मल्लिकार्जुन ज्योतिर्लिंग, श्रीशैलम
Today at this temple
Quick facts
- Primary deity
- शिव
- Tradition
- shaiva, shakta
- Year founded
- ancient
- Founder
- Ancient (traditional); Satavahana-era foundation; Reddy and Vijayanagara kings patronised successive expansions from the 14th century onward
- Managing trust
- श्रीशैल देवस्थानम
- Daily footfall
- 10,000+ प्रतिदिन
- Photography
- outside_only
- Non-Hindu policy
- all_welcome
- Dress code
- Traditional attire expected for sanctum entry — men: dhoti or trousers with shirt; women: saree, salwar-kameez, or long skirt. No shorts, sleeveless tops, or shorts inside the sanctum. Footwear deposited at counter.
- Accessibility
- ♿ 👴
- VIP darshan
- ✓
- Typical visit
- 60–180 min
Sthala Purana — the story
Tradition preserves two complementary accounts of Srisailam's origin. The first: after Parvati and Shiva's dispute with their sons Ganesha and Kartikeya over who should marry first, Kartikeya retreated north. Parvati and Shiva came to Srisailam to console him but the sulking son refused to descend the hill. Shiva and Parvati therefore settled on the mountain themselves to be near him — Shiva as Mallikarjuna, Parvati as Bhramaramba. The second: the princess Chandravati, pursued by the rage of her father, took refuge in the Nallamala forest and saw a miracle — a cow pouring her milk onto a hidden linga. Upon her prayers the linga revealed itself as Mallikarjuna, and she consecrated a shrine around it. The Shiva Purana lists the kshetra as the second among the twelve Jyotirlingas. The Skanda Purana's Srisailakhanda narrates that a single visit to Srisailam equals a lifetime's tapasya, and that the Krishna river flowing at its foot carries the residual punya of every pilgrim's sankalpa downstream through Bharat.
References: Shiva Purana Koti Rudra Samhita, canonical Jyotirlinga enumeration · Skanda Purana Srisailakhanda · Devi Bhagavata Purana Chapters on 18 Maha Shakti Peethas · Sivananda Lahari (Adi Shankara) 100 verses
Darshan & aartis
- 04:30सुप्रभातम30 min · Pre-dawn awakening of the Jyotirlinga; Suprabhata stotras sung by the archakas
- 06:30महामंगल हारती45 min · Primary morning aarti with abhishekam; jasmine garlanding
- 12:30मध्याह्न हारती30 min · Noon aarti and naivedya offering; sanctum closes for two hours after this
- 17:30प्रदोष हारती30 min · Twilight aarti; abhishekam and alankara
- 21:00एकांत सेवा45 min · Final night seva; sanctum prepared for rest
Plan your visit
Hyderabad (HYD) — 210 km, 5 hr by taxi; limited direct flights to Kurnool (180 km)
Markapur Road — 85 km (3 hr by taxi); Kurnool (180 km) has wider train options
Ample parking managed by the Devasthanam outside the compound; the winding drive up from the plains takes 2-3 hours from the base.
✓
Srisaila Devasthanam Guest Houses (0.5 km) · Haritha Hotel Srisailam (APTDC) (1 km) · Nandi Sadan / Dharma Sadan (0.8 km) · Tirumala Hills Hotel (1.5 km)
Temple prasad (pulihora, daddhojanam, laddu) · Devasthanam Annadanam Hall · Haritha Restaurant (APTDC) · Sri Shailam Meals
October to March is the best season — mild weather, clear hills. Avoid May-June (peak heat, with the Nallamala forest dry and harsh). Mahashivratri (Feb-Mar) is the largest festival — expect 4 lakh+ pilgrims and long queues. Ugadi (Telugu New Year, Mar-Apr) is a major local festival. Early morning Suprabhatam through Mahamangala Harati (4:30-7:30 AM) is the recommended sequence — cool, uncrowded, and serene. Combine with Bhramaramba Devi darshan (Maha Shakti Peetha, same hill) and Pathala Ganga Krishna river snan for the traditional pilgrimage.
