RAYAGADA
THE PARADISE UNEXPLORED
Maa Majhi Gharani Temple
An avatar of Goddess Durga, Majhighariani is accepted as the prime, most important deity in this region.The Goddess is worshipped as a form of Shakti, energy incarnate. The name originates from the placement of Shakti’s temple in the middle of the fourteenth-century Silavansi king Viswanath Dev’s palace and translates to the one seated in the central room. This temple attracts worshippers from all over the state and the country. Sundays and Wednesdays witness a more massive footfall, while evening is generally much less crowded. The festival of Chaitra Parva, which falls in April, is the most crucial time of the year for worshippers of Shiva and Majhighariani, which is also the time this temple is the most crowded. Factory in her court-yard keep her still nights throbbing with life. As a result, it's the most famous temple in the southern Odisha.
Laxmi Narayan Temple
Located 25 kms from Rayagada district headquarters, Laxminarayan Temple was built by the IMFA, the Indian Metals and Ferro Alloys Ltd., near their factory in Therubali. It was built around 2004 as a place of worship of Vishnu and Laxmi, but also houses Jagannath, Hanuman, Balabhadra, and Shiva idols. Visitors abound from all over the state and from nearby states as well, especially more so for Shivratri festivities. A few kilometres further towards Paikapada, one can witness over one lakh Shivling at the Paikapada shrine. These two temples are also crowded during the Jagannath Rath Yatra season that takes place in the humid month of July. The Laxminarayan Temple is usually most crowded on Tuesdays.Laxminarayan temple, although is a destination for the devotees visiting Rayagada.
Jagannath Temple
The Jagannath temple located in Rayagada is also known as Shraddha Shreeketra. It stands at the southern side of the town. The temple was originally built more than 50 years back. The present structure of the temple, with a new look had been built in 2007. The Gajapati Raja of Puri honoured the inaugural function of the new temple on June 20, 2007.
The temple is known for it's ambience. Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra are main deities in this temple and Rath Yatra is the main festival of the deities. It is usually held in late June or early July as per the 'Tithi'. It is celebrated for 9 days and the deities can be witnessed in 9 different avatars on 9 different days.
Paika Pada Shiva Temple
Paikapada is famous for so many Siva Lingams. The deities like Lord Jagannath, Maa Dhakineswar Kalika, Samudra, etc. are worshiped here. ... Chatikona is located about 48 km from Rayagada surrounded by a series of valleys and wooded hills of varying colours and the place is a center of pilgrimage for the temple of Mahadev
Devgiri Temple
The hill is considered sacred due to presence of Panchamukhi (five faced) Shiva Linga and Asta Linga (Eight Lingas) on the top of the hill. There is a cave in the hill looking like two jaws. There is one still undeciphered inscription which speaks of the antiquity of the place.Devagiri hill rises to a height of 120.2 meters (394 ft) and is 50 km from Rayagada, Odisha, India. Unlike other hills, the top of the hill is a rectangular platform. The 476 steps with which one can reach the top are another unique feature of the hill. At the top of the hill, there are perennial poles of water called Ganga, Yamuna, Saraswati, Bhargavi and Indradyumna.
