a taste of rural life at Bhogasandra part-1b

...continued from a taste of rural life at Bhogasandra part-1a.

Feb 9th. Morning chill was consistent. The reason behind chilly-misty mornings are Bhogasandra Kere and the stream. A very few people get out of bed before 7 am. That doesn't mean they are lazy. By 7-30 most people in their plantations, coconut or arecanut or both. Purpose of the visit  could be a general check, if the drip irrigation pipes & electrical gadgets are intact, to take an approx count of grounded coconuts or to collect arecanut sheaths. As per folks here, there are no cases of thievery in & around Bhogasandra yet it's every property owner's duty to check. Ripe coconuts fall on their own, one needs to have an estimate to have them picked up and sent to coconut storage pens. Arecanut trees shed sheaths which are used to make plates and cups which have a good demand. They are ecofriendly use-n-throw stuff. The collected & stored sheaths are later sold to plate-making factories.

For the third consecutive day, breakfast was hot upit. Sridhar and I are okay eating the same stuff day after day... homemade stuff is better than eating packed food. Only the carpenter was expected that morning, team arrived promptly at 10 am and began their work. I think the painting team came around 11-30.

Around 12-15 pm, we headed towards Shivappa's home. We took the shortcut path which went along the farm's fence right upto the stream. Sridhar's property includes the trench seen here. It was made to drain excess water from the plantation.

Shivappa met us at the stream to guide us wade across the stream. This stream flows through a valley, the valley being the border of two gramas Bhogasandra and Hosakere. Wading through a stream can be a tricky thing, here a series of stones made it easy. If not for the stones, with every step our feet would sink into mud and pulling it up would've required some effort. After a good rain, water level would be much higher, crossing the stream won't be that easy. I must come here during a rainy season and see the fast slowing water.

Two or three buffaloes were hanging around, one immersed in water with its snout and spine sticking above the surface. It looked like a crocodile in water. It was looking at us suspiciously ...who are these strangers? why are they here?

Buffaloes are wary of strangers, some start staring. This buffalo standing on the peninsula was staring at me. I think they behave that way because of body odor which is heavily laced with perfume of soaps & deodorants. Even our clothes carry the smell of detergent which is much stronger.

I liked this spot because it has a feel of wilderness. Clumps of wild grass, date palm, pools of water created a nice ambiance.

This feels like an oasis.

Shivappa's house is situated at the edge of his coconut plantation. Compared to Sridhar's farm, this is at a higher elevation, has an unhindered view of the lands across the stream. These two bougainvillea vines flank the entrance to Shivappa's property. Had we driven here we would be entering from this side.

Shivappa with his younger grandson posing next to Kanagali Gida, Oleander plant. Shivappa is quite an enterprising person but keeps a low profile. He is always busy, so is his son. He is one of the few people here who doesn't indulge in idle chitchat.

Sridhar and Shivappa rest in the shade. I explore the surroundings a bit. A rocky mound behind me was interesting. The mound which looked pristine when viewed from this house was hacked away on the other side. I think mud and stone was being quarried illegally. Uncontrolled quarrying is one of the banes of our country. It disturbs the ecological balance ...removing green cover and exposing soil, altering water flow during rains. The pristine side of the mound was Shivappa's kitchen garden. There were some Avarekayi creepers. Avarekayi season was coming to a close, I couldn't spot any beans as such. I needed a break from sunlight, joined the group in the shade. I asked Shivappa to get us some Avarekai if he could find them. A plan to make Avarekain upit was spinning in my mind.

Our host brought in refreshments- slices of apple and cups of sweet curds. Then we headed towards another plantation of Shivappa, a few minutes walk away.

Shivappa had already plucked a few tender coconuts for us. Using a machete he opened them for us. Water and tender flesh were refreshing.

Time to head back to the base. We took another route where the stream was narrow. Here we could see flowing water. The sound of water gurgling in the silent surroundings was soothing. This spot where we crossed over seems like a perfect place for wild animals to quench their thirst.

We trekked through a neighboring farm. These 40' to 60' arecanut trees must be 10 to 12 years old. They usually start yielding in the 7th or 8th year provided they were well cared.

Back at the lodge, we prepared rice and had it with lemon and tomato rice powder. I think we had some sprouts as well. I tried napping but it was a bit too warm for comfort. As usual we had a round of tea around 4-30 pm. I decided to go out for a walk and shoot a few pictures while it was still bright. My first shot was this shed in the neighbor's farm, stones throw from our lodge. This little structure built out of roughly shaped blocks is beautiful, good workmanship. 

