In India, the Sun Temple of Orissa’s Konark is world-famous as such, but in the holy land of Uttarakhand also, Lord Suryadev resides in the form of the Katarmal Surya Mandir.
In this temple, the idol of Sun God (Surya Bhagwan) is not made of any metal or stone, but this idol is made of wood of banyan tree. Lord Surya Dev, riding in the chariot of red color, seven horses, is considered to be the all-inspiring, all-illuminating, all-welfare. Lord Surya Dev (Surya Dev) is called the “soul of the world”. There is life on earth only because of Sun God and Sun is considered to be the main deity among the Navagrahas.
Among all the deities, Lord Surya is the only one who gives daily darshan and through whom the life cycle of the living beings, trees and plants of the whole world goes on continuously. That is why the special importance of worshiping the Sun God has been told in our religious texts. Waking up in the morning and offering water to the rising Sun God and worshiping him is considered supreme. It is from the Sun God that the entire human race gets the inspiration to keep moving without stopping, without getting tired, no matter what the time may be.
In India, the Sun Temple of Orissa’s Konark is world-famous as such, but in the holy land of Uttarakhand also, Lord Suryadev resides in the form of the Katarmal Surya Mandir. Adheli is situated in Sunar village, about 16-17 kilometers from Almora. This grand Sun Temple is at an altitude of about 2116 meters above sea level. This Sun Temple is believed to be about 200 years older than the Sun Temple of Konark.
Construction of a temple
The construction of this Katarmal Sun Temple is believed to be around 9th century. At that time Katyuri dynasty used to rule in Uttarakhand. The credit for the construction of this temple goes to King Katarmal of the Katyuri dynasty. That is why this temple is called “Katarmal Sun Temple”. It is believed that this temple was built by King Katarmal in a single night.
The specialty of the temple
After crossing the terraced fields, when we reach the Katarmal Sun Temple situated on a mountain, amidst the green trees of tall deodar and climbing the mountain road trail. As soon as you step into the temple, you automatically experience its grandeur and vastness. Artifacts carved on huge rocks and wonderful carvings done in wooden doors are made on sight. And all the tiredness vanishes on its own.
Katarmal Sun Temple faces east. This temple is built on a high square platform. The main temple structure is the Triratha. The shape of the sanctum is square and the pinnacle is curved which is characteristic of the Nagara style.
This temple’s specialty is that the idol of Sun God is not made of any metal or stone, but this idol is made of wood of Bada tree, which is wonderful and unique in itself. That is why this Sun Temple is also called Bad Aditya Temple.
The Katarmal Sun Temple is a wonderful example of architecture and craftsmanship.
Apart from the main Sun Temple, there are 45 small and big temples at this place. Apart from Lord Surya Dev, idols of Lord Shiva, Parvati, Ganesha, Lakshmi Narayan, Kartikeya and Narasimha are also installed here.