a pilgrimage in search of peace. He reached the serene Kumaranchala hills in Dandakaranya on the banks of River Godavari and meditated and worshipped the Goddess who eventually appeared before him and granted her presence in the form of the divine trinity.
The Goddess told the sage to place three handful of sand at three places every day. Miraculously these sand dunes transformed into the idols of the divine trinity i.e., Saraswathi, Lakshmi, and Kali. Currently these are the presiding deities of Basar. However, the temple is dedicated to Goddess Saraswathi. Since Maharishi Vyasa lived in this place and performed penance, the place was then called “Vyasara”. Over a period of time, it turned into Basara due to the influence of the Marathi language in this region.
The temple also has a Mahakali idol situated on the 1st floor very near to the main temple. The image of Lakshmi stands beside the Goddess Saraswathi in the sanctum sanctorum. Due to the presence of Saraswathi, Lakshmi and Kali, Basara is considered as the abode of the divine trinity. The presiding deity, ‘Gnana Saraswathi Devi’, is in a seated position with a ‘Veena’ in hand and bedecked with turmeric. Devotees also go to the nearby mountain which has a murti of Goddess Saraswati on the top of the rock.
Children are brought here for the ceremony of Aksharabhyas to start their education with the blessings of the Goddess of Knowledge. Thousands of devotees bath in the river Godavari and seek the blessings of the Goddess during the Mahashivarathri, Dassera navratris and Vasantha panchami.
Temple’s history
Historically, it is said that ‘Bijialudu’ a Karnataka king, who ruled the province of Nandagiri with Nanded as his capital (There are two versions about Bijialudu’s period, while some say he belonged to 6th century CE some others say he belonged to 11th century CE) constructed the temple at Basara. In the 17th century, the idols of the temple were reinstated by a chieftain of Nandagiri (Nanded) subsequent to destruction caused by Muslim invaders.
Koneru (temple pond) is located on the east side of Main temple. It is also called Papaharini, Pushkarini. In this koneru there are eight theerthas (Wells) in the eight directions. Those theerthas are Indra Teertha, Surya Theertha, Vyasa Theertha, Valmiki Theertha, Vishnu Theertha, Ganesh Theertha, Puthra Theertha and Shiva Theertha. Brahmanda Purana has reference to this temple.
Main festivals performed at the temple:
1. Vyasa Pournami (Ashada Shudda Pournami).
2. Dasara Navarathri (9 Days Ashveeja Shudda Padyami to Dashimi)
3. Vasantha Panchami (Magha Shudda Panchami, Sri Saraswathi Devi Birth day).
4. Maha Shivarathri (Palguna Thrayodashi).
Places to visit
In Basara apart from Sri Gnana Sarawathi Devi Temple, the following are other important places to be seen.
1. Sri Mahankali Temple
2. Sri Dattatreya Temple
3. Sri Vyasa Maharshi Guha (cave)
4. Sri Vedavathi Shila (Sri Vedavathi stone)
5. Godavari River
6. Lord Shiva temple at river Godavari bank
How to reach Basara?
Basara is around 200 KMs from Hyderabad, 40 KMs from Nizamabad and 110 KMs from Nanded. Basara is also well connected by rail. Basara railway station is around 2.5 KMs from the temple. Hyderabad and Nanded are the nearest airports to Basara.
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Wonderful and very informative
Thank you Sir.
Dr. B.N.V. Parthasarathi.