Belur

Belur. Belur. Beautiful temple, wonderful sculptures. Heard so much of it. So, one day I finally got there.

I went to Chikmaglur, and on the way visited Shravanabelagola and Halebid. On the way back to Bangalore, we visited the famous Chennakesava Temple at Belur. It does not justify doing a single travelogue for all the 4 places. And, hence, this one is on Belur.

We had already spent 2 days at Chikmaglur and were completely rejuvenated. On the way back, we halted at Belur. We has passed through the same way during the onward journey, and hence we knew exactly which place to turn to get to the temple.

The area around Belur temple, was like any other temple town. There was a large entrance gate with a gopuram, there was a Dhwaja stamba ( Pillar ) with colourful flags flying at the top. Nice scene.

The temple rose majestically on a star shaped platform. It is similar in architecture to the temple at Halebid. The Star shaped platform, short temples with beautiful sculptures without a gopuram at the top, is the hallmark of the Hoysala architectural style.

The kings of TamilNadu made temples that rose to the sky. They had really tall and colourful gopurams. They Chola kings showed their strength by making the tallest structures. The standards in Karnataka are quite contrary. The Hoysala temples are all short without gopuram, but the beauty and the intricate designs of the sculptures are unparalleled.

Yadava Kings defeated Chalukyas, Cholas and Pandyas and became the most powerful rulers of the south. The Hoysala dynasty originally had their capital at Haledid ( 17 kms from Belur ) where they ruled for over 150 yrs. Halebid was attacked continuously in the 14th Century by invaders, because of which it has to be abandoned. The seat of power was shifted to Belur.

King Vishnuvardhan was one of the powerful rulers, and to commemorate his conversion from Jainism to Vaishnavism, he built the Channakeshava temple at his Capital Belur. It is also said that he built the temple to celebrate his victory over the Cholas at Talkad.

In those days temples were not just places of worship. They had other purposes too, a temple doubled up as a justice court, treasure house, an institution to impart ethical education and promoted various art forms – dance, music and arts.

The temple has a main gate with a short rising gopuram. Right in front is the Dhwaja Stamba ( flag post. All temples have a flag post, and the colour and design of the flag is unique to each temple ) and then a statue of Garuda – the Vaahan of Lord Vishnu. Garuda kneels on the floor with his hands joined in submission to the Lord. He faces the sanctum sanctorum.

The main temple made is made of soap stone, and is a homogeneous unit on a star shaped platform. Every possible surface is covered with the most beautiful and intricate carvings of apsaras, elephants, bulls, army men on horses. There are sculptures indicating scenes from the Ramayan, Mahabhratha, other stories from Hindu Mythology, Puranas, Vedas and the Upanishads.

The main temple is surrounded by smaller temples – dedicated to Soumyanayaki and Ranganayaki – the consorts of Lord Keshava. There are temples for Narasimha and Anjaneya too.

On entering the interiors of the Channakeshava temple, you will find the carved royal emblem of the Hoysala dynasty, which is King Sala killing the tiger. This emblem can be found in all the Hoysala temples.

The temples interiors are as beautiful as the exteriors. The presiding diety is one of the Lord Krishna or Kesava and he is called Vijaya Narayana here. The statue is 6 feet tall and is in the sanctum of the main temple, it is said to be installed in 1117 A.D. There are several beautifully carved pillars, each one with a unique theme – one for Narasimha, there is a Mohini pillar and the ceiling has beautiful apsaras.

There is a water tank in the temple, which may have been used by pilgrims and tourists to bathe in the olden days. The temple has corridors attached to the high compound wall, which would have been used by travelers to rest. Currenly, a part of it is used by the temple adminstration.

The government is maintaining the complex well. I am sure, it would be a beautiful sight to visit the temple in night light, but, we did not have time for that.

It was sad to see several parts of the panels missings. Many of the carved warriors did not have heads, the dancers did not have hands, and this way, for every 4 feet of carved panels on the temple exteriors, there was 1 feet that was damaged.

There are several guides, whom you can engage while you go around the temple. It would take about an hour and half to go around the temple, if you spend time observing each of the beautiful sculptures.

We were to remove footwear to enter the complex. It was really hot to walk around. Water was poured on the floor continuously by the officials to ensure that visitors could have a comfortable walk around the temple.

