navagraha worshipped as deities

[DEVARAKONDA VENKATA NARAYANA SARMA]

At 09:13 AM 4/4/98 +0100, you wrote:
>Tradition says that the first Navagraha temple is in Gauhati.
>John
>
>>2) NAVAGRAHA TEMPLES:
>>Who can provide me with information on further temples especially
>>connected with navagraha and their ritual worship? As far a I know,
>>there are in Andhra Pradesh, there seem to be at least one in Benares
>>(which one?!), ...
>>- it seems to me interesting to see whether or not shrines for the
>>grahas or at least graha-murtis placed in temples to be worshipped by
>>devotees and daily cared for by priests are a rather southern phenomen.
>>
>>Thank your for your time and cooperation
>>
>>yours
>>
>>Marianna
>
>

In quite a good number of temples in Andhra Pradesh there is a mandapam
(platform) or a small shrine in which idols of all the nine grahas are
arranged in a centered square with sun as the center as shown in the figure.

                * * *
                * * *
                * * *

In addition to this there is a famous temple in Mandapalli devoted to
zanaiscara (saturn) where people perform abhiSEka with sesame oil
to propitiate him.

regards,

sarma.