Island of Vakkund

Jan 25th
Pushpa and I were on a day trip to visit a few historical spots of Belagavi district. Having seen the places by 1-30 pm, we drove back towards Dharwad looking for a spot in farm lands to have home-packed lunch. We passed by Bailhongal. I knew there weren't any convenient spots, so I decided to turn off the state highway and stop near Vakkunda. We found a spot in a vacant farmland next to the road. We were famished, we just spread out a mat and had rotti, sprouts, cucumber, radish & shenga-chatni. After lunch Pushpa lay down for a nap and I launched my drone. I navigated the DJI Mini2 towards Malaprabha, got a few stills of the island, and also shot a short video. Here's the hillock-island of Vakkund. The island status is temporary. Water level drops and the shoreline recedes gradually. By March or April the hillock is no more an island.

On the hillock are three ancient temples. My first visit here was 2022 Feb 16 to see the temples but I had to return with a few shots of the hillock sitting in the backwaters of Renuka Sagar. Then I visited Vakkund again on 2022 Apr 16th i.e. after two months, the hillock reachable by foot then. Here's the link to the blog post- Mukteshwara Gudi, Vakkunda part-1 if you wish to get a glimpse of the temples on the hillock.

Lastly, here's the short video of the island, river Malaprabha & Renuka Sagar back-waters. Along river Malaprabha are several historical places. There's a post dedicated to journey oof Malaprabha Nadi.

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Veerabhadra Gudi and Bokyapur Anjaneya Gudi

This picture was shot sometime 2003 during an afternoon visit to Bokyapur Kere, a manmade waterbody near Garag village. The pond has an embankment to impound rainwater flowing down the surrounding slopes. This temple with an inscription slab is situated in farmlands adjoining the embankment. Going by the looks of the temple it seems like it was built during Vijayanagara times. The presence of the inscription is an indication that this temple was of some importance.

A local man who had accompanied me here that a Bokyapur was a small settlement. During the plague epidemic of late XIX century people left never to return and Bokyapur ceased to exist. This waterbody attracts migratory waterbirds like heron and cranes. I've seen a few big birds here along with regular waterbirds like ducks and cormorants. Also this pond is a spot for spectacular sunsets.

Jan 25, 2026
My wish to revisit this temple came true on this Sunday morning. Pushpa and I left home early for day trip of a few historical places. Bokyapur was the first stop. I was here after more than a decade and half. The place looked so much different. I parked my Wagon-R at the end of the embankment and we walked through farmlands to reach the temple. I was hoping to see the structure as it is but it was disappointing to see the insensitive changes. The caretakers has even oil-painted the inscription slab. Well, this is an attempt to beautify the temple in their own taste.

Construction work has haled for some reason, maybe waiting funds. The gates were closed but unlocked, we decided to check the interior.

For some reason my memory had registered a tiny temple. It's quite spacious in here. The flooring is done up, beams and pillars have been painted which was not necessary. I'm not sure if the deity idol is the original but the idol of Ganapa on the right hands side seems like a recent sculpture. Despite my criticism of renovation with cement/steel, I liked the flooring.

The ceiling slabs, beams and pillars seem original. Maybe one or two slabs and beams have been replaced with new ones but the pillars are surely ancient. The pattern is so much close to Chalukyan design. Who knows, this temple's history might go back to late Chalukyan times.

One more look at the inscription slab before we leave the spot. I must check out the records at Karnataka University history library. It would be interesting to what the inscription says, particularly the time period of the record.

We walk back to the car which was close to the shore. I spotted a cormorant perched on a stub, zoomed in with my Nikon P900 and got a few shots. I walked slowly towards the water hoping to get a closer sot but the shy bird took off.

Also Pushpa has walked into the little peninsula which was closer to the cormorant.

At the opposite end of the embankment is a 5' idol of Hanuman. Earlier this idol was housed in a small structure but for some reason the structure is gone and the idol has been installed on a small platform right next to the dirt-track. From the looks of the sculpture this too seems ancient, have a feeling it might of Vyasaraya time.

We decided to move on since the sun was getting warmer and had to cover three places around Bailhongal- Belavadi Veerabhadreshwara Devastana & Belavadi Mallamma Smaraka, Madiwala Machideva Aikyasthala at Karimani and Chachadi Desai Wadae.

