Natya-Shiva of Jambulinga Devastana

When you enter Pattadakal temple complex the first temple one gets to see is KaadaSiddeshwara Devastana, and the second is Jambulingeshwara Devastana. The most noticeable feature of  Jambulingeshwara is the idol of Nataraja on its Nagara style Shikhara. Imagine the Shikhara without Nataraja's piece; it would look a lady without a bindi.

Taking a closer look at the sculpture which is an assembly of two pieces. I guess the assembly is approximately 7 to 8 feet high. Shiva is in company of Nandi and Parvati i.e. within the circle. Just outside the circle are two inflight characters, could be Gandharvas or Kinnaras.  At the base of the sculpture are two Naga creatures. If you take a even closer look at the Shikhara tiers, there are miniature images of the assembly. However the characters in the miniatures can't be recognized since layers of those sandstone sculptures have been eroded over time. Remember, temples of this complex were built in the IX Century CE by the Chalukyan kings.

These two pictures were shot on Aug 29th 2023 during my trip with my friend Srinu from Hyderabad. We were on a two-day trip of the Chalukyan realm Badami-Pattadakal-Aihole. During this trip, I was hoping for detailed photography of interior sculptures of Mallikarjuna and Virupaksha temples but my camera battery gave up after shooting two pictures of Jambulingeshwara. That assignment is still pending.

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Aihole trip of Aug 2023

Probably I'm the only person who has taken Srinu, my friend from Hyderabad, to historical sites. When Srinu decided to take a short vacation at Dharwad, I planned a two-day trip to the Chalukyan realm Badami-Pattadakal-Aihole. Aug 29th morning we reached Badami, we covered the rock-cut caves, Agastya pond, Bhootnath group and the northern fort. Afternoon we headed towards Pattadakal, we stopped at Shivayogi Mandir for lunch break. Pushpa had packed us rotti-sprouts-chatnipudi lunch which we had under a neem tree in the peaceful premises of Shivayogi Mandir. Then we drove to Pattadakal where had a good tour except that my camera battery got drained completely. By sunset we had checked into KSTDC lodge at Aihole.

Aug 30, 2023
From past experiences, it's best to do the hill trek early morning. That was the plan for the morning- explore the historic and prehistoric sites on Aihole hill seen in the background of this picture. Two monuments can be seen in the picture here- Buddhist Chaitya, and Meguti Gudi which is partly concealed by the fort wall. 

Durga Gudi in the background. Durga temple complex is the center of Aihole. We had plans of visiting after the trek and breakfast.

On the left is Desai Waade which offers home-stay services. Further ahead there are more Chalukyan temple complex; on the left is Tryambakeshwara, and on the right is the Jain Basadi complex.

At the southern edge of the village is Huchchappayyana Matha.

About half kilometer from Huchchappayyana Matha we leave the road and get on to the hill slope. Aihole hill is a long & narrow mound with a sloping plateau if I may call it that. The southern slope is an ancient quarry which supplied sandstone blocks for temple construction here.

Here's one spot from which flat-sided blocks were removed. While the lower portion is a former quarry, the upper portions of the slope have many natural rock-shelters which were inhabited in the prehistoric times. The prehistoric inhabitants had a marvelous view of river Malaprabha flowing in the valley. It is said that Vishnu's Avatar Parashurama had washed his bloodied axe in the river here which caused the river to turn red. The sight of the red stream left people in awe and exclaimed aayo hole which later transformed to Aihole. That's the story behind the name Aihole.

During my earlier visits, I had located a few paintings in the rock-shelters. I was glad that Srinu could see them. The painting has faded over the centuries but one can still recognize the hyena fur pattern. There's another important prehistoric site of this region- Kutkankeri. On the hill is a huge boulder called Anepadi which means elephant-stone. On Anepadi is a large painting of hyena fur pattern. Until I saw that painting I wasn't aware that hyenas existed here. Well, hyenas can be found here to this day.

Srinu pointing at a smaller painting.

This is one of the multi-leveled rock-shelter. If you climb on to the top of this formation, you'll reach the sloping plateau. The entire hill had been a busy place, historically speaking. On the sloping plateau are remans of prehistoric burial chambers. There are close to eighty megalithic tombs, one of the largest in Karnataka state.

While prehistoric people painted hyena fur patterns Mother Nature has imitated wood grain pattern in sandstone. Isn't that amazing!