A few feet away from the stone shed was this snake skin. This must be quite recent. If its older than a week bits and pieces would've gone missing.

I ventured further away, took the path going towards the jungle. I took another look at the Hibiscus trees, took a few shots with the zoom lens. By then sun was out of sight, it was getting dimmer by the minute. Continued walking and turned into a footpath on my left. This patch of land were uncultivated, meaning no plantations, semiwild where shepherds grazed their flocks. I could get a few clear shots in poor light.

We had planned to attend the evening pooja at Siddalingeshwara Devastana. As before we chitchatted with familiar folks and got introduced to new faces. The breeze blowing over the lake water was cold, and fortunately breeze was on and off. For the evening, kettle drums were brought in to be played during the pooja. Prasada was distributed soon after Mangalarati. I can't recall the menu but anything prepared as Pooja Prasada have always tasted great.

Feb 10th. Time to leave Bhogasandra and return home. The original plan was that both of leave together. A small change in plan. Sridhar had to stay back because of the ongoing work. He was working hard to complete all major works before the month end. Sridhar had engaged his regular autorickshaw guy Anand for the morning. In northern Karnataka, diesel powered autorickshaws are called tumtum because of its peculiar exhaust note. The ride was quite smooth, it was a 2YO vehicle.

Anand dropped me off at Nittur KSRTC bus-stand by noon. Within a minute I boarded a bus going towards Tiptur. As usual I sat in the last row, alone. The bus's rear end would bounce off speed bumps but I would be prepared for it by lifting up from the seat, and let my legs absorb the shock like a spring. The bus reached Tiptur bus-stand by 1-15, then a 15 minute walk to Tiptur railway station. I was on the platform by 1-30 and my train was expected at 2-40 pm. The platform was free, shaded and clean, it was breezy, I parked myself on a stone bench, took off shoes and relaxed. I was carrying sprouts for lunch, I munched them slowly. The train arrived on time. Passed Davangere around 5-45 pm. This is a silhouette of Bathi hill. On its eastern slope is Sri Revana Siddeshwara Devastana, a historic temple renovated recently. 

A few minutes before 6pm the train crossed Tungabhadra, the river which demarcates southern and northern Karnataka. The next major place in the river's path is Hospete.

It was uneventful journey. This picture was taken near Karajgi station.

Train arrived at Hubballi as per schedule. A short walk from the platform to BRTS terminal. I was home by 9-45, a nice and warm food, and a good sleep. Home sweet home.

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a taste of rural life at Bhogasandra part-1a

The sweet taste of rural life stayed back after the short stay at Sridhar's farm at Bhogasandra. Barely a week later another visit formed however the plan was to travel by train & bus. Having frozen the dates with Sridhar, I booked train tickets for onward & return journeys. Major portion of the distance would be covered in train and the remaining by walk, two-wheeler, autorickshaw & bus. For breakfast, instant uppit mix was made at home, quantity sufficient for 4 days. If not for uppit, Sridhar goes with cereals, oats, instant noodles. I'd skip breakfast rather than eating cereals or oats. With a day to go, I packed my bags, one for clothes, and the other for camera & refreshments for the journey.

Feb 6, 2023. The alarm for 3-00 woke me up. After the usual morning routine I was ready. Did some last minute packing like phone, charger, etc. Woke up Pushpa, said bye and started my trek to the railway station at 4-20 AM. The 1.75 km path goes over a hill, so the first part is a uphill, then a 300m flat stretch, the last part is downhill. The camera bag felt heaver with every passing minute, I must've changed hands a dozen times. It was 4-45 when I reached Dharwad station, Siddanganga Express was on the platform and settled down in my seat. The train departed as scheduled, at 5-15 AM. 

Due to ongoing track upgradation work between Hubballi & Haveri, the train was slow. Weather was pleasant, beautiful early mornings sights, spotted a small herd of deer in the fields, soon the train crossed Tungabhadra at Harihar, passed Bathi hill from a distance, had my breakfast of sprouts... after breakfast, I listened to music all the way to Arasikere. The train reached Tiptur station by 11-45, 30 minutes behind schedule. Tiptur KSRTC bus-stand is a kilometer away, I chose to walk. As I was crossing Tiptur main road, I happened to see a familiar face on my left. It took a couple of seconds to register that I was looking at Kumar whom I had met a few days ago when I stayed overnight. Kumar too equally surprised. He offered to drop me at the bus-stand where we had a quick chat and said bye.

