A temple for Chitragupta!

There are 33 crores of Gods according to Hindu mythology and of course, there are temples in the name of many of them across the country. But Hyderabad has one temple it can boast of. A one-of-its-kind of temple where a God least cared by human beings is worshipped! Wonder who is this unusual God? He is none other than Chitragupta, the supervisor of Lord Yamadharma, the divine executioner.  

Situated at Kadikal Gate near Chatrinaka in the old city, this 250 years old temple stands as a rare place of worship where hundreds of devotees throng seeking His blessings.  Originally constructed by Sivaram Bahdur and Rajaram Bahdur, chief security officers of the Nizams, this age-old marvel was undertaken and developed by kayasths’, a sub-sect  of Hindu religion.

According to belief, Chitragupta maintains a dairy of good and bad deeds of a person throughout his or her lifetime upon which the punishment after death will be decided. People who come to this temple pray Lord Chitragupta to overlook their mistakes and sins. Devotees of Chitragupta offer huge amounts of money and other articles to the Lord to seek his blessings.

They also strongly believe that Chitragupta saves them from poverty, ill-health and all other problems. Bad effects of Rahu – Katu – Kuja also can be reduced by his blessings, the devotees say. Another temple in the name of Chitragupta is at Srikalahasthi in Chittur district. Every Wednesday, special poojas for remedies for the ill-effect of Rahu- Ketu – Kuja is organized where a huge number of people participate in it. Til ka laddu is the main prashad for Chitragupta.

Interestingly, this temple is believed to be connected to Uppuguda Mahankali temple, Charminar and Golconda fort by a tunnel.