- Jasmine garland if possible — it is the signature offering of Mallikarjuna
- Bilva patra, Gangajal (small container)
- ID proof (Aadhaar / passport) — required for some seva bookings
- Warm layer for early-morning Suprabhatam in Dec-Feb (hill altitude, 480 m)
- Motion-sickness tablets if prone — the drive up is winding
- Cash for prasad, seva tickets, and the Annadanam donation box
Gallery & media
Deity & iconography
- Vahana
- Nandi (in the outer mandapa); Mallikarjuna's Nandi is distinctly large, matching the temple's Dravida scale
- Adornments
- Silver-plated sanctum doors; daily abhishekam with milk, honey, curd, Gangajal, panchamrit; jasmine (mallika) garlands are the signature offering — hence the name Mallika-Arjuna
- Consorts on panel
- Bhramaramba Devi (Goddess of Bees) — one of the 18 Maha Shakti Peethas; her shrine is on the same hill within walking distance of the Jyotirlinga, making Srisailam the only site where a Jyotirlinga and a Maha Shakti Peetha coexist
- Favored bhoga
- Jasmine (mallika) garlands · bilva patra · naivedya of rice and jaggery · panchamrit abhishekam
- Mantras chanted here
- Om Namah Shivaya · Mallikarjuna Mangalasasanam · Rudrashtadhyayi · Lingashtakam
- Worship purpose
- Release from accumulated karmic debts and purification before major life transitions; the sankalpa of climbing Srisailam is said to equal the merit of a year's tapasya
Architecture & art
The Srisailam temple complex is a fortified Dravida-style structure with outer walls enclosing a large inner campus of mandapas, gopurams, and subsidiary shrines. The earliest sanctum fabric predates the 11th century; successive Reddy, Vijayanagara, and Nayaka expansions added the prakaras, gopurams, and pillared mandapas that define the compound today. The Veerasiromandapa — commissioned during Krishnadevaraya's reign — bears Vijayanagara-era inscriptions documenting ritual endowments. The Sahasralinga Mandapa, housing 1000 small lingas, is a distinctive pilgrimage feature.
- Style
- Dravida with Vijayanagara expansions; early fortified gopurams 14th-16th century; sanctum structure earlier (Satavahana-Reddy era)
- Built of
- Dressed granite; fortified outer walls; successive mandapas added across centuries
- Notable features
- Fortified outer wall enclosing the sanctum · Virabhadra shrine within the compound · Sahasralinga Mandapa with 1000 small lingas · the Mandapa pillars bear Vijayanagara inscriptions documenting land grants and ritual endowments
- Protection status
- trust_managed
History timeline
- Ancient
Srisailam is referenced in the Mahabharata as a tapovana where sages performed austerities. The Skanda Purana's Srisailakhanda dedicates an entire section to the mountain's sanctity. The original Mallikarjuna shrine is lost to antiquity; a continuous worship tradition is attested from the Satavahana period (2nd century BCE onwards).
- 7th-8th century
Adi Shankara visits Srisailam and composes the Sivananda Lahari here. Tradition holds that his mother's death led him to Srisailam for the reconciliation rites prescribed in the Shiva Purana.
- 1313
Temple endowments and fortifications expanded under the Kakatiya dynasty (Prataparudra). The outer walls that stand today begin to take shape.
- 1404-1512
Major expansions under the Reddy kings of Kondavidu and, later, the Vijayanagara emperors — especially Krishnadevaraya (1509-1529). The Vijayanagara-era Veerasiromandapa and numerous gopurams and mandapas are added; Krishnadevaraya's own visit is inscribed on a temple pillar.
- 18th century
Temple comes under the patronage of successive local nayakas and, later, the Nizam of Hyderabad. Continuous worship is maintained through political transitions.
- 1981
Srisailam Dam on the Krishna river completed — the temple narrowly escapes submergence and the surrounding Nallamala forest is incorporated into the Srisailam Tiger Reserve.
- 2000s-present
Administration by the Srisaila Devasthanam under the Andhra Pradesh Endowments Department; road access improved; a steady modernisation of the pilgrim infrastructure (queue complexes, accommodation, e-darshan booking).
Special phenomena
Jyotirlinga + Shakti Peetha in one hill
Srisailam is the only site in Bharat where a Jyotirlinga (Mallikarjuna) and one of the 18 Maha Shakti Peethas (Bhramaramba Devi) coexist on the same mountain. Pilgrims complete both darshans in sequence, a rare privilege.
Sahasralinga Mandapa
A mandapa within the compound houses 1000 small lingas, each said to hold the concentrated sanctity of a complete Shiva kshetra. A parikrama of the mandapa is said to equal a circumambulation of all Shiva shrines.
Nallamala forest pilgrimage
Srisailam sits at the heart of the Nallamala Tiger Reserve. The 15 km drive up from Dornala passes through dense forest; pilgrims often spot deer, monkeys and occasionally the namesake tigers. The Krishna river at Pathala Ganga (base of the hill) is the sacred ritual bath site before darshan.
Poojas & sevas offered here
No bookable poojas listed yet
Festivals & signature events
- Signatureमहाशिवरात्रिAnnual
Location & nearby temples
Scriptural references
- Shiva Purana
- Koti Rudra Samhita, canonical Jyotirlinga enumeration
- Skanda Purana
- Srisailakhanda
- Devi Bhagavata Purana
- Chapters on 18 Maha Shakti Peethas
- Sivananda Lahari (Adi Shankara)
- 100 verses
Sources & credits
✓ Verified by 2026-04-24. Seeded from training knowledge + source JSON + Devasthanam/AP Tourism/Wikipedia references. Pandit review pending for: current aarti timings and durations (verify against Srisaila Devasthanam schedule), Sparsa Darshanam pricing (changes periodically), hotel price ranges (seasonal), exact daytime break window (13:00-15:30 used as the conventional sanctum-close window but varies). Shikhara height and structural fabric dating left null — no publicly verified figures found in sources. Video metadata intentionally empty.