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Sri Yoganarasimha Swami Devastana, Baggavalli

When the idea of Sokke visit came up a year ago I had researched the surrounding areas. A Hoysala monument at Baggavalli was discovered which is less than 5 km from Sokke. A year later the trip was finalized and I was looking forward to see yet another Hoysala temple.

Dec 9, 2026

I arrived at Ajjampura railway station around 9-45 am, met my host Sri Rajanna on the platform and we drove down to Sokke. The first thing we did at Sokke was visit Sri Lakshmi Ranganatha Swami Devastana and Ishwara Devastana. While the latter's history goes back to Hoysala times, the former seems to be built during Vijayanagara or Palegar  times. Having visited the two temples of Sokke and with hours of day time ahead my hosts and I headed towards Baggavalli. The road connecting these two villages is flanked by farm lands and plantations, a treat for a city dweller like me. I was dreaming about cycling here.. flat terrain, silent and fresh air ..it would be a wonderful experience.

Sri Yoganarasimha Devastana is situated at the western edge of Baggavalli. We were the only people apart from the caretaker. I go around the temple first. The temple was recently repaired. A few older pictures on Maps were taken during the ongoing reconstruction.

The east-facing temple sits on a star-shaped pedestal, it's front-most section is the pillared hall- Sabha Mantapa -is where village meetings were held.

The structure's outer walls have three tiers, the lowest tier has five layers. Over the walls is the canopy. The rear-most part of the temple which is the sanctum has a pyramidal tower over it called the Shikhara. Such an elegant looking structure.

View of the structure from the west. The same view would be so much more interesting when Sun is closer to the horizon i.e. a couple of hours before sunset.

While I went around the temple, the priest had come and unlocked the doors. My hosts Vinay and Mohan had gone inside. I paused for a few more shots of this hall. This space would look so much different in early morning sunlight when it's lit up in direct light.

In addition the eastern entrance, this hall has two more entrances on its northern and southern sides.

The central dome with a very complicated sculpture of rings, spokes and a hub. This is a signature feature in Hoysala temples- the spoked dome's complexity is proportional  to the temple's grandeur. One must see the domes at Somanathapura Channakeshava Devastana.

Only on stepping into the inner hall I realized this temple is a Trikutachala i.e. a temple with three sanctums. The three deities here are Sri Channakeshava Swami, Sri Yoganarasimha Swami and Sri Sharadambadevi. This is the four-pillared Natyamantapa or Rangamantapa. Hoysala temple builders had mastered the art of turned pillars. The surfaces were polished to such an extent that they were as smooth as mirrors. However, here the pillars are turned but not polished. The idol in the east-facing sanctum is Channakeshava.

Every sanctum is connected to this hall via an Antharala i.e. a vestibule. The Antharala and Garbbhagudi doorways have perforated screens. Every doorway in this hall has Dwarapala i.e. doorkeepers.

Sharadambadevi in the south-facing sanctum.

Yoganarasimha in the north-facing sanctum. Each of the idols are so well made that you can't take your eyes off them. Only dedicated minds can produce such sculptures.

We thank the priest for providing us darshan of the deities and step out. I go around the temple again but this time on the pedestal, checking out the relief sculptures on the walls. Most of the characters seen here are different forms of Vishnu. Then there are a handful of musicians playing drums, since the drum is played by both hands they seem to be mridang.

The left-most figure is Krishna in the act of slaying the dreaded serpent Kalia. The two drum players have different types of drums.

Here the right most figure is Govardhana Giridhari - Krishna in the act of lifting mount Govardhana in one hand. Sculptures in some temples show the mountain being lifted with one finger. Most of the sculptures have been vandalized, several times over.

Here we have another type of drum. On the right hand side is the Madhyama Pandava i.e. Arjuna aiming an arrow at a revolving wooden fish by looking at it's reflection in water below. In the middle is a couple, the male seems to be holding a sugarcane stalk. You think it's a sugarcane stalk?