We climb down and return to the quarry site and stop at the spot which is an open bathing space with a shower. The water shower functions only if the rains are sufficient enough for the rocks to hold water. During an earlier visit here, with Pushpa, we had seen a waterfall in which a villager was bathing. If you taker a closer look at the flat surface, you can find a few inscriptions in Kannada. Also there's an floral etching. I believe this shower bathing space was created by sculptors engaged during Chalukyan times.

We climb up to see the showerhead. Srinu's stepping across the canal which channelizes rain / stored water into a steady stream.

Srinu inspecting the straight edges here. The ancient people had mastered the art & science of cutting stones into blocks with perfectly straight edges. Those ancient techniques are still being used to this day.

Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized silicate grains cemented together by another mineral. Sand grains are compacted and cemented over thousands of years. During the process other types of stones are also cemented, like pieces of tutti frutti in sponge cakes.

We reach the southwestern end of Aihole hill. At this tip is an important monument- a rock-cut Jaina shrine, also called as Menada Basadi. Srinu's resting on the bench with a headrest to his right side. The dressed block wall seems to be a relatively later addition. I feel, the pillared hall of his temple was open. For some reason the builders decided to wall it up. Maybe to keep the place warmer during cold weather.

The temple has two main spaces, outer and inner. The outer space is one wide hall with a complex looking ceiling sculpture. The sculpture has several Swastika, floral motifs and imaginary creatures. One must see this sculpture for real. Barring the front wall this Basadi is a monolithic temple. Aihole has two more monolithic temples, no exceptions in them. While one is a named monument, the other one is an unnamed and almost impossible to access. The named monument is Ravalapadi. The unnamed temple is situated on the northwestern slope of Aihole hill.

This is the inner chamber with an altar. The deity is Mahaveera. I haven't posted more pictures since I need to cover other monuments. However, to see more of this Basadi see this blog post: Rock-cut Jain Basadi.

Having rested in the Basadi we resume our trek, Just behind the Basadi are several paths to reach the lower end of the sloping plateau. Like I said earlier, this plateau is a prehistoric grave site - there are about eighty megalithic burial chambers, also called cromlechs. Though many are vandalized, some of the larger chamber are pretty much in their original condition. This is one which is best preserved, in my opinion. Srinu's pointing his walking stick to the red dirt between the rocks. Basically the inner space of this cromlech is packed with dirt which in turn keeps a corpse (corpses) buried. My understanding is that such tombs were made for leaders (like a king) in the prehistoric times.

We trek up to the western end of the plateau seeing more cromlechs on the way. This one here is probably the largest, large enough to hold four or five adult human bodies. As you see the inner space is empty. It had been emptied at some point of time, either by archaeologists or vandals hunting treasure. In the background is the fortification surrounding Meguti Gudi. 

The fort wall has been breached in a friendly way for the sake of tourists. We clambered across the breach and Meguti Gudi comes into view.

Isn't it a handsome looking structure. Apparently the story behind the name Meguti is this: since the temple sits atop a hill, it was called Meliruva Gudi which eventually became Meguti Gudi. This is one of the 100+ temples of Aihole. Here I would like to say that most temples here were dedicated to Shiva. I guess, even Meguti was a Shiva temple.

The fort has one official entrance which is opposite Meguti temple. Out thro the gateway, we get the stairs which goes down to the two tiered Buddhist Chaitya. On the ceiling of the upper tier is an sculpture of meditating Buddha. That's the only indication that this temple is a Chaitya. From here one can get a bird's eye view of Aihole's monuments. Also, this is a great sunset point.

Now, looking back the way we came, what all are on this hill. Prehistoric dwellings with paintings, a prehistoric burial chamber, early Chalukyan quarry site with bathing place, a Shiva temple, a Jaina Basadi, a Buddhist Chaitya, a fort and monolithic temple. See how the ancient cultures of Indian subcontinent gelled. Considering the visual aspect, all the monuments are in harmony. That's the beauty of our Bharatvarsha.

Having trekked more than two kilometers, we were hungry. We went straight to the only decent eatery of Aihole, enjoyed the breakfast, rested and entered the Durga Gudi complex. Considering the time, I planned to see only Durga temple complex. We spent an hour or so at the complex then headed back to the lodge. We rested for a while, had a light lunch and then started our journey back to Dharwad. For the past three times, I've taken Dharwad - Hubli - Badami - Aihole route for the forward journeys and, and for the return journey it's Aihole - Badami -  Ramdurga - Sirasangi - Saundatti - Dharwad. The return route is scenic between Kulageri cross and Saundatti. Srinu really enjoyed driving this route. Overall, it was a wonderful trip!