Every bus going towards Tumkur stopped at Nittur and I caught one in minutes with plenty of spare seats. It was ages since riding a KSRTC bus on a highway, I chose to sit in the last seat, the ride would be little bumpy. My visit here had coincided with our PM Modiji's visit to inaugurate the helicopter factory near Nittur, also very close to Bhogasandra. For security reasons the stretch between KB Cross and Nittur has been restricted to general traffic. It was going to be a big event, thousands of people were expected to attend. So my bus would be taking a detour, it would be going to Turuvekere and then to Nittur which meant a 45-minute delay. I actually enjoyed the detour, just look out at the everchanging scenes. It was around 1-30 when I caught up with Sridhar at Nittur bus-stand sitting on a TVS moped. Riding a moped on a highway was something I'd never done. All kinds of vehicles ferrying people to the event venue were zipping past, it was a little scary but I got used to it in minutes. We stopped at Nandi Veg restaurant, had light lunch and continued our journey. The slow ride was fun, sights of slow paced rural life was so comforting. It was around 2-30 pm when we reached Bhogasandra Aralikatte.

Once upon a time every village and town had an Aralikatte. In the predigital times Aralikatte was the hub of information. As towns grew, they swallowed surrounding villages, many Aralikattes disappeared and the ones which survived lost their importance. Here at Bhogasandra, still a peaceful little village, we pick up a few things at the only grocery shop and have a soft drink. Meanwhile two mean were busy peeling raw arecanut. Sridhar lights up a chat with them. In the below collage, on the left is a heap of arecanut & husk, and on the right is a heap of arecanut. As I understand these nuts are dried and then sold to a wholesaler. In Uttara Karnataka district, arecanut processing is an elaborate process which involves peeling, boiling and drying.

Years ago, this 'dabba angadi' might have been the only shop at Bhogasandra. Now its just a relic. The 'box shop' has a tin roof and rubber lining to fill the gaps between the wall planks. Going by the reinforcements this had been used for a very long time. Hope people of Bhogasandra preserve it as an artifact. The cream colored building on the right is the village's milk collection center. Farmers drop of cans of milk which gets shipped to a mother dairy. Meanwhile another person joined the peeling work, they had to complete the work well before sunset. Also, a 48-day program at the Siddalingeshwara Devastana was in progress which was daily Abhisheka followed by Prasada. So village folk had their duties to perform at the temple.

From Bhogasandra Aralikatte, Sridhar's farm is less than a kilometer. The little shed on the right is our lodge and the white structure straight ahead is the house under construction. We changed into shorts and tee-shirts and relaxed until the sun lowered itself.

Sridhar and his advisor Shivappa had planned some work. A tractor had been hired to run the plough to dislodge weeds which had taken over the arecanut plantation.

While we waited for the tractor to come, we checked a few things at the house. In a remote location like this getting things done is a challenge, a bigger challenge when it involves multiple vendors. Sridhar was patiently handling the vendors who came up a myriad of reasons for not turning up.

The tractor guy turned up with his Massey Fergusson attached with a comb-plough. Weed growth was so dense that one dare not venture into it for the fear of serpents and venomous insects. On a tractor it was safe but there was a challenge.. drip irrigation piping. Shivappa had to follow the tractor moving pipes out of the way. On the southwestern corner of the plantation was a type of creeper which bore bunches of pale yellow colored hairy pods. Shivappa warned us to stay away from them. One touch is enough to trigger severe itching. We kept our distance. After a few minutes, the driver started complaining of itchy feeling on his arms. Apparently few vines got dragged, some pods broke and the hairy things scattered in the air which landed on the drivers arms. Despite the discomfort the driver completed one run.

Sridhar and Shivappa checking on saplings and irrigation pipes. Majority of the weeds were levelled, soil was now visible. Another run of the plough was needed but after a day. So we called it a day and headed back to the lodge. The driver washed his exposed skin with soap-water and then applied coconut oil, that gave him relief from the itch. We had a round of tea and Shivappa left just after sunset.

