Sri Sundarnarayan Swamy Temple – Nashik

 

Sri Sundarnarayan Swamy Temple is located in Nashik city of Maharastra State.

Sundarnarayan is this temple's main deity, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. The presiding deity of the temple is Lord Vishnu with Goddess Shri Lakshmi and Goddess Shri Saraswathi who are placed in the sanctum of the temple.

 

Sundarnarayan Temple has a Lord Vishnu's temple and the reason for the name "Sunder" is that he once became ugly by the curse given by Jalandar's (wicked demon) wife Vrinda. Due to the curse, Lord Vishnu turned black and ugly. He then took bath in Godavari and thus was relieved from the curse. Hence Lord Vishnu is called as Shri Sundar Narayan here.

 

The temple presents imposing architecture especially the vaulted niche, which strikes a chord with the Mughal sculpture. This temple is facing in East direction and constructed with Stone. The main deity Lord Vishnu flanked by Lakshmi and Saraswati is placed in the sanctum. The pillars of the temple are decorated with various carvings and it also has two mandaps and a well decorated corridor. The temple has a koneru named as Badarika Sangam pond, there are small carvings of Hanuman, Narayana and Indira on the walls.

 

According to legend, once the area was haunted by an evil demon named Jalandar, an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva. Even though the demon was wild and practiced evil deeds, he had a pious and virtuous wife Vrinda Devi. Lord Shiva was highly impressed by his devotion and he blessed the demon with a boon of immortality. This boon made Jalandar to create destruction in the area. The Gods realized the importance to kill the demon to save the mankind. The Gods approached Lord Vishnu to help them in this noble cause. Lord Vishnu understood that the chastity and piousness of Jalandar's wife is acting as a shield to his life. Lord Vishnu adopted the look of Jalandar and started living with his wife. He challenged the chastity of the women and killed Jalandar. When Jalandar's wife Devi Vrinda came to know this, she cursed Lord Vishnu to turn black and ugly. The curse of the lady made him dark and he had to take a holy dip in River Godavari to regain his original form. After regaining his original form, Lord Vishnu was called Sundarnarayan.

 

This temple was built in 1756.

 

The temple is built in such an angle that on March 20,21 sun rays fall exactly upon the presiding deity.

Timings

6.00 am to 12.00 noon

5.00 pm to 9.00 pm

 

How to reach the Temple

2 km from Nashik Central Bus Station

 

Nearby Temples

Nashik, Shri Kalaram Temple – 500 mts

Nashik, Muktidham Mandir – 9 km

Trimnakeshwar, Sri Trimbakeshwar Temple – 30 km

Sri Saptashrungi Devi Temple – 64 km