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memories of Anjanadri Betta 2017

Here are a unshared memories of our trip to Anjanadri Betta on Aug 12 2017. After an eventful journey from Hyderabad we had arrived at Anegundi around 4 pm. We went straight to the home-stay we had booked in advance. Then we reached Anjanadri hill base around 5-30 pm, climbed it and spent an hour or so at the top. For Pushpa it was the first visit here, and mine was third visit I think. As always it was a wonderful experience.. the fresh air, those amazing sights and monkey antics. And, I wasn't alone in that experience, every person up here looked happy or lost. It looked like all were in a hypnotic trance.

Coming to these three pictures:

That's the iconic Frangipani of Anjanadri Betta. Do you see something in the tree's silhouette. You have to look closely. The little arc like patch on the right, it's a bird, probably a myna, approaching the Franjipani. Catching it midair so close to the tree was by fluke.

The next picture is active paddy fields as seen from Anjanadri. Yes, the sight of greenery and water is always a treat to eyes. After years I saw something more in this picture- the geometric shapes of individual plots- rectangles, squares, triangles and a multitude of polygons. Whatever the shape, every polygon out there will be tilled by farmers here. Now, notice that three or four plots are greener than the rest. Those are the ones where paddy saplings are grown, they are like nurseries. The saplings are transplanted to production plots where they grow, mature and produce paddy. The sight looks nice from here but you must try walking through those plots.

This the welcome arch of Anjanadri. From here starts the hill climb. Honestly I hadn't paid much attention to the details of the arch. Usually arches are either semicircular or straight lines but here we have an angular arch. At the top is a niche in which is an idol of a mother and child. It's a beautiful sculpture of a woman holding her child in her lap. This being the birthplace of Hanuman, the idol could be a depiction of Anjanadevi and baby Hanuman.

I had visited Anjanadri again in Dec 2024 with Sridhar. The arch is still there, the only change is color. Now it has been painted in shades of white and saffron.

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Yantrodharaka Hanuman Gudi, Hubballi

A few months while exploring the rural stretches around Dharwad & Hubballi, a marked spot caught my attention. The title of the spot on Google Maps stated "Yantroddharak Hanuman Temple." To my knowledge the only Yantrodharaka Hanuman shrine was situated at Chakratirtha at Hampi. Chakratirtha is the spot where river Tungabhadra turns sharply to the north, flows in the northerly direction for about 500 meters and then takes a sharp turn towards east. Since the ancient times, where a river or stream turns to the north or south or where streams merge are considered as holy spots and, shrines dedicated to Shiva are present. Coming back to Chakratirtha, the two main shrines are Yantrodharaka Hanuman and Kodhandarama temples. Then there are countless bas relief sculptures on the rocks along the river bank. Sculptures of Shiva Linga, Nandi, Anantasayana, Hanuman, Garuda, Ganesha, Narasimha and Dashatavatara can be seen on the rocky bank. Talking about Yantrodharaka Hanuman, it's a rare form of Hanuman in which he is seen seated in a hexagram.

After Hampi visit I found the story of Yantrodhara Anjaneya on Hampi Online website. I'm hereby quoting the story as it is:

Sri Vyasathirtha, a great scholar saint during the reign of King Krishna Deva Raya is believed to be an incarnation of the celestial Shankukarna. The earlier incarnation of Shankukarna was Bhakta Prahlada and the one after Sri Vyasathirtha was that of Sri Raghavendra Swami. Sri Vyasathirtha used to go to very calm spots on the banks of river Tungabhadra and meditate uninterrupted. One day, while he was meditating in a hillock near Chakratirtha, an image of Lord Hanuman kept coming to his mind. This happened only at that particular spot and nowhere else, even in nearby hillocks.

Sri Madhwacharya (believed to be an incarnation of Lord Hanuman) appeared in the dreams of Sri Vyasathirtha and instructed him to install an icon of Lord Anjaneya (Hanuman) next time. The next time Sri Vyasathirtha saw the image in the middle of his meditation, without any delay, he drew the image from his mind on to a rock using an Angara (coal used by Brahmins during Pooja performance). To his surprise, a monkey came to life from the rock and jumped out of the rock and his drawing would disappear. He repeated the process of drawing and every time, a monkey would jump out of the rock and the drawing would disappear. This happened 12 times.