Once it was dark, I went out with a flashlight in search of a safe spot to finish nature's business. On the way back, I did not use the flashligh, moonlight was bright enough. A quick wash with soap-water was refreshing. We relaxed for a while, prepared rice and had dinner. Electricity supply is not continuous here. 3-phase supply is on a few hours per day. That's the time we could run the borewell pump. For the week, 3-phase supply was 9 pm to 6 pm. First thing we had to fill a barrel, a bucket and few other containers. Then adjust valve settings to send water to the drip system to water the saplings. This hazy picture of full moon was shot around 8-30. Not a bad freehand shot while fully zoomed in.

I was tired and waiting to fall flat. This time, I made a bed of 3 layers- chaape, yoga mat and a folded quilt. Night weather was still chilly, so insulation was necessary. I slept well, despite getting up four times. Every time I stepped out and returned, my bed had chilled, a few minutes to warm it up and then I would be snoozing. The silence of the place was amazing, everything was still, so serene.

Feb 7th

We woke up well before sunrise, weather was still chilly, we could hear birds chirping, mist floating around the lower parts of the farm. Sridhar prepared tea, the hot brew kick started my system. I dashed off with a can of water in search of a private spot. When the guts clear out, it feels so great, ready to take on another day. A quick cold water bath elevated the sense of freshness. Sridhar too finished with his abulation. We walked down to the neighboring farm to fetch flowers. I was astounded at the sight of the Hibiscus plants. They were small trees!

The flowers were an offering to a picture of Narasimha. Time for breakfast. I prepared upit with my homemade mix. Sridhar fetched banana leaves from the farm across the road. Having steaming hot upit on tender banana leaves was so enjoyable. I believe the taste of food is enhanced when served on fresh banana leaves. Left over food was placed on a few stones next to the shed. A flock of brown bush warblers usually finished off the food in minutes.

ant-nest made of leaves | brown bush warbler

Sridhar was eagerly awaiting the carpenter to arrive. The carpenter had been engaged to make & install window shutters and doors. Of all the vendors here, carpenter was prompt with his timings. The team came at 10 pm and started its work. Apart from that Sridhar was following up on plumbing, masonry, painting and electrical works... but the vendors were erratic. 

I'd told one of my high school friends' group about my stay here. One of the friends, a native of Turuvekere, a resident of Bangalore, messaged about his trip to this side. It would be nice to have a friend visit me here. I asked my friend Kiran to come if time permits.

The day went by quickly. We were expecting the tractor guy to come around 4-00. He wasn't responding to phone calls.. I guessed he had had enough with the itchy creeper. Shivappa tried reaching him then gave up and decided to engage another tractor.

The carpentry team wound up by 6 PM. We decided to go for a walk, down the dirt path towards the edge of the jungle. This path runs more or less parallel to the stream and turns northwards. That's where is the last of the plantation. The other side of the stream is all jungle area which stretches right upto KB Cross-Hiriyur highway. The forest area is a mix of hilly and flat lands. It was past sunset, time to head back to the safety of our farm. 

On the way back we saw a couple of peacocks at a distance, I did shoot a few pictures, none of them were worth posting here. Back at the lodge we had another round of tea, then freshen up, cook dinner, eat, fill water and hit the sack.

Feb 8th. The morning routine was more or less same... tea, nature's call, bath, fetch flowers, and have breakfast. In between we would look out for peacocks and foxes. The fencing poles were peacock's favorite spots. They would stay perched atop the granite poles for minutes together. Breakfast was upit again and there was enough stock for two more mornings.

Around 9 am Kirn messaged that he was in Turuvekere and he can make it here. I shared Bhogasandra lake's location and asked Kiran to call me when he was close by. Meantime, Shivappa had arranged for another tractor guy. Ploughing work was going on and expected to be done in an hour. Around 11-15 ploughing was done, tractor was ready to depart and Kiran was close by. I hitched a ride in the tractor upto the lake and waited under the tamarind tree. This semi-open structure is Siddalingeshwara Devastana. We had planned to attend the pooja & prasada event in the evening.

That's Kiran and I. Kiran is a very active person, ever busy juggling between his full-time job, family run business, and a gymnastic board head. I often wonder how he manages them and yet make time to travel far and wide.

At the farm, we tried to make our guests as comfortable as possible. I stirred up lime juice in a jiffy. In the hot weather, lime juice always feels good, any imbalance in the ingredients goes unnoticed. Kiran had an appointment with an acquaintance at Tumkur, they had to leave. I was happy to have met Kiran here and also happy to have met his wife & son for the first time.

