Temple And Deity Of Moreshwar Temple

Temple:
The temple of Mayureshwar is right in the centre of the village Morgaon. Facing north this temple has a 50 feet wall surrounding it and four towers at the four corners. It is because of this that this temple looks like a mosque from a distance. This temple was originally made of black stone but certain architectural features of the temple are made of marble during renovation. Around the temple in the four corners are installed the idols of Ganesha in all his other aspects like the Ekdanta, Gajanan, Lambodar,Vikata, Vighnahara, Dhumravarna, and Vakratund.

Sanctum:

The idol of Mayureshwar is in the garbhagriha or the sanctum in which only the main priest can enter. The idol is facing east. The deity is three eyed, seated, and his trunk is turned towards the left. The eyes and the navel of the deity are studded with precious diamonds. On the head are seen the fangs of Nagaraj. The deity is flanked by brass idols of Siddhi and Buddhi who are considered the consorts of Ganesh. In front of the deity stand a mouse and a peacock.

The original idol is actually much smaller than it seems but continuous anointing of the idol with the vermilion has increased the size. It is believed that this layer of vermilion falls down on its own every 100 or 150 years, revealing the actual idol.

Just opposite the main gate are a tortoise and a Nandi facing the deity in the sanctum. The presence of a Nandi in a Ganpati temple is rare as Nandi is the conveyance of Lord Shiva

When one enters the temple premises one first sees the mooshak (mouse - Ganesha's means of conveyance) holding two laddos between his paws.

There are certain sacred trees in the temple premises, like Shami, Mandar and Tarati trees. Out of these the Shami tree is significant as it is referred to in the legend of Moraya Gosavi, a sage who did penance under his tree and Lord Ganesha gave him a glimpse. Thus it is believed that the wishes of a person can be fulfilled if he performs penance under this tree.

Apart from this there are many idols in the compound of the Mayureshvar temple. In the right corner one can see the idol of Yogindracharya. Some of the other idols are Shami devi, Mandar Ganesh, Durga Devi, Shukla Chaturthi Dev, Bhrushundi, Krishna Chaturthi Devi, Moraya Gosavi, Lord Vishnu and Devi Lakshmi, Lord Shiva and Devi Parvati, Moda Ganesh and Pramod Ganesh etc. the most important of these subsidiary deities is the image of Nagna Bhairava who is looked upon as the guardian of Lord Mayureshvar. It is believed that the pilgrimage to Mayureshvar is incomplete if a devotee does not worship Nagna bhairav first.