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TEMPLE ENTRANCE AT NIGHT
SRI MANJUNATHESWARA TEMPLE DHARMASTHALASri Manjunatheswara (Lord Shiva) Temple
is one of the most revered temples in Karnataka. It is around 300 Kms from Bangalore, located in Dakshin Kanara District on the bank of Nethravati river.
We planned to have darshan and offer seva to the Lord. On return, we thought of visiting the Chennakeshava Temple in Belur to view one of the greatest temple architecture ever created of all time.
SRI MANJUNATHESWARA TEMPLE IN DHARMASTHALA History of the Dharmasthala is 800 years old. One unique feature of this hindu temple is that the administration of this temple and all institutions under it are maintained by a jain family, called Pergades. This family is famous for their Charity and simplicity.
The Heggade who is the authority of the Dharmasthala Temple administration performs a kind of judicial function also. It is believed that Lord of Dharma resides at the Temple and that justice will prevail here. Civil complaints are settled here between the parties involved, after they present their cases to the Heggade.
There are both Hindu (Lord Shiva) and Jain idols
GOPURAM
CHENNAKESHAVA TEMPLE BELUR in this temple. To summarise, this temple is an unique example of religious tolerance and harmony which are foundations of Indian culture over centuries.
Location : After Sakleshpur, on the way to Bangalore to Mangalore Highway (NH 75), one has to proceed another around 14 Kms after passing Gundya and then take a right turn near Kowkradi towards SH 37. Dharmashthala is another 21 Kms from this point.
The small place of Gundya is noteworthy since the road for visiting the famous Kuke Subramaniya Temple starts from here but on the left side.
CHENNAKESHAVA TEMPLE, BELUR This temple along with nearby Hoysala temple are considered as one of the most remarkable temple monuments ever created by the hand of man anywhere. The temple was dedicated to Lord Vijayanarayana, one of the various incarnations of Lord Vishnu. Construction of this temple commenced by Vishnuvardhana, the great king of Hoysala period in 1116 AD and it took 103 years to complete this masterpiece of Hoysala Architecture. Hoysala dynasty ruled Karnataka and parts of Tamilnadu for more than three hundred years and remembered for constructing magnificent temples all over their kingdom.
2nd May, 2016 Monday It was a sudden decision at Sunday night to skip the office and make a trip to Dharmasthala. Few months back, we visited Kuke Subramaniam which was close to Dharmasthala. Somehow our program had to cut short due to paucity of time.
Early morning was the best time to start for any program. Due to late decision, first few hours were spent to arrange for essential items like food stocks, drinking water bottles etc. Next requirement was feeding the car as much as possible and re-filling nitrogen in tyres.
Staying at Dharmasthala We gathered from reviews that there were two sought-after dwelling places in Dharmasthala, both managed by the temple trust :
1. Nethravati Guest House (Phone no. 082562 77141) near the temple,
2. Rajathadri Guest House (Phone no. 082562 77121) near the bus stop slightly far way from the temple.
Despite our repeated attempts we could not contact the reservation personnel of either of the Guest Houses in the given phone nos.
Route to Dharmasthala At around 10.30 AM we commenced our journey. Normally we take the route thru Mekhri Circle – Yashvantpur to reach
NH4 (Bangalore-Mumbai Highway). Today we deviated to a different route as a trial to avoid painful traffic. Our route was thru Old Madras Road, take left turn before KR Puram Railway Station to drive thru Outer Ring Road towards Hebbal. This road directly met NH4, but towards the intersection with NH 4, the construction work of flyover was going on disrupting the traffic.
Google Map directed to divert towards HMT Road. Many a times following Google direction proved costly. Nevertheless we decided to follow the direction and surprisingly we could reach NH 4(near Pennya Metro Station) within 45 minutes. Kudos to Google direction.
