Shuleshwar Gudi and stepped well

Less than six weeks after the tour of the Chalukyan realm with Srinu, I redid the tour with Sridhar on October 5th & 6th. The tour was almost identical to the previous two, except that I made a few changes in the itinerary which was an attempt to optimize our foot movements. On the first day i.e. Oct 5th, we spent about 3 hours at Badami covering the caves temples and, structural temples & fort ramparts on the northern hill. Then we had Anna Prasada at Shivayogi Mandir and saw the Vibhuti manufacturing unit. After the short break, we moved on to Mahakoota, unlike last year this time it was almost peaceful. We had a good Darshan of Mahakooteshwara and other deities. Then on the way to Pattadakal we stopped at the twin-chamber dolmen near Pattadakal. Now I feel this dolmen is an ancient temple and not a grave as I believed earlier. We reached Pattadakal by 3-00 PM. First we saw the Brahma Jinalaya and then came to the main temple complex. This was probably my 5th visit yet I'd never made an attempt to touch the waters of Malaprabha. We spent about 30 minutes on the sandy riverbed, water flowed in narrow strips, we entered only the shallow parts. The day was warm & humid, the time spent in the river was truly relaxing. Back at the temple complex, we saw the temples at a slow pace. Around 5-30 pm we called it a tour, had hot tea and resumed our journey towards Aihole. We went straight to Aihole KSTDC lodge, checked in, bathed & changed into fresh clothes, had dinner and hit the bed. The following morning our tour of Aihole started with Ramlingeshwar complex followed by Galaganatha complex. Then we saw the rock-cut Jain Basadi, Huchimalli temple, Ravalaphadi, Buddha Chaitya, Meguti Gudi, Gowri Gudi and Jain shrines. Lastly we came to Durga temple complex. It was around 11 when we completed seeing Durga complex. The warm weather had sapped our energy and in no mood to walk around. However since it was too early to wind up, I suggested we see one ancient stepped well situated about 8 km away. It's a straight road to Shulebhavi village. The road to Shuleshwara Bhavi went around the village and with the help of people we reached our destination. That's Sridhar walking towards the stepped well & shrine.

As you see the structure is made of sandstone. By the looks of the stone and building design it is a Chalukyan creation. The sandstone structure and the well are adjacent to each other, the structure houses a temple. This is the formal entrance to the temple is south-facing but the deity is west-facing.

This is the Mukhamantapa, the portico. Unfortunately we couldn't enter the shrine since the gates were locked. probably the Pujari has completed morning rituals for the day and left. The structure looks original, I couldn't see any signs of repair except for the flooring slabs.

We walked around the temple to the open well. The steps starting at the temple door descended straight into the well. This well is on the similar lines as other stepped wells which facilitates one to bathe and enter the shrine quickly without any kind of distractions or disturbances. As examples I would like to quote a few examples- Japada Baavi at Dambal, Musukina Baavi at Lakkundi, the row of shrines at the southwest corner of Agastya Tirta at Badami, to name a few.

View of the well and temple. The structure is symmetric in elevation. The roof has sloping sides and a flat center. This design is close to Chalukya Shivalaya (formerly Lad Khan temple). I think this temple was designed sans Shikhara.

The deep green colored water is an indication of deep water. This well is situated in the middle of an agricultural plot and very convenient for the farmer. A pipe has been lowered into the water which in turn is connected to a pump. It's good that water is put to use. Probably that's one reason, the water is clean, no odor as such. I must mention about the ramp on the northwest corner of the well facilitated drawing water. The ramp was covered in vegetation and out of bounds.

There was no one in sight here, so no hope of getting historical information of this well. I feel this well might've been made at the behest of a rich land owner or an officer in Chalukyan kingdom. It was common that powerful people had temples built as a contribution to the society.

A thorny tree next to the drawing ramp was a weaver birds' colony. Most of the nests look completed, the extreme left nest is half done. And the one next to it was in the finishing stages.

The little bird, a Baya Weaver, is proudly perched on its home. If you look carefully at the nests above, the extreme right one has two bulges while the other have one bulge each. It could be like a single bedroom home and two bedroom home.

Hope to get some information about Shuleshwara Baavi in the near future. Before I close this post I would like to add that we saw a stone wall about 300 meters from here. The wall looked ancient, possible there was a fort here or may be a Desai Vada. We were too tired to go exploring. May be I'll check on that during another visit.

We head back to our lodge, bathe, rest, have lunch, check-out and head back to Dharwad.

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Japada Bavi, the stepped well of Dambal

June 15, 2022
Japadabavi is a merger of two words- Japa + Bavi. Japa means chanting of god's name and Bavi means well. This well is unique, so is its name. This well gets its name because it has been designed in such a way that a person can take bath in the well and perform  rituals within the walls of the well.

