Sree Ananteshwar Temple is situated in Manjeswar, a small town near Kasargod in Northern Kerala. It is the most ancient and the most important temple of Kerala supposed to be existing since the 2nd century AD. The temple has hills on three sides and river Manjeshwar flowing by the other. The temple is about 1½ km from Manjeswar Railway station.
The temple has three principal deities, Shri Ananta, Shri Ishwar (Siva) [therefore Shri Ananteshwar] and Lord Bhadra Narasimha (an avatar of Vishnu).
The original temple had a swayambu Siva linga, and later Ananta also was installed there making it the Ananteswar temple. However, with the installation of Sri Bhadra Narasimha in the 12th century, the temple has become a major pilgrimage center for Vaishnavites. There is also a legend that Lord Siva himself installed the image of Narasimha here for the worship of mortals in Kaliyuga.
Lord Mukhyaprana, Lord Rudra, Laxmi devi, Lord MahaGanapathy and Lord Garuda are the other deities in the Temple. The image of Shri Subramanya is installed in a declivity considerably lower than the surrounding area and full of serpent holes.
Inside the Sanctum Sanctorum and behind the throne of divine idols, there exists an ant hill called 'Rohini'. This provides 'Prasadam' in the form of white coloured soil. The soil of Rohini is believed to possess the biotic power and is everlasting in spite of continuous extraction for centuries.
On the right side of the temple, is a small pond known as Sesha Theertham. Legend says that leprosy patients used to take bath in the Sesha Tirtha and cured.
The Shesha reveals himself to his devotees in the person of a priest who is the eldest surviving descendant of Ranga Sharma, who installed the Sesha or Ananta idol at the temple, and solves the knotty problems and prophesies the future of the devotees. No wonder, the temple has gained wide popularity not only among the Gowda Saraswaths, but among other hindus also, as is evidenced by the fact that of the three thousand and odd permanent endowments to the temple, nearly three hundred are by non Gowda Saraswats.
The oracle is not in practice since 1935 and efforts are being made to reinstate it. The history of the temple has an exciting narration about a devotee who was able to realise his dreams of visiting Shri Tirumala Tirupati Temple and praying to Lord Venkatramana, by experiencing the event by the grace of the oracle.
Of the many festivals in the Temple, the annual Car festival which falls on the sixth day of the bright half of the month of November-December is the most important. The day is known in popular parlance as the Manjeshwar Shasti and coincides with 'Skhanda Shasti' in other parts of South India. On that day, the six-wheeled chariot called Brahma Ratha is pulled along the Car Street. The Lord's Chariot reverently called Brahma Ratha is a magnificent edifice made out of wood. The originar Chariot was looted by Raja of Vittal in 1799 and the present one was built in the year 1834 AD and has a base of 17 ft, maximum girth of 53 ft and raises to the height of 71 ft when it is decorated with flags, flowers and other accessories during the annual festival. About 75 people can be accommodated on the chariot.
The Lord's idol is taken up the steps of the chariot and thousands of people pull the magnificent chariot with shouts of 'Govinda' as it rolls along the car street majestically. The chariot is decorated on the lines followed in the other parts of Dakshin Kannada district.
It is a custom at the temple that the Ratharohan ie, taking the Lord's idol up into chariot must be completed before sunset. Accordingly the chariot festival takes place in the evening itself.
The legends and historic events trace the existence of this temple for more than 1000 years. It originally had a Siva Linga. A chapter in the Purana is devoted to the pilgrimage of a saint called Virupaksha of the Gowda Saraswat Community to the holy shrines in South Inda, says that the saint settled down in Manjeshwar and spent his last days there worshipping the image of Sri Siva and finally attaining salvation. The original temple fell in ruins and remained so for years.
Later according to the epic of the place, a person named Ranga Sharma, a Gowda Saraswat Brahmin of Goa, on his way to Rameshwaram halted here at a place called 'Shankhamale'. He accidentally came across the ruins of this Temple. Soon he rebuilt the temple, as guided by Lord Shiva in his dreams and installed the idol of Shesha which he had brought with him from Goa, along with the original idol of Lord Shiva.
Mention is made in "Manjula Mahathmya" of the Sahyadri Khanda in the Skanda Purana, of Sri Siva himself having installed the image of Narasimha here for the worship of mortal in Kaliyuga.The image of Lord Narasimha in the temple as it exists today is made of "Panchaloha" (Five Metals) and has been installed in the place of the old one, in the 12th century AD.
The 'Pancha Ratra' mode of religious service, one of the prescribed 'Agamas' now observed in the temple was introduced by Shri Raghavendra Thirtha the 5th spiritual head of Kashi mutt. There is a belief that Shri Narasimha gave a holy view to the Swamiji. Today, there is a Mutt belonging to Kashi Mutt Samsthan adjacent to the Temple.
This temple like many other ancient temples fell a prey to the ravages of man and nature. In 1677, a cyclone devastated certain portions of the temple. It was looted by one Mohammed Ali, the ruler of Cannanore and immediately after by a Maharatha pirate, Angira in about 1755 A.D. In 1799, after the fall of Tippu Sultan and with the consequent coming into power of Heggade, the Ruler of Vittal (22 miles east of Manjeswar), the armed forces of Vittal forced into the temple and carried away a large booty including idols, jewels, copper and a temple chariot. The temple-accountant was tourtured to divulge the treasures hidden in the temple, and having succeeded in locating them, the valuables were dug up and taken away.
However as a result of the representations made by the Gowda Saraswats to the British authorities, the ruler of Vittal was captured and the properties looted by him were restored to the Temple. In 1804, it was renovated by the Gowda Saraswat Brahmins and a new image of Shri Narasimha known as Shri Bhadra Narasimha was installed by Sri Vibhudendra Tirtha, the then head of the Kashi Mutt.
