Sunset at Mallaghatta Kere

Jan 26, 2023. It was a hectic day starting with a drive from Bengaluru to Tumkur. Met a friend at Tumkur, then I drove to Kadaba village to see the historic Kailasnatha Devastana. From Kadaba I went to Nagalapura to see two Hoysala temples- 1. Kedareshwara and 2. Chennakeshava. By the time I was done with Nagalpura temples, it was 4-45. The day was almost over and I had three places remaining on my list- Araluguppe, Turuvekere and Vignasante. I decided to call it a day and thought of spending the night at Tiptur. On reaching Turuvekere, I called Satish, my friend from Tiptur, to know a decent hotel for an overnight stay. As we spoke, Satish suggested me to check out Mallaghatta lake, about 7 km from Turuvekere. Satish said it was a huge lake with beautiful sights. I was fine with the idea and headed towards Mallaghatta Kere. Once the lake came into view, the road runs along its bank for couple of kilometers. I kept driving until I reached its check dam where a few cars were parked. I guessed that was a view point. A stone's throw from the check dam is Gangadareshwara Gudi. I parked my car close to the temple and stepped out to relish this marvelous sight. As Satish said, the lake is huge, its waters stretch as far as the horizon.

This is Gangadareshwara Gudi. Its gates were locked but the deity could be seen from outside.

Another view of the temple.

This is the road bridge across the overflow stream. The lone date palm is an iconic landmark here. The stream makes its way through the mass of granite rocks towards the eucalyptus plantation and flows towards Turuvekere.

This is the picture of Mallaghatta Kere check dam. The lake was overflowing for several months and had stopped just a few days before my visit. Tumkur district has a huge number of waterbodies, each of them a part of a huge network which feed river Hemavati. Some of the major lakes of this region are Hindiskere, Nonavinakere, Mallaghatta Kere, Turuvekere, Nagalapura Kere, Myrasandra Kere, Sulekere, Kadaba Kere, Heraganahalli Kere and Dasanakere. As I know Nonavinakere overflow feeds Mallaghatta Kere which in turn feeds Turuvekere and so on. This network of capturing rainwater was created as early as IX Century and maintained by successive rulers. Thanks to the futuristic planning of our ancestors, today we are still reaping the benefits of their efforts.

While I checked the surroundings, Sun had moved closer to the horizon. The still waters of the lake was almost mirror like.

The colors changed as it got dimmer.

Another day comes to an end.

The time spent here was really worth. I washed my feet, hands and face in the lake waters, it was refreshing, and I was ready for the short drive to Tiptur.

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Chennakesava Devasthana, Nagalapura

...continued from Kedareshwara Devastana.

January 26th 2023. After spending about 45 minutes at Kedareshwara Devastana, I and the temple caretaker drive to the opposite end of the village to see Chennakesahava Devastana. The temple is situated right next to the road, enclosed in a fence since it is under ASI care. The caretaker, an elderly man of the village, unlocked the gates and then the temple door.

The two temples here are more or less same size and have similar features, its natural to compare them. Both are Ekakuta meaning temple with one sanctum and floor plans are same. Both sanctums are east facing. However, Chennakeshava Devastana door is on the eastern wall while Kedareshwara Devastana door is on it's southern wall. Both temples do not have Shikhara and both are in incomplete state. It is said that Chennakeshava Devastana was built by Mahadandanayaka Somanna who was also instrumental is the making of Chennakeshava Devastana, Somnathpura.

This the Nritya Mantapa within the Sabha Mantapa. The turned columns are ornate and well finished. Overall the workmanship is good. Inside the Garbhagudi is a very well made idol of Keshava, a form of Vishnu. Hoysala rulers built Shiva and Vishnu temples.

A diagonal view of the Mantapa. The Garbhagudi entrance is flanked by two mantapas, a feature same as in Kedareshwara Devastana.

 

The Natya Mantapa ceiling dome is decorated with a very complex wheel which in turn is enclosed in a star. The transition from a point (center of the dome) to circle to star-shape to octagon to square is truly amazing.

Possibly there's some code concealed in this design.

