Day 8: Bangalore - Hassan 25 September 2017

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Day 8: Bangalore - Hassan 25 September 2017







After breakfast, we drove to Hassan (180 kms/ 4.5 hrs approx), leaving wet Bangalore behind.







En route we visited Shravenabelagola. Shravenabelagola, renowned for its colossal Gomateshwara statue. There are around 700 steps to climb on to reach the Gomateshwara statue. Shravenabelagola is one of the most celebrated Jain pilgrim sites and the gigantic statue of Lord Gomateshwara has been carved out of a single block of granite and stands majestically atop a hill. The 21 m high monolithic stone statue of the Lord Gommateshwara, also referred to as Bahubali is located above this hill which is called Vindhyagiri or Doddabetta or Indragiri hill. It is estimated to weigh approximately 80 tons.



The carved nude statue is shown standing on a lotus and captures the tranquillity typical of much Buddhist and Jain art. The depth of the saint's meditation is depicted by the creepers shown growing up his legs and arms.



Shravanabelagola is a Jain pilgrim destination located in the Hassan district of Karnataka state, Southern India, at an altitude of about 3.35m above sea level. The town is wedged between two rocky hills- Vindhyagiri and Chandragiri.



We saw a tank in the middle of the town called "Belagola" In Kannada (the state language), 'Bela' means white and 'kola' means the pond, an allusion to the beautiful pond in the middle of the town.



This town has got some historical references, which add to the importance of this place. According to the tradition of the Jain Bhadrabahu, one of the Sritakavalli as the successor of Vardhamana (Mahaveera) passed away here in a cave on Chandrabetta or Chandragiri hill, while leading a migration to the South from Ujjain due to a 12-year famine, which he had predicted.



The hill which we climbed is about 5 m above the town-level and is one solid rock. It must be climbed barefoot which was a bit uncomfortable for Tom but he managed. Most tourists use the 'main steps' from the town consisting of a dual flight of about 720 steps to the top, cutout in the rock. People of all ages climb these steps however they are steep and it cam be a hard climb. As you go higher, you tend to get tired. In summer, the rock can get hot, so be advised to carry two pairs of socks per person to be worn one on another so that you can walk and climb comfortably. Fortunatelt, we were back from our climb before the sun came out to heat the rock.



It took us about 2 hours to walk up, have a good look around the temple and return downhill.



We then checked into our hotel in Hassan then had a quick lunch. Much of our drive was through rural country with subsistence farming. We saw tractors being used but also buffalo as well. Houses were small and sometimes make-shift. Some areas didn’t have running water.



After arriving in Hassan, we visit Belur & Halebid. The serenity of Belur is attributed to the celebrated temple of Channakeshava, built by the Hoysala King Vishnuvardhana in 1117 A.D. to commemorate his conversion from Jainism to Vaishnavism. The main structure of the temple, which is star shaped, is a homogenous architectural unit on a raised platform. Everything is carved in black (soap) stone, looking like metal. Facing the temple, at the entrance, stands the winged figure of Garuda, Lord Vishnu's carrier. The 650 charging elephants on frieze around the walls outside are all different from each other.







Halebid was the ancient capital of the Hoysala Empire. Founded in the early 11th century as Dwarasamudram (Gateway to the seas), it was destroyed by the armies of the Delhi Sultanate in 1311 and 1327 AD, after which it was deserted and later renamed Halebid (Old Capital). The Hoysaleswara temple at Halebid, the largest of the Hoysala temples, was started in 1121 AD, about 10 years after the temple at Belur, but despite 86 years of labour, it was never completed. Nevertheless, it is easily the most outstanding example of Hoysala art. Every centimeter of the outside walls and much of the insides are covered with an endless variety of Hindu deities, stylised birds and animals and friezes depicting the life and times of the Hoysala rulers.







Throughout the day, it rained on and off but only kept us inside ne of the temples for 15 extra minutes. As we drove back to Hassan, the rain seemed to disappear. It was dark by the time we arrived at our hotel







Hassan is a sprawling, congested city has minimal appeal for the traveller other than a base to visit nearby Belur, Halebid or Sravanabelagola. It's something of a transport hub with good bus and train connections and has a decent range of accommodation. It certainly took us a while to drive to our hotel, not only because of the traffic, but alo the poor roads and the numerous speed bumps! Our driver did a supurbe job. We only had our guide for the historic sites and we dropped her off at the bus stop so that she could go home.



Dinner was an Indian buffet at the hotel.

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