Location
It is situated in Devaryamjal, Shameerpet Mandal in Medchal District.
Description
The 1000 year old temple is believed to be marked on the map that laid the path for Rama while he was on his way to Lanka. It was also reportedly the trade route along which Buddhist monks travelled to Sri Lanka.
The temple houses a statue of Rama, the primary deity, with four arms (Chaturbhuja Rama). The statue has quite a few unique features, including a moustache, a victorious stance with the right foot forward and a bow.
Legend states that the traditional guardian of this temple is a 20-foot long cobra. It is also said that a cylindrical stone in the temple may be displaced to reveal a secret passage. However, today it is only used as a stone to grind sandalwood paste on the surface for ritual use.
The temple complex includes a stepwell, with a star-shaped plan with five levels. The periphery of the stepwell has 27 shrines, representing nakshatras in Hindu astronomy. Each of the 27 shrines originally had pyramidal roofs, constructed with a lime mortar known to the locals as Dankusunnam.
Existing Condition
The temple structures have deteriorated due to lack of maintenance and various encroachments have been reported in the historic temple complex.
The potable water of the stepwell supplied the village of Devaryamjal with water until the 1980s, with both subterranean and rainfed sources. However, due to the receding groundwater table and surrounding construction activity, the sources of the water have nearly dried up and the physical condition of the stepwell has deteriorated due to disuse.
Archives
References
1. Hyderabad Design Forum. The Forgotten Stepwells of Telangana, 2023, Pg. 67
Contributors
NIUM