Sri Siddeshwara Vibhuti Gavi, Gudikotabagi

This cave shrine was discovered while exploring places around Kittur on Google Maps some time Feb 2022. The place listing had one photo of a person standing at the cave's mouth. Since there was no other photo, I was curious about the cave. I planned to visit this cave during a visit to Vakkund. A trip did take place to Vakkund on Feb 16th, the temples I was supposed to see were inaccessible because the site was an island in the waters of Malaprabha river. I would have to make another trip by the end of March by when the water level would drop and the temples would be reachable by foot. So the rest of the morning was spent seeing Ramlingeshwara Devastana at Bailhongal, then back to Dharwad. I started planning the trip to Vakkund in first week April.

April 16, 2022. I left hone by 7-15 and reached Vakkund by 8-45 am. I spent 2 hours seeing & taking pictures of the 3 temples on the hillock. By 11-15 I left Vakkund and headed towards Belavadi. A few kilometers after crossing Malaprabha, at a place called Kenganur I turned towards Sangollli - the village of the legendary Sangolli Rayanna. The terrain got interesting, twisty roads on small hill ranges. A few kilometers after Sangolli, at a cross roads, I turned towards Kalabhavi. The road were interior, hardly any travelers to ask for directions. At Kalabhavi village, I turned towards Gudikotbagi village. This road linking two villages had some traffic, very unexpected for an interior road. Somewhere on this road was the dirt track leading to the Gavi Siddeshwara. A shepherd gave me clear instructions following which I reached the cave easily. That's the mouth of the cave. This spot is at least a kilometer away from the main road and no other soul to be seen.

It was warm, sultry and humid. I parked my car under the Peepul tree close to the mouth of the cave. Some flying insects added to the discomfort caused by the weather. From the looks of the place, I felt this cave was occupied by a person or persons a few years ago.

The cave is a manmade one since this is a source of Vibhuti. The white seen on the walls and floor of the cave is Vibhuti - the reason behind the importance of this cave.

I was cautious while entering... the innards of the cave were dark, a wild animal could be resting inside. I stepped in slowly, trying to be very alert... remembering the experience at Talewadi cave where a mild growl was heard as four of us entered a much larger cave. Talewadi cave has no religious significance to it. As per locals, one has to be careful while entering the cave because it could be occupied by any of the wild beasts like bear, leopard or tiger.

I descended the steps into the cave floor, barefoot. The floor felt soft which is an effect of layer of Vibhuti. This cave has no particular form, people have hacked into the walls & floors randomly in search of the sacred powder.

One of the inner chambers was in shadow, couldn't see anything inside which kept the suspense factor alive. A bear could be asleep inside.. may be no creature ever slept in here. Anyway... isn't it wonderful to be seeing a natural source of Vibhuti. This reminds me of Vibhuti Gavi in the jungles of Ulavi. I've just heard of it but haven't seen it. Of the five caves of Ulavi, I've been to Akala Gavi and Pachalinga Gavi.

A shrine dedicated to the wooden slippers of ascetics who lived here. I feel people flock to this cave on occasions like Mahashivaratri and Amavasya.

Another chamber where Vibhuti seems to be of higher quality. I was imagining how people with pickaxes hacked into the walls and stuffed bags to take it away to their homes or temples.

Mouth of the cave as seen from the cave's belly. In here there's hardly any movement in the air. Despite lack of sunshine, it was warm.

The presence of a cot, an oil lamp box, wooden seats and other things indicate this place was occupied by an ascetic or ascetics. A collapsed single room structure close to the cave's entrance might have been a kitchen & store room. As to water, I think the nearest source is the pond at the base of the hill, or may be a stream close by. BTW, about a 100 meters from here is a government water tank on this hill which is a landmark for those coming in search of this place.

Close to the cot there are two arched niches. The arches have been hacked very carefully, creating this lovely looking pattern of parallel arcs.

Another pattern formed in the process of mining Vibhuti. I think hard stone remains concealed behind the white layer.

This is one of the side walls of the cave's mouth... Vibhuti and igneous rock intersect here. The yellow-red stone seen here can be seen on this hill range. I think this rock is rich in iron hence the oxidized yellow layers.

The arched entrance, the coarse walls and the rough-cut stone steps create a beautiful scene.

Wish I could find more about this place... how old is this cave? who made it? was this cave made by one person or more than one person? was this cave ever used by freedom fighters to escape British law? why is this cave in the state of abandon now? Hope to get answers during my next journey towards Gudikotabagi.

That's the peepul tree, it could be 7 to 8 years old. I feel this place should be protected by local people so that it's sanctity remains unblemished. Hoping some local leader takes interest in maintaining this unique cave.

A partly dry leaf caught my eye.. while most of the leaf is crispy dry, few portions is still wet. The beauty of the leaf is its yellow-beige color combination.

This is the open space which extends from the cave's mouth. The path going uphill meets a larger dirt track, left goes uphill and right downhill towards the main road connecting Kalabhavi and Gudikotabagi.

While on the subject of caves, I would like to close this post with a mention of the rock-cut cave of Amminabavi near Dharwad. This cave is situated in a Rudrabhoomi (graveyard), it is said that a single person hacked the subterranean laterite rock. The cave temple seems as though it was made by an expert in building, such is the quality of the work. Its also a place worth a visit.