The most eye-catching sculpture at this temple is Ugranarasimha. Vishnu in his half lion, half man form is in the act of ripping open Hiranyakashipu's belly. Notice that there are no other figures flanking Ugranarasimha. Perhaps it's a way of depicting his rage, it's so intense that no one wants to be nearby.

At the end of Ugranarasimha's wall is Shiva dancing and stomping on Apasmara the icon of negativity. This sculpture depicts the act of Shiva eliminating negative energy.

This is the northern wall next to the northern entrance. Here we have Mahishasuramardhini and two male figures.

One of the pillars of the north-facing entrance has a relief sculpture of Ganapati. With this I've covered the highlights of this temple. We relax for a few minutes and leave.

On the way back to Sokke, we stop at Gondedahalli Siddarameshwara Devastana to check out the inscription stone and memorial stone. However, the temple gates were locked. Vinay and Mohan inquired for the priest's contact number but the efforts were in vain. It was lunch time, it wasn't a good time to bother people, so we left with a couple of shots of the stones through the grilled gates. Mohan feels that Sokke has been mentioned in the edict on the inscription slab. Perhaps it makes sense to check with a historian who has studied this inscription.

On the short way back to Sokke, Vinay mentioned about the ancient temples at Hirenalluru- Mallikarjuna Swami Devatsana and Kalleshwara Swami Devastana. They too seem to be of Hoysala times. Vinay was willing to take me there but I declined. I hope to visit Sokke again and visit Hirenalluru then.

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Madiwala Machayya Aikyasthala, Karimane

The research on Aikyasthalas of Shivasharanas of XII Century commenced more than a decade and half ago but there wasn't much progress. Only a handful of locations had been found and the research had stalled. Somehow the research revived with a short burst of activity, few more Shivasharanas graves were located and a total of 11 places have been marked in Shivasharanara Aikysthalagala Nakshe on Google Maps. As and when new locations are discovered they will be added to the Nakshe. Now, the most recent discovery is the topic for this blog post- Madiwala Machideva's Aikyasthala at Karimane near Muragod in Belagavi district.

This two storied structure houses two graves, one of them is said to be Madiwala Machideva's. People of Karimane call is as Mata meaning a monastery. Karimane village is situated on the lower slope of a hillock.

A villager told me that Madiwala Machideva was injured in a battle with Kalyana king Bijjala's soldiers near Murgod. Machideva's followers rescue him and leave the battle scene furtively. Then they find a thicket on the slope of a hill in which they hide. Machideva succumbs to his injuries and his followers bury the body in the thicket itself and mark the spot by planting saplings. Many years later a structure was raised over the grave.

A few ancient sculptures have been preserved here. We have an idol of a goddess, a memorial stone, an inscription slab and two more pieces of sculptures. The memorial stone is of the standard format- the lower two tiers depict battle scenes, the third one shows the hero attaining martyrdom and the uppermost is the scene of merging with Ishwara. People here, like most other places, neither have info about the martyr's past nor what the inscription says.

This is the northern side of the east-facing temple. The design is simple but it's elegant and functional. In our ancient culture, religious structures' facade have odd number of arches. Hence the four pillars forming three arches.

The arches enclose a small hall with a wooden ceiling. On the east facing wall are two doorways, one each for the two sanctums.

Another view of the hall and sanctum entrances. On the wall are two imitation swords. Machideva is shown wielding a sword, like a few other Shivasharanas like Gangambike. Even though Shivasharana's are peaceful by nature, they took up arms to defend themselves from persecution by those opposing social equality.

A nicely done idol of Madiwala Machideva stands on a pedestal at Karimani entrance. The washerman community in Karnataka considers him as their leader.

After the short tour of Karimani, we head towards Chachadi village to see the fortified house of Chachadi Desai.

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Buddies at Basavana Bagewadi

While researching for the blog post Shivasharanara Aikysthalagala Nakshe I had to delve into my photo archive and landed on this photo of Jan 29 2016 shot at Basavana Bagewadi. Pushpa and I were at Basaveshwara Devalaya, I think that's where we met these two boys. Can't remember if they asked to be photographed or I volunteered. Now seeing this photo I feel a strong friendship existed between these two. I can't recall their names, can't remember what we spoke. Hoping their friendship has become stronger and they are doing well.

The boy on the left seem to be protective of his friend, right?

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