A collage of pictures: a lotus with three rings, another flower, jewelry designs on a turned column and a much recent engraving of Huli-Mane Aata. Huli-Mane is a game of two players in one is a tiger and the other a shepherd. The objectives are obvious, the tiger has to capture as many sheep as possible and the shepherd has to save as many sheep as possible.

Coming to the exterior, the design is exactly same as Kedareshwara Devastana. Walls have three sections- base, mid and top. The base consists of five tiers, actually six include the blank band. Let's take a look at the tiers starting with the lowest. Tier-1 is made of elephants signifying strength. Tier-2 has cavalry & infantry signifying speed/agility. Tier-3 is Kirtimukha between creepers, probably to ward off evil eyes. Tier-4 is blank - any other sculpture could sculpt anything better than what is already here. Tier- 5 consists of Yali, an imaginary creature with mixed features. And the last, Tier-6 is peacocks signifying grace.

The middle section of the exterior walls consists of idols of characters from our legends. Most of the idols are common between the two temples. For example- Narasimha, Ganapati, Brahma, etc. One difference is while Kedareshwara has more images of Shiva in different postures, Chennakeshava has images of Vishnu. Here we have a seated Narasimha. The character on the right.. is it Govardhana Giridhari?

In the middle is a pair holding an egg like object. They are standing to the right of Vishnu. A similar pair can be seen standing next to Shiva's idol in Kedareshwara Devastana.

On the right is the mighty Garuda carrying Vishnu-Lakshmi on his shoulders. Garuda's wings are seen on his back. 

We have reached the southwest corner. I have to mention that this temple has undergone restoration work by the archaeological department.

Here we are looking at Brahma, three of his four faces are visible. On the right, in the dancing posture must be Shiva. Some vandal has put in lots of effort to etch his initials. This is just one of the examples.

I have no idea who the dancing lady is. I think there's a lotus in one of her four hands. In fact all the female characters here are holding lotus in their hands.

This is the rear view of the temple, the sanctum. The Garbhagudi plan is star-shaped, the form is clearly seen right from the base to the roof. 

The character with horse's head must be Hayagriva, the god of knowledge & wisdom. Hayagriva is a form of Vishnu. All the idols of Vishnu can be identified by the presence of Shankha & Chakra. The pair on the left side must be Lakshmi Narayana. If you have noticed, the decorative bases & arches of the idols are blanks, yet to be worked upon. Relatively Chennakeshava Devastana is behind Kedareashwara in terms of completeness.

The female character on the left wielding Trisula, Khadga and Damaru has her right foot over a male character. I have no idea who this is.

A serene looking Vishnu in Dhyana pose. On the right is standing Vishnu holding his mace. Take a closer look at his hand on the mace. Atleast seven rings can be seen on those fingers. Also, this is a grand form, decked in heavy jewelry, as though he is about to attend a function. Now, look at Dhyana Vishnu, he his relatively simple.

Here we have Ugra Narasimha slaying Hiranyakashipu. Also we have Vishnu holding Shankha, Chakra and a mace. One of the hands is missing. In the previous picture, the mace was lowered, here it is raised. Wondering what the positions signify.

Next we have very grand looking characters, all clad in lot of beautiful jewelry. Earlier we saw a seated Narasimha and Ugra Narasimha. Now we have a Soumya Narasimha. In this picture you can see the different stages of sculpting i.e. incomplete vs complete. The arch & base of Narasimha are completed but the same of Vishnu are blank.

This is the northwest corner. The temple is symmetrical except for the Garbhagudi outlet.

In this collage we have a lady holding an object which looks like maize cob. On the left, the character with his arms on hips must be Vittala. And the other character is clad in a robe like garment and wearing platform shoes. Kedareshwara also a has one character with platform shoes.

Having done with the tour of Chennakeshava Devastana, I thanked the caretaker and left. He locked the temple doors and gates immediately, he was sure there wouldn't be any more tourists.

From here I head to Turuvekere with a plan to proceed towards Tiptur to spend the night in a hotel. Of the five places planned, I could see only Kadaba and Nagalapura. The remaining three- Turuvekere, Araluguppe and Vignasanthe would be for the morrow. While at Turuvekere, I had a phone call with a friend who suggested me to check out Mallaghatta Kere. I could see the Sun set over a vast sheet of water if I make it on time. Yes, I did see sunset at Mallaghatta Kere.