Lunch was rice with lemon-rice and tomato-rice powders. Post lunch I tried to nap but sleep evaded. It was okay when there was breeze. When air was still, our little shed heated like an oven. Sridhar never napped, he was supervising carpentry work. After the carpenters left we went down into the plantation. 

Now, with most weeds gone, it looked neater however weeds around the saplings and in the rows had to be removed by hand. The next task was to engage a few hands to get this done. During the rounds Sridhar noticed that two outlets were damaged. Shivappa's son Lokesh would come later and fix them.

We freshened up, changed into casuals and walked Siddalingeshwara Devastana. When we walked on the dirt track, superfine dirt would cling on my slippers' soles. It felt as though I was walking on a layer of glue. At the temple, things were getting busy. One group was busy inside with the rituals, another group were preparing to cook food and the third group was organizing seating, plates and water. We sat on the same granite bench under the tamarind tree with few other folks from the village. People assumed that I was a westerner until they heard me speak Kannada. I was introduced to quite a few people but names got mixed up. Even for Sridhar this event was a good opportunity to meet and mingle.

Abhisheka was done which was followed by Mangalarati. In the mean time, teams had cooked food, coconut & arecanut leaves were placed on the ground in neat lines for people to sit. Village people arrived in small groups, boys rode their bicycles and crows has formed. We missed the first batch. After half hour the second batch formed. Ambiance was great, food was excellent, enjoyed every morsel. I don't know where else I will get a chance to partake Prasada on a lake bank under the night sky. This was an experience I truly cherished.

We walked back to the farm, 3-phase power was on, filled water and crashed out.

This story will continue in a taste of rural life at Bhogasandra part-1b.

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Memorial stone of Sagasandra

This memorial stone was discovered on January 27th 2023 as we drove through Sagasandra village. The hero-stone is situated on Sagasandra-Bhogasandra road, close to the village square which is dominated by a huge Araligida (Peepul tree). It is a standard 3-panel stone, the bottom panel showing the warrior in the fighting scene, middle panel shows the martyred warrior in a chariot accompanied by divine creatures and the topmost panel shows the warrior merging with the Supreme. Like all hero-stones, Sun and Moon are present. I think this signifies that the memories will live as long as Sun & Moon are there.

It's really nice to see the efforts taken towards by the residents of Sagasandra for protecting their ancient artifact.

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friends farm at Bhogasandra

January 27, 2023. The day started with an early morning drive from Tiptur to Vignasanthe, to see the historical temple Lakshminarasimha Devastana built in the XIII Century CE, during the reign of Hoysala king Narasimha III. After spending about 45 minutes at Vignasanthe, I drove to Turuvekere to see four temples- 1. Beteraya, 2. Gangadhareshwara, 3. Moole Shankareshwara and 4. Chennakesava. After a two hour tour of these temples, I was famished, found a small eatery close to the town bus-stand servng hot tatte-idli, relished every morsel, a satisfying meal it was. The last place for the morning was Aralaguppe, to see Chennakesava Devastana and Kalleshwara temple complex. As per the original itinerary, I was supposed to drive back to Dharwad but a call from my friend Sridhar caused a change. The revised plan was to go to Bhogasandra, stay at Sridhar's farm and drive to Dharwad on 28th morning.

From Aralaguppe, I took the shortest road to Tiptur-Tumkur highway. The highway was recently widened, construction works were still going in at some spots. Almost opposite to HAL helicopter factory is Yellapur gate junction, where I turned left into the rural road leading to Bhogasandra and other villages. Sridhar had told about the condition of the internal road was bad. The road was more of a dirt track full of ditches and bumps, very dusty as well. As I went deeper, I could hardly see people, couple of forks I followed my instinct. After a 15 minute drive I saw a lake to my right and then reached Bhogasandra, I stopped to call Sridhar but there was no signal. I inquired at the village bus-stop, but the two elderly people there weren't aware of such a person. And no other people in sight. I drove towards Bandanahalli hoping to locate Sridhar, at one point phone was back in the network. On the call Sridhar told me his farm is close to Bhogasandra lake. Ten minutes later I met Sridhar next to Bhogasandra lake, from there the farm was just three minutes away on a very dusty dirt road.

It was around 2-15 pm when we reached the farm. I unloaded my bags, parked the car in the neighboring farm, freshened up and had lunch, steaming hot rice with tomato rice powder. I just wanted to be stationary for the next few hours.

