Anjaneyar Temple Nanganallur

The temple was established as per the wishes of a community who were staunch devotees of Lord Hanuman and ardent followers of his path. Sri Maruti Bhakta Samajan is the name of the group. They constructed the towering idol of the deity in 1989, and after the creation of the temple, the shrine and the idol were consecrated in 1995. Ever since, Anjaneya bhakts (devotees) have been visiting the temple every year in large numbers. The main enthusiasts behind the temple were Sri Raghavendra Swami and Sri Kanchi Paramacharyar. It was their spiritual calling to construct the building for their worshipped god. The temple has now been taken over by the Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments Department.

The main attraction of the temple is the huge deity of Lord Hanuman, carved out of a single piece of granite. The colossal deity stands 322 feet tall, in dark black color, towering over the rest of the shrines and the devotees. Its specialty lies in the fact that it has been sculpted out of a singular stone piece, without any breakpoint or streamline. In height, it is only second to the idol of Hanuman at Panchavati near Puducherry.

The temple tower of the deity is equally high, almost 90 feet. The sanctum sanctorum connects with the other shrines in the premise via corridors around itself. Among the other shrines, one is for Sri Rama, Laxmana, and Sita. He is connected with Hanuman all the time, and his presence in any temple of Maruti is inevitable. Rama is shown as the protector and ruler here; in the form, Hanuman respects and worships him. So, he has carried a bow and is called Kothanda Rama. But to pay respect to the fact that Hanuman was present in both the epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata, a Lord Krishna Sannidhi is also built. His two queens Rukmini and Satyabhama accompanies Lord Krishna. Hanumana graced the flag of Arjuna's chariot to save it from any harm or destruction from the opponents Kauravas.

There are two more, smaller shrines present in the north-east part of the temple. Lord Vinayaka or Ganesh and to the left of that shrine, on another platform Naga or the snake lord is established. The abode of Saint Raghavendra is also present, facing the shrine of Lord Krishna. The mandapam or the hall for devotees to gather and offer their prayers is large, and many people together can stand in it.

Around five major festivals are grandly celebrated in the temple. One is Ramnavami, which is the birthdate of Lord Rama. It is given the highest amount of importance, only second to Hanuman Jayanti. It is the day Hanuman was born to Anjana blessed by Lord Vayu. The nine days and Vijayadashami or the Navratri festivals is also celebrated here, with much vigor. Sri Krishna Jayanti, marking the birth of Lord Krishna in Mathura and Pavitrotsavam are also big occasions in Viswaroopa Adhivyadhihara Sri Bhaktha Anjaneyaswami Temple.

To offer puja, there is a huge list of different offerings that the devotees can choose from. The basic puja or archanai costs INR 10. Other than that, there are options for donating gold, silver and textiles like saris and dhotis, homam or yajna or fire sacrifice.

Keelkattalai and Nanganallur are the two main stops near the temple. Both of them are around a five minutes' walk away from the main gate. More than a dozen buses ferry passenger from different parts of Chennai like T. Nagar, Perambur and High Court to this region. The railway station is only 20 minutes away. It is a fairly populated zone, so getting a cab will not be difficult either.