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Standing slabs of Nagalapura

January 26, 2023. While passing through Nagalapura village, I happened to notice a pair of vertical stone slabs in front of a house. The rough-cut slabs seemed to be fixed a very long time ago, probably a few or many hundreds of years ago. The notches at the top of the stones are aligned. Probably the notches held a stone beam in position. Its quite possible there was another pair of standing slabs with another beam forming a support for a roof of stone slabs. If such a structure did exist then it might have been a dolmen, a prehistoric grave marker.

Well, that's my imagination. It could be something else too.

Nagalapura is known for two Hoysala temples dedicated to Shiva and Vishnu: 1. Kedareshwara Devastana and 2. Chennakeshava Devastana. Both temples seems to be built around the same time, more or less of the same size, features are similar and both constructions were abandoned before completion. Despite the incomplete state of the temples, their highly detailed sculptures are worth seeing.

A similar pair of standing stones can be seen near Chennakeshava Devastana, Aralaguppe: standing slabs of Araluguppe.

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Kedareshwara Devasthana, Nagalapura

January 26, 2023. The plan for the second half of the day was to see as many as possible of the five historical places namely- 1. Kadaba, 2. Nagalapura, 3. Turuvekere, 4. Araluguppe and 5. Vignasante. I had a quick look at Kailasnatha Devastana at Kadaba, a temple which was built by Rastrakuta king Krishna II, son & successor of Amoghavarsha Nrupatunga. From Kadaba I decided to go to Nagalapura which is about 32 km away. I overshot a turn, then turned back, wasted about 45 minutes. The interior roads are almost deserted, with no sign boards and no one to ask for directions, its easy to feel lost. I managed to reach Nagalapura, a name board at the village entrance welcomes visitors. What an irony... name board where one could find people. Anyway, I stopped at Chennakeshava Devastana, the gate was locked, one of the villagers told me I could find the caretaker at Kedareshwara Devastana which is situated at the opposite end of the village. So, here we are... a Shiva temple with a Bilwa Patri tree.

The caretaker, an elderly man, was resting under this ancient shelter. The moment he saw me approaching the temple, he got up, ready to issue a warning that DSLR photography is not allowed. There's not a single board about any rules and the caretakers in the name of ASI behave as though its their personal property. This is the story at most ASI protected monuments. I fail to understand their problem with handheld DSLR shooting.

Turning our attention back to the mantapa, it could be at least 5 centuries old. The pillars are free standing atop which the beams and slabs are assembled. No binding material between any of the components in this structure. 

This temple is a Ekakuta meaning a temple with one sanctum. The sanctum is east-facing but the temple's entrance is south-facing. Being a Hoysala creation, this temple could be built any time in the XII or XIII Century CE. Going by the looks of the structure, it must've been in ruins before it was restored to its present condition. Also, many of the sculptures are drafts i.e. far from completion. So overall this temple's construction was abandoned well before it was completed.

The caretaker reluctantly allowed me t shoot a few pictures of the interior. As a tourist, I had spent considerable resources to reach this place and then I had to face a cribbing caretaker, it was disappointing.

The interior has all the hallmarks of Hoysala architecture and workmanship.. the turned pillars of the central Ranga Mantapa, the grand door frame of the Garbhagriha, Dwarapala flanking the Garbhagriha, and so on. The basic design of the components are same across centuries i.e. from Chalukya to Rastrakuta to Kadamba to Hoysala. For example- the ribbed pillars on the side walls or the form of the turned pillars are more or less same.

Nandi resting in front of this master Shiva. The fresh red Hibiscus says that pooja was performed in the morning. May be its correct to assume that pooja is performed daily. Nandi is heavily bejeweled, head turned to right. It is said that Nandi's left eye sees Shiva while the right eye looks at Parvati. One of the two mantapas flanking the sanctum entrance must be dedicated to Parvati.