Sridhar's farmhouse was under construction, we had to do with a temporary accommodation, a 10' x 8' room stuffed with farm and construction material. The room had two windows and a ceiling fan, so airflow was good. Despite the limited space, I could stretch out completely. This room reminded me of the three primary school teachers from Belagavi camping at a tribal village called Devgaon in the jungles of western ghats. The teachers shared a single room which doubled as the gram panchayat office room which more like a storeroom. Their commitment was commendable... they never let their hardships affect their dedication to their school & students. The other thing I wish to mention is they walked the 10 km jungle path from the state highway to Devgaon, sometimes after sunset. That was in the year 2012, now most rural folks have bikes.

We stayed indoors until about 4-30 by when Sridhar's advisor Shivappa from the neighboring village arrived here. I'd seen Shivappa on a videocall a few months ago, this meeting was more like a reintroduction. The three of us walked down the farm to check on arecanut saplings and drip irrigation pipelines. This is a view of the upper portion, the saplings have been invaded by weeds. The house under construction is a grey patch on the left.

This is the view of the farm from a spot close to the fence. Beyond the fence is the lake overflow stream. The stream flows down into forest land about a kilometer from here. That's Sridhar a urbanite mutating to a ruralite.

The neighboring space is jungle like. With plenty of waterholes in the stream this place attracts wildlife. Peacocks are a common sight here, of course they are extremely shy creatures, they keep good distance. Then herons, woodpeckers, hornbills, crow pheasants, owls, snakes, foxes are also seen. Local people say there are bears, leopards, porcupines, boars and other wild creatures. I think this place is unique hence I took a liking for it.

After the inspection of saplings, we head back to our lodge. A shepherd and his flock were passing on the road. Sridhar noticed a a very young lamb, it looked so fragile. The shepherd said this baby was just two or three hours old, its fur still had gooey matter on it. Unlike other animals ewes don't become aggressive for their babies' safety. I guess they are deeply domesticated to trust humans completely. After the sheep left, Sridhar cleaned up and changed his tee-shirt. We had tea and than planned for a short drive to a nearby village called Kote. BTW, our lodge didn't have a toilet or bathroom, we were left to nature's ways.

On the way to Kote, we stopped at Bhogasandra Kere. We spent a few minutes in this peaceful ambiance. On the lake bank is Siddalingeshwara Devastana which was recently renovated. The village folk had started a 48-day pooja. Every evening there would be Abhisheka and Anna-Prasada at the temple which would go on till Yugadi festival. 

Enroute to Kote, we passed thought a village called Sagasandra. At the village entrance I saw a memorial stone on the side. Village people had made a platform around it. There's a separate post for the memorial stone of Sagasandra. We drove on to Kote, purchased liquid fuel for our bodies and quickly returned to the farm. Around half past eight we made a small fire and downed the fuel, the feeling was awesome. While the day weather was hot, evening was pleasant and night it was chilly. We had a light dinner... rice with lemon/tomato flavors. I was ready to crash out and opted to sleep on the floor. The cot was delicate made for light weights like Sridhar. I doubted if the cot could take a quintal plus the extra forces when I rolled around. I wasn't going to take any chances, so took the floor. A thin quilt folded over a plastic mat was my bed, and two thin bedspreads formed a blanket.

The presence of lake and stream made this place cold during nights. Around 2 O'clock I could feel the cold creeping into the mat from the floor. I found a way to keep warm by covering head to toe and trapping the heat. Couple of times I had to get up to relieve myself. Those few minutes outside were freezing and the bed was cold. It would take few minutes to warm it up. We woke up by 4-30. As tea was being prepared I noticed the yoga mat. The mat would've been a good insulator. Tea felt delicious in the chilly air laden with mist. We took turns going out with a lantern and bottle of water. We had to be careful with every step. One thing in open air business is you finish your job quickly, somehow the body is very efficient. I took a cold half bath and got ready to leave. We loaded our bags into the car, locked the lodge and farm gates, and left as the sky showed signs of light.

We stopped at Bhogasandra Kere for a few minutes. The sights were simply amazing. I won't bother describing them.

I dropped Sridhar at Nittur bus-stand, he would be taking a bus to Bengaluru. I took Nittur-Chelur-Sira road, a 50 km drive to NH48. Nittur-Chelur road was bad, potholes & ditches every couple kilometers, there was no point doing more than 50 kmph. 30 km was a dreadful journey. Chelur-Sira road was superb, could drive effortlessly. Once I hit Sira, it was one straight road back home. The only stop was near Davangere to refuel, reached home by 3 PM.