Full of surprise, Sri Vyasathirtha finally decided to bind the image of Lord Hanuman in a Yantra. A small temple was built there and hence the temple has the name Yantroddhara Anjaneya. In the core of the Yantra is the statue of Lord Hanuman in Padmasana position. This is probably the only temple of Lord Hanuman in a sitting position which is generally in a flying or blessing position. The Yantra here is a form of binding which looks like a 6 cornered star. The star is encircled in a circle with flames going outwards giving it the drawing look of a sun. A closed, benzene like ring of 12 monkeys holding each others’ tails can also be found around the star and the sun which forms the outermost structure of the Yantra.

Following this, it is believed Sri Vyasathirtha installed 732 Hanuman temples all over South India. It is, to date, very difficult to get a list of all these.

Of the 732 idols of Hanuman installed by Vyasaraja, one of the known idols is inside the jungles of Uttara Kannaada, at Hanumana Kote near Lalguli village. I was fortunate enough to have visited the place three different times with years in between.

Coming back to the newest discovery, I was eager to see the shrine and came out with a plan. On Saturday May 15th morning, Pushpa and I finished our morning routine, packed breakfast and left home at 8 AM. Our destination was about 16 km away, close to Unkal village. We reached the place by 9 AM. This the sight of Yantrodhara Hanuman Gudi as seen from the road where we parked our car. As you see the place is silent except for the noise of light traffic.

It's a single chamber structure. The two Neem trees create a nice ambiance around the shrine.

The sanctum and the deity.

And, finally a close-up view of the deity. Having seen Hampi Yantrodhara Hanuman, it was like seeing a replica here.

I was curious about this temple's history. The only lead wad the phone number found at the site. I called the number which was answered by a person called Mallikarjun. Here's what learned: this temple was built a few years ago by the owner of this agricultural field. The deity is said to be consecrated by a Vaishnava Swamiji from Uttara Kannada. That's all for now. I did not press for more details since this was our first conversation. BTW, Mallikarjun is the priest who performs rituals here. In case you wish to visit this temple, you can call up the number seen in the photo above and check his availability.

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remembering Nidgal Betta

I haven't travelled out of town for the past few months, so the past few weeks I have been posting unpublished photos from my photo archives. This time I happened to pick Nidgal Betta. I'd visited Nidgal Betta on Dec 29th 2014. It was one of the toughest treks in my experience. The three boys from the village made my trip, without them I wouldn't have reached even half way the hill. The hill is wild and one needs to be familiar with the paths to reach the fort and eventually the peak. The trek from the fort ruins to the peak sapped me out. However, the view at the top made me forget my physical state. I have to thank those boys again for indulging a total stranger. Do check out the two part Nidgal Betta trek. And, here are some more photos of the morning.

Nidgal village is situated at the base of Nidgal Betta. The trek passed over the smaller hill, then into a valley and then we went up the main hill. This photo was shot on the smaller hill. You can see a bastion in the foreground, and there's a temple Shkhara next to the bastion. Notice the red patches on the slopes of the bigger hill, those are Gulmohar trees.

This is the temple next to the bastion. I guess this structure is the gateway of the temple. We did not go in due to time constraint.

I guess this is in the valley, looks like we had just left the smaller hill and, entered the slopes of the bigger hill. That seems like a tamarind tree. Notice the turret at the top. Wish I had got a closer look at the turret.

This is one of the many gateways on the bigger hill.

Given the remote location and wild terrain, the ruins have been preserved well.

Remains of a mud-wall. The layers give us an idea of how the wall built- layer by layer. I wonder what's the condition of the wall now i.e. after 12 years.

In the wild terrain it's natural for eyes to catch on to the wonders of Nature. There was a plant with balloon like dry pods. Probably there were tiny seeds in them waiting to be carried far away by winds. Close to the bottom-right of this image is an orange colored insect. I don't remember seeing it then. If I had, there would be a close-up image of that crawly creature.

Leaves cast their shadows on a granite rock. Those shadows are like live artwork at the mercy of Sun, and clouds too. Wonder how the live art looks like during a full moon.

This shot was taken on the crazy climb to the peak. While I rested at the lower end of the slope, my friends had perched on the crest. See how comfortable sitting like Ayappa Swamy. And those shadows are enigmatic.

