This little temple was discovered during our early morning cycle rides. Cycling in rural roads is more fun than city roads. So, we come towards Chikka Malagiwad often. During our third towards Chikka Malagiwad, Pushpa stopped at the temple and went in while I waited outside.
As I stood outside, this idol of Shiva Linga caught my attention. Going by its form, I felt this Shiva Linga is an ancient one. The multiple corners of the base is a feature seen in Chalukyan sculpture. Probably its anywhere between 800 years to 1000 years old.
This is the front side. The idol was fixed into the floor of the ancient shrine. For some reason the ancient idol was replaced with a new idol. However, the old idol is still being worshipped.
Besides the ancient Shivalinga idol, there's an old inscription slab which has been embedded into the wall. The slab is about a foot wide and three feet long. A part of the inscription is covered by a layer of lime.
The inscription is in Kannada. The letters are very close to present day Kannada. So I'm guessing the inscription is relatively new. Probably its about a donation to renovate the temple within the past 100 years.
Right besides the temple are two more ancient sculptures. This seems to be a pillar base or part of the sanctum threshold. The stone quality and the quality of the sculpture indicate its an ancient one. I think the temple was small but well made. The original structure either gave away to forces of nature or it was damaged intentionally. When the temple was rebuilt, the builders decided to exclude some of the original parts such as this and few others.
On the other side of the temple is the original idol of Nandi but its broken into two parts. I'm not sure if the idol was removed because it broke, or if the idol broke while it was being removed.
This is the replacement Nandi, smaller than the original.
The temple is kept clean and tidy. The priest is punctual with the morning ritual, at least the two times I happened to notice. On the side walls are two slokas. The artist put in extra effort to write the text in two colors. Nice work.
Chikka Malagiwad is about 10 km from our home but we don't take the shortest route, instead we take the route with least traffic even if it means negotiating uphill roads.
I think there are many more ancient shrines hidden in rural Dharwad. Truly the ancient rulers cared about the society, lot of funds were set aside for temples which were crucial to human settlements. I think people started and ended their days with visits to temples. Children learned to read and write at temples. Village meetings took place at temples, important decisions were taken in the presence of the Gods. Temples provided shelter to travelers as well. Wish there was a way to go back in time to see the ancient life.
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