Thereafter, it was a smooth drive thru the flyover directly reaching almost near the first Toll Booth (Rs 20/-) near Neelamangala. Crossing few kilometers from the second Toll Booth (Rs 41/-), we took the left turn to touch Bangalore-Mangalore Highway (NH 48). This was a six lane highway. It was an excellent drive upto AdiChunchungiri. After that, the road varied between two,four and six lane in various places upto Hassan. Nevertheless, it was almost straight road with reasonably long visibility which facilitated easy drive. In between we had to pay tolls in at least three
places in Kunigal (Rs 41) and Devihalli (Rs 40+Rs 35) respectively.
Before Hassan, we had a break in A2b restaurant to have snacks and tea. Usually we avoid full fledged lunch while on drive since it causes giddiness. This restaurant offered decent foods with lot of varieties and a welcome break after a non-stop drive.
The highway did not enter Hassan but passed thru the outskirts of the city. Hence there was no difficulty in this stretch also.
Saklespur and delightful drive in Ghat Section After Hassan the road became two lane with occasional twists and turns. We reached Sakleshpur at around 1.30 PM. Sakleshpur was around 220 Kms from Bangalore and 40 Kms from Hassan.
Meanwhile, we resumed our attempt to contact the Guest House offices before starting our journey. To our delight somebody picked up the phone but informed that timing for today's reservation was over. Now the only option was to reach there and try our luck.
Ghat section began after Sakleshpur. We had a horrible experience of travelling thru this road few years back. A large portion of the highway was broken with huge craters and potholes. All those
were the events of the past. There was tremendous improvement in this track. The vulnerable portions had been made concrete to withstand the vagaries of monsoon.
The road entered the dense forest and gradually thru hilly tracks, huge mountains of Western Ghat on the horizon. A stream was noticed after few kilometres and was accompanying us thru a major portion of the journey. Unfortunately there was hardly thin line of water flow due to scorching summer.
There was no question of habitation. But it was a busy road with vehicles of all sizes (small cars to multi wheel oil tankers). Nevertheless after renovation, it was a delightful experience to drive. We stopped in few points to enjoy the scenic beauty.
Gundya was the next noteworthy stop since the road leading to Kuke Subramaniam Temple started here on the left. It was around 40 Km from Sakleshpur with end of Ghat section.
Right turn towards Dharmasala Driving another around 14 Kms we reached a circle near Kowkradi. We took a right turn to SH 37 towards Dharmasthala. According to the speedometer, we drove around 300 Km and it was around 5 PM.
Dharmasthala was around
21 Kms from here. On the way Nethravathy river was crossed. The river was hardly having any water. We reached Rajathadri Guest House first. We were relieved to know that room was available. We requested for accommodation in Nethravati Guest House. Gentlemen in the counter were extremely co-operative. They booked a room immediately in that Guest House.
Nethravathi Guest House Room tariff for AC room in the Nethravathi Guest House was Rs 850/- (plus Rs 150/- refundable deposit). We were allotted a room in the ground floor. It was an excellent room equipped with all required facilities. Both the room and toilet were net and clean and well maintained. Car Parking space was spacious and located just opposite the Guest House. A restaurant was also located adjacent to the Car Parking.
Visit to temple premises After a brief rest, we came out for a walk and visit to the temple. The temple was open to public upto 8.30 PM in the evening. Almost everything in this small place was centered around the temple. The temple architectural style was similar to other temples in Kerala, which are quite different from temples of other parts of India. In
GANDHARVA NRITYA BELUR TEMPLE
SRI CHENNAKESHAVA TEMPLE BELUR these type of temples usage of wooden items in pillars and part of temple structure are noticeable.
Main entrance of the temple was nearby the guest house. There were arrangements for Normal and Special Darshans. Since there was not much crowd, we opted for “Normal darshan” only.
On the way to the temple we saw from distance a big aircraft lying inside a garage type of premises. Whether it was still used or became vintage, not known.
Offerings to the Lord There were various types of offerings to the God. We selected the offerings of “Panchamruthabhisehka”. Like other famous temples in South India, there was proper system of maintaining ques by the pilgrims. Another noticeable feature was the cleanness of the entire temple premises.
