Badrachalam

Bhadrachalam is a remotely situated village in the Telengana area of Andhra Pradesh, on the northern bank of the river Godavari. It is named after a Rishi called Bhadra, who had made that place his abode for a long time.

Bhadrachalam is a place made sacred by the visit and stay of Sri Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana. According to legend, it was in a place called Parnashala (a hut of leaves), about 32 kilometres from Bhadrachalam, where they were living in exile, when Sita was abducted by Ravana. A little hut marks the place, where Rama and Sita had lived. The spot, where the Rakshasa Maricha appeared as a golden deer to entice Sita and the line drawn by Lakshmana (called the Lakshmana Rekha), with instructions to Sita not to cross it till he returned after his search for Sri Rama, are all clearly marked in front of the hut.

There is a small stream nearby, with crystal-clear water, in which Sri Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana are said to have taken their bath daily. The story goes that Lakshmana, finding no good water nearby, struck an arrow into the ground and produced a spring, which is the source of this stream.

The temple at Bhadrachalam is said to have been built at the spot, where Sri Rama crossed the river Godavari on His expedition to Sri Lanka to retrieve Sita Devi. It was built in the 17th century by one Gopanna, who was the Tahsildar of the Tahsil, which included Bhadrachalam, during the reign of King Abdul Hasan Thane Shah, the last of the Qutub Shahi kings of Golconda.

Gopanna was a very ardent devotee of Sri Rama. Engrossed in his deep devotion to Sri Rama, Gopanna neglected his work and built a temple for Sri Rama at Bhadrachalam, misappropriating Rs.6 lakhs from the revenue collections. When King Thane Shah came to know of this, Gopanna was arrested for misappropriation of cash. He was brought to Golconda and imprisoned in a small dungeon, in the Fort of Golconda. Having languished in prison for a long time, Gopanna felt greatly dejected and decided to put an end to his life. One day, Sri Rama appeared before him in his dream and told him that the money taken for building the temple had been repaid to the King, showing him the receipt for the amount.

The next morning, King Thane Shah visited Gopanna in the Golconda prison to tell him the mysterious story of the unknown person, who had come to him and paid the entire amount of Rs.6 lakhs misappropriated by Gopanna. When the latter narrated to the King how Sri Rama had appeared before him in his dream and showed him the receipt for the money paid to the King, the King was deeply moved and was very apologetic for what he had done to Gopanna. He set him free immediately and treated him great respect and reverence thereafter. The King also made arrangements for a monetary contribution to be made to the temple every year, for its management. This was continued for over 250 years by the long line of Muslim rulers, who succeeded him. Gopanna came to be known as Ramadas after he attained his spiritual enlightenment.

Thousands of pilgrims from all over India congregate every year, at Bhadrachalam, during the Sri Ramanavami Celebrations, which last for about a fortnight. The important ceremony during the celebrations is the “Sita Kalyanam”. On this day, two small, pretty idols of Sri Rama and Sita are bathed in the sacred waters of the Godavari, decked with resplendent jewellery, and carried in a gaily decorated silver palanquin to a huge Kalyanamandapam, where the marriage of Sri Rama with Sita is performed with due rites and to the chanting of Vedic Hymns, in the presence of the multitude of devotees.

There is a small temple of Sri Rama and Sita at Parnashala, maintained from the funds of the main Bhadrachalam temple. A great miracle happened at this temple at Parnashala, in recent times. Only a few years ago, there was an earth tremor in that area, with a great roaring, gurgling sound below the earth. During this earth tremor, which scared the entire local population, the area around the sanctum sanctorum of the temple caved in for about two metres, along with damages in other places. Strangely enough, the sanctum sanctorum itself was absolutely unaffected and there was not even the slightest disturbance to the idols. This great miracle has so enhanced the faith of the local inhabitants that there is now hardly anyone there, who does not worship at this temple daily.

Questions:

1. Where is Bhadrachalam?
2. Who is worshipped there?
3. Who built the temple? How did he build it?
4. Why was Ramadas put in prison?
5. When was he realeased?

Source – Stories for Children – II

Published by – Sri Sathya Sai Books & Publications Trust, Prashanti Nilayam