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Kalleshwara Devastana, Araluguppe

...continued from Chennakesava Devastana, Aralaguppe.

Jan 27, 2023. The historical tour of the day started early at Sri Lakshmi-Narasimha Devastana, Vignasante, a Hoysala creation. Then I drove to Turuvekere where I saw three temples: 1. Gangadhareshwara, 2. Moole Shankareshwara and 3. Chennakeshava. After the 3-temple tour, I took a break for breakfast and then drove to Aralaguppe. Finding the route to Aralaguppe was like a treasure hunt. After spending about 45 minutes at Chennakesava Devastana I came to the last item of the day- Kalleshwara Devastana which is situated on the edge of the village, touching the village lake.

Not much information is available about this place. I was expecting to see a temple like Chennakesava but this is a group of temples, and all the temples are painted. So it's like this- one of the temples would be Kalleshwara and the others dedicated to other deities. According to an online source, the architecture of Kalleshwara group temple is Ganga-Nolamba style of IX century CE. In the ceiling of the main temple i.e. Kalleshwara, there is a sculpture of dancing Shiva accompanied by musicians and eight Dikpalas.

I stood here for a minute wondering where to start in this maze of temples. Here are about 11 individual shrines, all tightly packed together. Of the 11 temples, I think 7 are east-facing, 2 are west-facing, 1 north and 1 south. The interesting part is that 4 of these temples face a common space, i.e. they are positioned like a plus sign, each one facing east, west, south and north. At their center is Nandi facing Kalleshwara.

The structures are pretty simple, design is straightforward. I think behind the paint, its all stone. How I wish these structures were left in their original condition i.e. the raw stone finish look.

This structure is a real beauty, simple & elegant. The door frame, though made of plain columns and beams, has a classy look. On the right hand side is the rear portion of another temple, a temple which is part of the four temples facing each other.

This is the central space formed by four temples which is occupied by Nandi Mantapa. Nandi is facing his master Kalleshwara in the form of a Linga. I think daily rituals take place here, probably once in the morning. However, right now all shrine doors were closed & locked. These four temples in a way are a Chturkuta, a temple with four sanctums. However since each of these have individual foundations, this may not qualify as a Chaturkuta.

Another online source mentioned that these temples were Chalukyan. As I know, Chalukyan Nandi have much more ornate jewelry. Also the columns seen here are not typically Chalukyan.

Frontal look of Nandishwara. This is natural position of bulls when they are resting. And Nandi's head is turned slightly to its left so that its left eye sees Shivalinga.

The elaborate door frame of the temple. This is another item which helps in differentiating Chalukyan designs from Ganga-Nolamba. Chalukyan doorframes are 3, 5 or 7-tiered. Unfortunately I could not see the interior, I'll move on to other temples.

The wall on the left belongs to Kalleshwara Devastana. The window has a very ornate stone grill with a frame. I missed taking a picture of it. The opposite wall too has a similar window.

This temple is right next to Kalleshwara, an east-facing temple.

Wish local people had planted boards naming each of the temple here.

Two smaller shrines. This doorframe is similar to the one seen earlier. I think the inner door connects directly to the Garbhagudi. With this I have covered the group except the interiors.

Lastly, a glance at the small collection of memorial stones and Naga-Shilpa. I think there were five memorial stones, two of them Kannada inscriptions. The rest are Naga stones.

These slabs were made in memory for warriors who were martyred in a battle protecting the place. Of the five memorial stones, two seem to be much older than the other three.

Despite an incomplete tour, I was happy to see that conditions of these temples. It seems people of Aralaguppe have strived to preserve & protect their heritage. Hoping this dedication continues with the younger generation.

Before leaving the place I rest for a minute under this mantapa. This place is so convenient for resting or picnic. Wish visitors carry away their used plates and not litter. Most people are insensitive, they lack the sense to think of the next group visiting here. Our prime minister Narendra Modi is trying to educate masses a sense of cleanliness through Swachh Bharath campaign, now its upto the people to cultivate good habits.

Done with seeing Aralaguppe, I head back to Tiptur-Tumkur highway with two options ahead of me- return to Dharwad or to meet my friend Sridhar at Bhogasandra and spend the night there. On reaching the highway, I talk to Pushpa who was okay with the second option. So, I head towards Bhogasandra, a village in the coconut-arecanut belt of Tumkur district.

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