For entering the main temple premises, we had to remove our Shirts and banyans. There was no such dress code for ladies. Effectively it was advantageous for me due to very warm climate and high humidity prevailing in that place.
We had an excellent darshan of Lord Manjunathaswamy (Lord Shiva) and Devi Ammavaru (Goddess Parvati). After the darshan and collecting prasadam we decided to sit in the Mandir Courtyard to
watch the Evening Arati Puja to the Lord and Devi.
Gradually a team of musicians arrived with their instruments like Shennai, Mridangams etc. It was actually their place of playing the instruments on a daily basis. On our request they accommodated us. We were watching their intricate preparations for the program. It took more than half an hour to tune their instruments.
Arathi Puja Arathi Puja started at around 8.30 PM after the arrival of the current heggade. Musicians started playing their instruments. Inside the “Garbhagriha”, hundreds of pradeeps (lamps) kept in front of the deities were lighted one by one. Priests were conducting pujas to the Lord with chanting of mantras, offering lamps and other rituals. It was a heavenly atmosphere. After the lamp puja it was first offered to the Heggade and gradually to others.
When we came out of the temple premises it was around 9.15 PM and most of the shops including food-stalls had already been closed. After consuming prasadam, we were not feeling hungry. Nevertheless, after a painstaking search we could find a small shop and had our dinner.
On the way back to the Guest House, we saw hundreds
of devotees lying outside the temple entrance in the open sky. Possibly they would be sleeping thru-out the night like these, to have darshan in the early morning.
3rd May, Tuesday, 2016 Our next destination, Belur Our next destination Belur was around 100 Kms (around two and half hours journey) from Dharmasthala. It was a lazy start (around 10 AM) after having breakfast in the opposite restaurant. Initially we drove thru Mangalore-Dharmasthala Highway upto around 8 Km. Thereafter at Ceyone Trust Circle, we had to take right to take NH 234. After a few kilometers Ghat section started.
Wonderful drive thru Ghat section There are varieties of Ghat Roads throughout the Western Ghat Mountains which I traveled on various occasions. I must mention this road is one of the most picturesque and fascinating to travel. Road was gradually moving towards the top with valleys and ridges on the other side and tall mountains in the horizon touching the blue sky. Most noticeable feature was the presence of greenness everywhere be it the entire valleys, distant mountains, all were absolutely green. Far deep below the valley remains of dry stream was visible like a thin curve.
LIST OF ARCHANAS TO THE LORD
SRI MANJUNATHESWARA TEMPLE BELUR The scenery was simply breathtaking and there appeared to be no other choice but to stop, take snaps, enjoy beauty of nature ignoring the scorching sun and heated atmosphere.
Of course the road was very narrow, steep in certain places. There were not many vehicles coming from the other side. Occasionally trucks were seen struggling to negotiate with steep height of the road.
Wondering thru Coffee Estates We reached the plains (Banihal) at around 12.30 PM. We covered half of the distance and Belur was around 45 Kms from here. After Mudigere, the road went between beautiful Coffee Plantations. There were no of Coffee Shops on the way. We came across a big size stop-over shop called “Pushpagiri Café.”
Near Gangavara we noticed a temple of Lord Yama (Lord of death) on left side of the road. Temple of Lord Yama was quite un-usual but we could not stop due to lack of time.
At around 1.30 PM we reached Belur. Suddenly the sky was overcast and probability of rain emerged.
Chennakeshava (Lord Vishnu) Temple, Belur This temple (along with nearby temple built by Hoysala dynasty in Halebid) are considered as one of
the most remarkable monuments ever created by the hand of man. The temple was dedicated to Lord Vijayanarayana, one of the various incarnations of Lord Vishnu. Construction of this temple commenced by Vishnuvardhana, the great king of Hoysala period in 1116 AD (around 900 years ago) and it took 103 years to complete this masterpiece of Hoysala Architecture.
I read the fame of this temple in various articles. A professional guide was a must to understand the intricacies of this temple. I hired a Government Approved Guide (Rs 300) to accompany us.
