Deccan Chronicle: GUNTUR: The
International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Iskcon GBC) is going to
construct a unique golden Lord Butter Krishna temple near Kondaveedu
Fort of Guntur district with a fund of Rs 500 crore. This is the first
of its kind of a golden temple in south India.
The surroundings of the temple will host pavilions for different attractions from Mahabharata and Ramayana.
The
temple complex will also house an international school, a medical
centre, a religious theme park, a museum with the history of Kondaveedu,
a vedic school and a cow protection centre.
A
rare idol of young Krishna, locally called as Venna Mudda Gopaludu, was
found during the excavations at the historical and ancient Kondaveedu
fort in 1998 and it inspired Iskcon to construct a golden butter Krishna
temple at Kondaveedu.
According to
the Kondaveedu development society convener K. Siva Reddy, the
discovered butter Krishna idol belongs to 13th century. It was sculpted
during King Sri Krishna Devaraya and this golden temple is going to
revive the religious cultural heritage of Kondaveedu.
Iskcon
south India president and trustee of golden temple project,
Satyagopinath Das said that the Iskcon planned to promote spiritual
heritage, hence started Iskcon-Kondaveedu Spiritual Heritage Revival
Project (IKSHR). It will create a comprehensive spiritual tourist
attraction zone in 150 acres of land, he added.
He
said that the project would be completed in three phases and already
the Gosala (cow protection center) and a cow university have been
started at Kondaveedu.
He said that Iskcon sought 58 acres of land, but the government has allotted only 21 acres of lands.
Hence,
they are waiting for the allotment of land to start the temple
project. The golden temple will have gold-plated sanctum sanctorum.
