Dear Jacob,

You should consult this work:

Ślączka, A.A. 2007. Temple Consecration Rituals in Ancient India: Text and Archaeology. Brill’s Indological Library 26. Leiden: Brill.

For amusement, I attach a photo of a somewhat similar stone from East Java at the provincial museum in Sidoarjo: the shape of the akṣaras indicates a date in the 11th c.; no information on archaeological context. This particular stone if of the prastāra type: the alphabet is laid out over the stone. I have been wondering myself what place such a stone would have had in a temple.

Best,

Arlo

From: INDOLOGY <indology-bounces@list.indology.info> on behalf of jacob@fabularasa.dk <jacob@fabularasa.dk>
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2016 3:10 PM
To: Indology Mailing List
Subject: [INDOLOGY] Information sought regarding Telugu "Saccra" (cakra)

Dear list,

Bornholms Museum, located on the eponymous rock island in the Baltic
Sea, asked me for clarification about the attached object. According to
the registration notes, which probably date back about a hundred years,
it is a Telugu "Saccra" (cakra) used to ward off disease and spirits of
possession. It is also stated that cakras are generally installed below
temple deities to empower the deity and attract people to the temple.

If anybody knows the specific name of the cakra and any other details of
its application, I would be happy to convey the information to the
museum. I would also be interested to know what the distinction between
a cakra and a yantra is in this context, and whether the installation of
cakras/yantras to empower deities, attract people, or otherwise is
indeed a general practice in Indian temples.

Kind regards,
Jacob

Jacob Schmidt-Madsen
PhD Fellow (Indology)
Department of Cross-Cultural and Regional Studies
University of Copenhagen
Denmark