At first look of the temple truly speaking, I was not impressed. It was an ancient old structure, not very gigantic in size, usually seen in many such monuments. Hence when the guide started his description saying “This temple is an university and it will take months to understand the creations in its walls", I smiled in disbelief.
An outstanding craftsmanship - one of the greatest temple creation ever made But when he started explaining the sculptures one after another, it was simply astonishing. We were bewildered. There was no word left for appreciation. The temple was truly “a poetry in stone”. I
can write below certain instances which of course were very few compared to the magnificence depicted in every nook and corner of the temple :
i. In the lowest carved band of the temple, there were around 650 elephants depicted in different moods, but each one of the creation was different.
ii. There are around 40 bracket figures angled between the ceiling wall and the pillars. These brackets were beautified with sculptures of beautiful ladies in different moods.
iii. One of the magnificent creation was the figure of “Darpana Sundari (Charming lady with mirror)”. She was holding the mirror in her left hand admiring her beauty. Her ribbons, bangles, necklaces, airing, bracelets, ornaments are all made in in one stone. The stone looked like metallic even after 900 years of its creation.
iv. In another sculpture a Lady was in conversation with her pet parrot.
v. A lady writing to her lover, while the maids were standing.
vi. A naughty monkey pulling the saree of a lady while she is threatening him pretending to be annoyed.
vii. A lady was drying her hair after bath. The creation was so vivid that even the
water drops are visible at the bottom of the spreading hair. What an imagination the creator might have.
viii. A lady playing the drum. Minute details of threads, ropes, its designs are visible in a monolithic figure.
ix. A lady with night dress with open colour coat, unbelievably minute work still so live even after nine hundred years.
x. A donkey-faced boy loving a beauty. Guide explained that the depiction highlighted that at a very young age even a donkey-faced boy looks attractive to a lady.
xi. There were 42 dancing figures, out of them only three are men, rest all are of ladies.
xii. Queen of Vishnubardhan named Shantala Devi who herself was a noted dancer was portraited in a beautiful statute. These outstanding sculptures depicted the high respect given to women in those days by the kingdom.
xiii. A depiction of a boy spreading colours thru his syringe during Holi festival and a tiny assistant supplying colours to him.
xiv. Depiction of epic in Mahabharata i.e. Vishma lying in his bed of arrows
xv. Mohini Pillar, the mesmerizing statute of female Vishnu. The statute was so attractive with minute details
that it was hard to believe. Guide showed that the second finger of her left leg was noticeably big, a sign of a dominating lady over men.
xvi. A huge 42 ft. pillar erected outside the temple. Amazingly, the pillar has no foundation and it stands on its own. How it stands for nine centuries is a wonder.
xvii. Many of statutes were made with three dimensional effects i.e. not only the length and breath but also with depth of the creations.
xviii. Unlike in other temples, the sculptors named themselves in many of the figures.
xix. The temple was erected in a star-shaped platform, a sign of creation during Hoysala dynasty.
xx. Unlike other temples built during Hoysala dynasty, deities are regularly worshipped here throughout last nine hundred years and till today.
xxi. Many of the statutes were looted and vandalized by goons earlier since there was no protection. Presently the temple is supervised by Archaeological Survey of India.
The temple was built by “soap stone”, a specific kind of stone available in nearby hills of Tumkur which was ideal for making such creations. Each and every wall was the depiction of
the Art, culture and traditions of the society prevailing at that time with minutest detail and outstanding craftsmanship. My sincere regards to those artists who created those sculptures. I felt proud to belong this country which gave birth to such outstanding craftsmen.
There were many other marvels here which could not be seen by us due to shortage of time. Really it would take days if not months to completely understand this temple and appreciate its creations.
While visiting the temple we were greeted by a welcome rain and a respite from the un-bearable summer heat.
I read that Halebid temple (located 22 Kms from Belur) made during Hoysala Kingdom is equally noteworthy, but there was no time left to travel there.
We started from Belur at round 4.30 PM straight to Bangalore since there was no time to visit Haleibid temple. At around 9.30 PM we reached home.
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