As per Hindu traditions, a person has to be clean and pure physically before sitting for pooje or japa or dhyana. So after bathing, the person should head straight to the poojasthala (place of worship) without coming in contact with anyone or anything. This reminds of a little story one of my uncles had shared. During his childhood days, his father would wait at the bathroom door, as soon as my uncle finished his bath, stepped out with a towel around his waist, he would be herded to the pooja room where he applied Vibhuti to forehead, neck and arms, then chant a sloka or two and then free to go. The process was to ensure that pooje is performed in the freshest condition. This practice goes back to ancient times where people would take bath and then sit for pooje or japa dripping wet. Japada Bavi was one such well designed for a person to bathe and immediately commence rituals.

This is the stepped well of Dambal which was discovered relatively recently, my guess is within the past twenty years or so. Going by the well's architecture and construction, it seems very much a Chalukyan creation, sometime in X to XII Centuries CE. This well could be built around the same time as Doddabasappa Devastana. The well is situated about 280m southwest of Doddabasappa.

The well's entrance is on the eastern side. It is about 22m long and 10 meters wide. However in the lengthwise direction, the well tapers towards the entrance. In plan the well looks like a linga pedestal.

The number of shrines within this enclosure is 21, I think. Builders usually stick to odd numbers, even in measurements, for example 21 feet in length or the number of tiers in a Shikhara would be 7 or 9 or 11.

View of the well from the western side. The little shrines are scaled down temples, the proportions are more or less same.

The number of steps here, in the foreground would also be in odd numbers.

Of all the pictures in this post, this one is my favorite picture. The crown of one of the shrines gives a special feeling to this picture. The crown design & finish reminds me of an automobile part ...a die cast and precision machined component. Looking at the complete picture, the lines created by the steps and Shikharas is remarkable.

I think a spike made of an alloy fitted into the hole a the center. If my imagination is a fact then every Shikhara would be having a glittering spike at the top. The metallic spike would have a reason, something to do with cosmic energy.

The enclosing wall is five tiered and stepped. The wall design is fascinating too, the effect of flowing lines.

The bends in the wall are brilliant designs. Functionally they have proved their mettle by surviving centuries and aesthetically they are marvelous. Every tier's bends are clever designs. Makes me wonder what purpose these designs had. They are not just for aesthetics, there's some functional value to it.

Another view of the enclosure wall.

Normally in ancient sculptures ones gets to see uniform surfaces which means the stones are free from internal deformities or variations. Here a few of the blocks have a unique texture caused due to internal deformities. A highly experienced sculptor has shaped this stone as though the deformities didn't matter in the least. The final output is displays the same precision as seen in normal textured blocks here.

I heard from locals that ASI would be taking this well under its care which means it would become another protected monument. Hope that happens soon.

Done with Japada Bavi, I head towards this little temple just a stone's throw away. The temple's doorway is a sign that this is another Chalukyan creation. The walls are recent, made of stones and mud. This temple is called as Siddeshwara Gudi, if I remember it correctly.

A closer look at the five-tiered door frame. Gajalakshmi adorns the horizontal portion.

Image of Gajalakshmi.

I took a look at the inside without actually entering the temple. Seeing the interior was a pleasant surprised.. a Rangamantapa, a doorframe with meshwork screens the Antharala (vestibule) and another entrance on the southern side. Normally temple doors are placed on the northern as well but here we have just two entrances.

A diagonal view of the temple. At some point of time, the original structure was damaged, probably many of its pillars and beams were damaged badly. So while restoring the temple, masonry walls was the only option. Thank to the team for their efforts to protect this Chalukyan creation.

A closer look at the southern door-frame.

From here I head back towards my car which was parked on the dirt track going along Dambal fort's moat. I had noticed a local person who was hanging for some time there, I inquired if any other ancient temple was present in the vicinity, besides Someshwara and Doddabasappa. Yes, there's another one inside the farmlands, a short distance away. I asked him if he could take me there. The person obliged and I followed my guide...

...the short trek to the temple was rather adventurous. First we had to cross a stream which flowed over a wall of a canal. The wall was slippery, it took me two minutes to wade through 30 feet. Then the narrow path winded through gauva plantatons, open farm lands and finally hopped across a bush to reach the temple. Here it is.

Like Siddeshwara Gudi, even this temple's antiquity originates from the door-frame. This shrine is a simple four-walled structure with a Shivalinga as the only deity. Thankfully villagers have taken care of this shrine and seems to be performing pooje once a week or fortnight.

I was kind of uncomfortable here because of lack of flowing air. I prompted my friend to start the return trek. Back at the stream, we go towards the flight of steps going up the tank bund ...to check out Dambal fort ruins and Victoria Lake.

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