At the peak of Nidgal Betta is a little temple with an idol of Nandi. At that little temple are two inscriptions. Do check out that temple- Basavanna Gudi and the sights from up there.

On the way back, I caught this tree's shadow on the rock. Notice the curvy shadow cast by the trunk. The trunk, rock surface, angle of Sun light - all have a role in that live art. Or do we call it ghost art because it vanishes eventually.

The first thought on seeing this rock formation was a shoe. A gigantic well used shoe. On this hill was so much to see. The different sights and views at different times of the day and, different seasons too.

The peak in the background and a ruined structure. The ground I was standing on can be considered at half-way up Nidgal Betta. On this small shoulder like formation are rampart walls and a few other structures. This little structure seen here is a temple, inside are relief sculptures and an inscription. An unexpected discovery was a huge cannon made of forged steel. Going by the historical evidences seen here, Nidgal was definitely an important place. For reason, Nidgal lost its prominence and faded away. It's become a hidden gem now.

December being a dry month, we get to see dry grass. Dry but beautiful. The contrast of shadows on shiny grass is a sight to behold.

Here's a portion of the cannon lying in a bed of grass. It seems like a XVI century creation, the types that could be seen at Vijayanagara, Kalburgi, Rayachuru, Golconda forts to name a few.

A gateway in the fortification around the shoulder.

The three sisters holding on their positions for centuries defying gravity.

Lastly, a partly burnt log of wood. This reminds me of a hidden shelter on the way to Basavanna Gudi. It was a one chamber shelter below a massive boulder. Whoever made it had constructed two walls with dressed stone blocks and mud. The interior had mud flooring. It could comfortably shelter a couple of adults. It was ideal for anyone who wanted to stay away for a while. It's not a secret hideout or something but it was like middle of nowhere.

Now, after typing out these lines, my heart yearns to visit Nidgal again.

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stories of Ramayana at Hazara Rama Devastana

Further to the post dedicated to the sculptures of Sharavan Kumar at Hazara Rama Devastana, I revisited the pictures again and felt like sharing pictures of two more walls there. Being a temple dedicated to Sri Rama, the builders decorated the temple with sculptures depicting stories from the epic Ramayana.

The middle image in the bottom row is the scene of king Dasharatha giving the divine payasam to his three queens Kausalya, Kaikeyi and Sumitra. The divine payasam was a product of a Yagna for progeny. After the rituals a bowl of payasam was gifted by the gods to Dasharatha who in turn distributed among his queens. We all know that later four sons were born- Rama, Bharata, Lakshmana & Shatrugna.

The bottom row leftmost image should be of Dasharatha, the four princes and Guru Vasishta, the princes teacher. The rightmost image must be the scene of Dasharatha performing the Yagna.

Moving up to the middle row, the three images are from Aranyakhand, the part of Ramayana where Rama is in exile for fourteen years. The leftmost image is the scene of Bharatha meeting Rama,  Sita & Lakshmana in the forest. The middle image shows Lakshmana leading the way for Rama & Sita in a forest path. The rightmost is the scene of Lakshmana defending Rama & Sita from Shurpanakhi the Rakshasa woman who was infatuated by Rama's charm.

On to the top row where the mages are smaller. The middle one seems like Rama meeting Hanuman, or Sugreeva. The rightmost seems like Vali & Tara.

In this picture, the bottom left image is the scene of Rama breaking Shiva's bow Pinaka while trying to string it. This incident happens at Sita's home. Anyone seeking to marry Sita had to string Pinaka was her father king Janaka's condition. So Rama while trying to string the bow breaks it which proved his strength and marries Sita.

The bottom-middle image seems like sage Vishwamitra asking Dasharatha to send Rama & Lakshmana along with him to protect his Yagna from Rakshasa attacks. Dasharatha unwillingly agrees fearing Vishwamitra's anger. Despite being young and inexperienced, Rama & Lakshmana fight bravely and successfully protect Vishwamitra's Yagna ceremony. The bottom-right image is the scene of the battle between the princes & rakshasas.

In the middle row, it's a couple of rakshasa soldiers. Unsure of the characters of the archery duel. On the right it seems like Rama, Sita & Lakshmana.

The top row are scenes from the Ashoka garden in Ravana's Lanka. In the left is the scene of Hanuman meeting Sita while in captivity at Ashoka Garden. The middle and right images are the scenes of Hanuman fighting rakshasa soldiers and destroying a huge part of Ravana's palace garden.

So much for this week.

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