I took about 1 and half hours to see the temple completely. I had visited Halebid earlier, and found Belur similar to Halebid. Outside the temple, there are several shops on the road where sculptures made of soap stone are sold. I bargained to purchase a Nandi. It was very expensive and I had to leave it.

We left Belur at about 4 pm and reached Bangalore at 7.30 pm in the night.

Getting There :

Road : Belur is about 220 kms from Bangalore and is well connected by road from Bangalore, Hassan, Mysore and other important places.

For all those who visit Bangalore or Mysore on a vacation, I think visiting Belur, Halebid and Shravanabelagola is a must.

Trip Duration : 1 day

Best time : Any time of the year

Accomodation : Hassan has good accommodation facilities. Belur, Halebid and Shravanabelagola can be covered as a single day excursion, either from Bangalore, Mysore or from Hassan.

Where to eat : Close to the temple, there is a restaurant called Vishnu Prabha. The serve thali meals in the afternoons…and there are several items on the menu. The food is good, and the rates are nominal.

Shravanabelagola

I have seen pictures of Gomateshwara, and have heard that it is the largest monolithic statue in India. The more pictures I saw, the more I wanted to go to the place to see him for myself.

I had planned Shravanabelagola several times, but it never materialized. Finally we made it, but on the way to Chikmaglur. We visted Belur and Halebid temple complexes as well.

These three places can be visited from Bangalore as a single day excursion.

One can reach Shravanabelagola by road, and the route is simple. Drive from Bangalore – towards Hassan via Nelamangala. After Nelamangala, one has to take a 18 kms detour towards a small village on the left to reach Shravanabelagola.

You will find yourself driving through small villages, paddy fields and the scenery looks beautiful. I remembered that the Gomateshwara temple is on the top of a small hillock, but there were no hillocks at sight. I was wondering, if we were going in the right way. Then suddenly, we saw the statue of Gomateshwara rising high on top of the hillock.

A few hillocs appear in the horizon and one can see a temple at the top. The statue of Gomateshware can be seen as we drive closer to the temple premise.

We left Bangalore at about 7.30 am and we reached Shravanabelagola temple premises at about 9 am.

We parked the car in the parking lot. The scenery around was like that of any other temple town. There were rows of shops for pooja items – flowers, baskets with coconut, agarbathis, betel leaves, saffron, framed photos of the diety and religious books. As Mahavir is the God of the Jains, there were a lot of Jains in the area.

We had a quick breakfast in the nearby restaurant. Idlis are best when you travel. Coffee in these areas is also good, as we are now close to coffee country – Chikmaglur.

We deposited our footwear at the temple entrance. We purchased socks from a local vendor for Rs. 25 per pair. First we thought that it is not going to be of much use. But, we realized that as the time went by, the mountain steps started getting hot like a oven. The socks really helped.

There are 2 hillocks and a pond here - Chandragiri and Indragiri. Chandragiri has the Chandragupta basadi of the Gangas and the Parashwanatha basadi here is the biggest. The town below the hill has the Jaina matha whose walls have very old paintings.

Indragiri has the Gomateshwara monolith, 58' tall, installed by a Ganga general and scholar Chavundaraya, and also Siddhara basadi, Odegal basadi, Chennanna basadi and Chauvvisa Tirthankara basadi, and also the finely engraved pillar called Tyagada Brahma Pillar. The floral designs on it are excellent.

To the north of town is Jinanathapura which has the Aregal basadi and the Shantinatha basadi of Hoysala times.

Shravanabelagola has over 500 inscriptions, and some of them are recording death by starving (`sallekhana') by Jaina ascetics and laymen.

Indragiri has nearly 600 steps to the top, where the Gomateshwara statue is present. These steps are not steep like in the case of Tirupati steps, but, as you go higher, one tends to get tired. There are two sets of steps – one set to go up, and one set to come down.

We started climbing the steps slowly. We decided that we ought to finish the entire thing, climbing up, darshan and climbing down in 1 and half hours. We had to proceed to Halebid and Belur after this.

As we reached a little higher, we could get a complete view of the town below. It looked really beautiful with all the coconut trees and the terracotta tiled roofs on top of the buildings. Right in front of the temple is a small temple tank, and its view with the water and the reflection of the gopuram in the water, looked beautiful. Right in front of this temple, was another hillock - Chandragiri, with temple on top of it. We could see the steps and could see people climbing the stairs. We took a few quick photographs.