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Gavi Gangadareshwara Gudi

My first ever visit to this cave temple was some time mid 1980s, think it was it parents and few relatives. It was very exciting trip for me. It became even more exciting when someone from the group had mentioned that a tunnel connected this temple to Shivagange, another popular shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva. I remember seeing the cave entrance, just behind the temple's Garbhagudi. The next visit was many years later; the four pillars caught my attention. Strange, I don't remember seeing them during my first visit. Then on I visited on and off. I heard about the sunrays falling on the deity on Sankranthi day. Incidentally one of the locals at Shivagange had mentioned that the lamp atop the hill lights up on its own on Sankranthi day. Remember the similar story at Sabarimalai, a divine lamp appearing on the hills.. no dearth for miracles in our world.

Some time 2015 I read an interesting article on Gavi Gangadareshwara Gudi which reveals the facts of the temple's history, design and its significance. The article unveils how people are lead into believing something false and how the fact is completely forgotten. The temple's original design is so badly altered that today the false has become truth. Here's how the temple looked like in 1792.

The temple was painted by Thomas Daniell an employee of the East India Company was in Bangalore after it was captured by the British. The painting now is a part of the collection at British Library.

October 10, 2015
220 years later the temple has changed so much, if not for the four pillars, the temple is unrecognizable. So much metal fabricated stuff, concrete, tiles and oil paint are nothing but eye sore. The peaceful ambience seen in the painting is missing, instead its so business like now.

The temple entrance is flanked by two large boards. Once you step across the doorway, there are steps which descends into the cave. Slightly to the left two Garbhagudi. The cave floor is granite but all the walls in sight are covered by ceramic tiles.. bathroom tiles. Such tasteless changes in the name of maintenance is pretty common in many ancient temples :(

Now coming to the four monolithic pillars in the temple front yard; two pillars are having discs ~ Chakra, their faces parallel to each other; one has a trident ~ Trisula and the last one has a drum ~ Damaruga. Historic sources say that these pillars and the temple structure were created during Kempegowda's rule. Before that the cave was used by Jain and Shaivite monks going back to Chola period.

The significance of the two discs is attached to winter and summer solstices. The two disc pillars named Suryapana & Chandrapana are positioned in east-west orientation. These discs are designed and positioned to mark the beginning of new year i.e. winter solstice and summer solstice. On the morning of winter solstice, shadow of eastern disc covers the western disc completely. Similarly on Summer Solstice the western disc's shadow is cast completely on the eastern disc. However, now due to the presence of trees in the neighbouring park, there's no chance of the eastern disc's shadow falling on the western disc.

Here are the two Shikhara of the Garbhagudi inside. Compare this picture with the temple's drawing in 1792. Tiles everywhere!

A small collection of sculptures places at one of the corners. Ganesha, Shanmugha, Shiva, Parvati and Nandi.

A serpent, a mouse and an inscription completes the collection.

A caged Nandi opposite the cave entrance.

Closer look at Trisula and Damaruga.

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Varavi Siddeshwara Gudi, Yekkeri

I was not sure what to expect when Ningappa suggested Varavi Siddeshwara Kolavi but I felt I would see something special. Shankrappa Megappa Kumbhar the pot-maker of Hooli agreed to accompany us. The drive was a short one- Hooli > Hoolikatti > Yekkeri -less than 10km. The last one kilometer was dusty dirt track. As we neared our destination the path was just wide enough for one four-wheeler flanked by Honge trees (Derris india, Pongamila pinnata), rock hill to our left and a stream on the right. The road ended where it met the stream, we left the car under the tree and went by foot.

The stream, at this time of year barely flows but there is enough water for cattle to take a midday dip. We were entering a gully between two rock hills, packed with trees, mainly Honge trees. We were greeted by a herd of cows, buffaloes, few boys and women.

Buffaloes are pretty sensitive and were alert at the sight of strangers, especially urbanites. The honge shade relieved us from the heat radiated by the blazing Sun.

Do watch the video.

A waterfall would dominate this place between June and December and we would have very less place to walk in this valley-stream bed.

That's the temple, right next to the falls. The temple is actually a narrow gap in the rocks. Walls with a gate were made to keep monkeys away from the temple. Surely they would relieve pilgrims of their pooja stuff like coconuts and bananas.

Lord Ganesha.

This little cave temple has three Shivalingas of which two are definitely ancient and the third one looks new to me. This one is enclosed in four walls.

Aum Namah Shivaya.

It's rare to see twin Basavanna.

Outside, we look at the way we came. It's a paradise!

Walking on the rock strewn stream bed demands effort.

Shankara climbs up a rock face and I follow him up. Ningappa is worried about me, kept warning me that the rocks could be slippery. There we are; bird's eye view of the valley.

And that's where water from the hills dives down. My mind is made up to visit again sometime August or September this year.

Ascending is easy but descending is dicey. With my two cameras, it was a circus, I had to squat down couple of times.

We approached a herd of sheep. As I was trying to get a shot the herdsman offered to show his best ram and sheep.

The one holding the ram is Sangappa Bhimappa Yergatti, the boy in white is his son, the man in all white is Sangappa's brother and boy in blue shirt is Sanpappa's nephew.

When I promised to send this picture, Sangappa said "please send the picture, we'll frame it and display it at home. We'll remember you..." It'll be a crime if I did not keep up with the promise.

One last look at Onge before we leave Yekkeri.

Links to related posts-
1. Hooli fort
2. Pot makers of Hooli

May first week I posted two copies of the picture, hope the post has reached Sangappa the pot-maker.

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