A closer look at one of the pillar-beam junction. I think Hoysala version is grander compared to Chalukyan version. On the side wall, opposite to the door is a an idol of a four armed male god. The idol's arms and hands are missing. I'm unable to identify but it could be Shiva.

There are two or three domes in the ceiling with highly ornate sculpture. This looks like an assembly of bars riveted together to form an octagonal web. The hub looks like a subassembly of gears. Truly this is a very complex piece of engineering.

Compared to the previous dome, this second dome is more complex. The former has five tiers and latter has seven tiers. The outermost / lowermost tier has miniature mantapas, each housing an idol of some legendary character. The hub is elongated and multi-tiered. With a DSLR one could capture the details and learn more about the stories hidden in these amazing artwork.

Unable to capture much inside, I decided to step out and check the exterior. The exterior walls have three horizontal sections- base, mid and top. Each of the section has its own theme. The top has miniature or model mantapas and temples. The proportions of the components are exactly the same as actual structures. The mid section is a series of individual idols representing legendary characters, each one of them telling a story. Below and above every idol is a ornate base and an ornate arch. The lowest section i.e. the base, is divided into five tiers. Actually its six but only five of them carry sculptures while one is blank. Let's take a look at the six tiers starting with the lowest. Tier-1 consists of royal elephants signifying strength. Tier-2 has cavalry and infantry signifying speed/agility. Tier-3 is Kirtimukha between creepers. Tier-4 is blank. If I remember correctly, according to a guide, any other sculpture could sculpt anything better than what is already here. Tier- 5 consists of Yali, an imaginary creature with mixed features. And the last, Tier-6 is peacocks signifying grace.

In the above picture, from right to left; a group of musicians are seen. Then there's Arjuna aiming at the fish, the fish's eye in particular. The next idol is Shiva slaying Gajasura, the scene is commonly known as Gajasura Samhara.

A closer look at the musicians group.

The temple as seen from north-western corner. The walls closest to the camera is Garbhagudi and farther is the Sabhamantapa. The Garbhagudi in plan is star-shaped while the Sabhamantapa is rectangular. Above the three sections are ornate canopies. The temple has no Shikhara, obviously this is an incomplete work.

After Gajasura Samhara, the next important idol is standing Shiva holding a Damaru and Trisul. Close to Shiva is Brahma, identifiable by the three bearded faces. In fact in this view one can see several idols of Shiva holding Damaru & Trishul. One particular image is special here, Shiva & Parvati astride Nandi. This very image is the deity at Someshwara Gudi, Lakshmeshwara in Gadag district.

A closer look at the creator Brahma. To his right is a pair, with horse heads, holding an egg-shaped object - wondering what story this is from.

Then we have Bhringi, the three legged sage.

This is the western view of the temple. The canopy portion of the structure is better preserved in this side than in the front. Here we have images of Mahishamardhini, Ganesha, and others I can't identify.

A sitting Ganapathi. The sword wielding warrior carrying a couple on his shoulder is? 

Here we have Mahishasura Mardhini, Natya Shiva and a seated Shiva.

As we move towards rthe northern side of the temple, we have Shiva-Parvati riding a Yali, Parvati sitting on Shiva's lap and Karthikeya among other idols.

Also there's a fire holding Shiva, Shiva riding Nandi among other idols. The voluptuous girl next to Nandi-Shiva idol is an interesting one. She's holding a snake with both hands raised over her head. She'd clad only in jewelry and a pair of platform slippers. It is often said that many of the popular fashions clothing & footwear already existed centuries ago, nothing is new, and we have proof here.  

We come around to the front of the temple. This is the south-eastern corner. This part of the temple is less finished and also more damage can be seen here. The idol in the middle of the picture is Shiva-Parvati riding Nandi. This image and the neighboring ones are still draft versions.

The first idol from the left is Shiva dancing on the dwarf Apasmara. Apasmara represents negativity and Shiva stomps out negative forces by dancing on Apasmara's back.

In the final image there's an idol depicting a fashionable robe and high-heel footwear.

With the sun beating down fiercely, I decided to call it a tour. After a short break I along with the caretaker headed towards Chennakeshava Devastana.

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