Srikurmam

Sri Kurmam : The temple is in Srikakulam district and dedicated to Sri Kurmanatha which is second avatara of Lord Vishnu.
The moolasthanam is considered as large Saligrama ( black coloured fossil ) .The image is fossil of an big turtle and the head of the deity is Kurma (tortoise ) form ,which is represented by Vishnunamam , tail is represented by saligrama , presented by Adi Shankaracharya .

The unique feature of this temple is that it has 2 dwajastambhas , one at front and one at back as Lord faces the back of the temple . The temple constructed in Orissan style .

The presiding Deity, Lord Kurma is self-manifest, or swayambhu . He is about 70 cm long , shaped like the shell of a turtle.

During the reign of King Swetha Chakravarthi, this area was referred to as Swetha Giri . Swetha Chakravarthi’s wife Vishnu Priya was a devotee of Vishnu .When she was observing a fast on an Ekadashi day, Swetha Chakravarthi approached her with the intention of making love. When she refused, saying the time was not ideal, the king became adamant. She prayed to Vishnu, who created a stream of water, separating the couple. Swetha Chakravarthi was carried away in the ensuing flood and Vishnu Priya followed him to the hilly terrains of Swetha Giri . The sage Narada initiated an upadesam of the Kurma Narayana mantra and asked the king to pray to Vishnu using it. By the time Vishnu appeared in the form of the Kurma (tortoise) avatar, the king’s health had deteriorated. Vishnu then made his Sudarshana Chakra make an impression in the nearby land , forming a lake . Swetha Chakravarthi bathed in the lake and regained his health , after which it was referred to as Swetha Pushkarani .
Sri Ramanujar has visited this place during his visit the dwajasthambam turned towards Him in order to recieve Him . Later another Dwajasthambam was installed in front of the main temple.

There are seperate shrines of Goddess Lakshmi Lord Anjineyar.

Inside the temple there is a tomb under which Lord Vishnu has been installed.

There were corridor in the sides of the temples where the Lords Palanquin and Vahanas has been kept .

At the entrance is the Swetha Pushkarani many people take a holy dip before entering the temple.

In the outside exit of the temple many Tortoises are being kept and looked after as this is the only place where Lord Vishnu is worshipped in Kurmanantha avatar .

The arch of the temple is themed as Thiruparkadal churning with Mount Meru as the stick (mathu) on back of the Kurma avatar (Lord Vishnu) and Serpent Vasuki being the rope with asuras on one side and Devas on the other .

Visit of Adi Sankaracharya and Sri Ramanujar has been written in the temple .

This temple was crowded as people visited here and went to Arasavalli Suryanarayanan temple . Jathra special buses were flying to and fro . We went in Rs. 500 tickets and had the divine dharshan of the Lord Vishnu as Kurma avatar .