Kanaka Mahalakshmi Temple, located in the busy business-hub of Vizag, is immensely popular with the residents of the city, the visitors, and tourists as well. Located a few kilometers away from Visakhapatnam Railway Station, and the APSRTC bus complex, the Kanaka Mahalakshmi diety’s benevolence is most sought after, by the poor and rich alike. The temple received the ISO 9001:2015 certification, for it quality standards in maintaining the temple, in October 2021.
About the temple:
The absence of a roof is a unique feature of the Kanaka Mahalakshmi Temple. It is believed that the presiding deity herself wished thus. Perhaps to let us know of her omnipresence and infiniteness. Another aspect that endears the temple to all is the fact that the devotees can touch and feel the idol of the presiding deity with their own hands. The believers can perform puja and abhishekam all by themselves, without any assistance or intervention. The deity, who is considered Satya Devata by her countless devotees, blesses them with whatever they seek, spiritual or material. There are stories of many miracles of this all-giving and always-accessible Goddess. The Pulihora, or tamarind rice, offered as prasadam at the Kanaka Mahalakshmi Temple is something that you can’t miss.
The Legend:
The origin of the temple is traced to the year 1912, when people discovered the idol of the presiding deity in a well near Burujupeta (fort of the then rulers). The idol was then installed in the middle of the road and devotees soon started offering puja and different sevas. In 1917, the Municipal Authorities removed the idol and reinstalled it at the roadside. Very soon, an outburst of a plague claimed thousands of lives in that area causing immense suffering. Believing that moving the idol from the middle of the road was the cause for the suffering, the idol was reinstalled at its original place. Miraculously, the suffering subsided, drawing more devotees from the city and other places as well, who performed puja at the temple regularly.
Information regarding the temple:
In a conversation with Yo! Vizag, Mr. Satish, an official at Kanaka Mahalakshmi Temple in Vizag, informed the temple timings and various pujas one may offer to the Goddess. The temple is open to the devotees between 5am to 9pm daily. Though there is free entry, one may choose to purchase line tickets at Rs. 50, Rs. 100, and Rs. 200. The Rs. 200 ticket allows the devotees an entry into the Garbha Gudi, where the statue of the deity resides. Further, he added, the Panchamrutha Puja, which costs Rs. 516, is performed by the devotees at three different timings; between 5am to 6am, 11am to 12pm, and 5:30pm to 6:30pm. Similarly, various pujas are offered to at the Kanaka Mahalakshmi Temple on different days of the week. These are the Ashtadala Padmaradhana Puja (Rs. 1116) on every Tuesday, the Srichakra Navavarana Puja (Rs. 2500) on every Pournami (full moon day), the Ksheerabhisekam (Rs. 200) on every Friday, and the Kumkuma Puja on the first Tuesday of every month.
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