We found people of all ages climbing the steps. For old people who cannot climb, there were palanquin bearers, who would take carry you up on a chair for Rs. 150 ( one way ). We saw several old people using this service.

We reached the temple on the top in about 30 mins. We took a little rest as we were running short of breath. The temple had a larger entrance and had huge doors. It has statues of several dieties and several inscriptions in a language I could not understand.

We entered the premise and then the statue of the Gomateshwara appeared in front of us. He was so tall and beautiful. Wonderful features were chiseled on stone by master craftsmen. There were devotees performing puja.

We spend some time, outside the temple, looking at the scenery below the hillock - lots of coconut trees and beautiful fields.

I must say that the temple is being maintained quite well, and I felt glad that at last I could do this trip to see the Gomateshwara.

A special puja is held once in 10 years. At this time, Gomateshwaras statue is bathed with milk, honey, curd, ashes, sweets, ghee and other important ingredients. Special poojas are also performed here during Mahavir Jayanthi.

How to get there :

By Air / Rail : Bangalore ( 157 Kms )

By Road : Shravanabelagola is well connected by road from all important towns in Karnataka. You can here from Mysore, Bangalore or Hassan.

Best time : Any time of the year, but during summer, a pair of socks can come in handy. The boulders can get really hot in summer

Trip duration : 1 day

Places to stay : One goes to Shravanabelagola while visiting Belur and Halebid. The best places to stay at are in Hassan, Chikmaglur and in Bangalore. It is not really necessarily to stay at Shravanabelagola.

Madurai

Madurai is a filthy temple city and is the 2nd largest in Tamilnadu. Off late it has become popular because it is home to one of the largest Hindu temple complex – the Madurai Meenaksi Temple.

Every time I went to Madurai, I took the Pandian Express, it leaves Chennai Egmore Station at 8 pm and reaches Madurai at about 8 am the next morning.

Situated on the banks of river Vaigai, Madurai has a rich cultural heritage passed on from the great Tamil era more than 2500 years old. Madurai was an important cultural and commercial centre even as early as 550 AD. It was the capital city for the great Pandya kings.

The Pandyan King Kulasekarar built a great temple – the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple and created a lotus shaped city around the temple. On the day the city was to be named, as Lord Shiva blessed the land and its people, divine nectar (Madhu) was showered on the city from his matted locks. This city was henceforth known as Madhurapuri.

The entire city of Madurai, is built around the Temple. Concentric rectangular streets surround the temple, symbolizing the structure of the cosmos.

As early as the 3rd century BC, Megasthanes visited Madurai. Later many people from Rome and Greece visited Madurai and established trade with the Pandya kings. Madurai flourished till 10th century AD when it was captured by Cholas the arch rivals of the Pandyas.

The Cholas ruled Madurai from 920 AD till the beginning of the 13th century. In 1223 AD Pandyas regained their kingdom and once again become prosperous. Pandian Kings patronised Tamil language in a great way. During their period, many master-pieces were created, Silapathikaram being one of them.

In April 1311, Malik Kafur, the general of Alauddin Khilji who was then the ruler of Delhi, reached Madurai and raided and robbed the city off precious stones, jewels, and other rare treasures. This led to the subsequent raids by other Muslim Sultans. In 1323, the Pandya kingdom including Madurai became a province of the Delhi empire, under the Tughlaks.

In 1371, the Vijayanagar dynasty of Hampi captured Madurai and it became part of the Vijayanagar empire. Kings of this dynasty were in habit of leaving the captured land to governors called Nayaks. This was done for the efficient management of their empire.
The Nayaks paid fixed amount annually to the Vijayanagar empire. After the death of Krishna Deva Raya (King of Vijayanagar empire) in 1530 AD, the Nayaks became independent and ruled the territories under their control. Among Nayaks, Thirumalai Nayak (1623-1659) was very popular, even now he is popular among people, since, it was he who contributed to the creation of many magnificent structures in and around Madurai. The Raja Gopuram of the Meenakshi Amman Temple, The Pudu Mandapam and The Thirumalai Nayakar's Palace are living monuments to his artistic fervor.

Madurai started slipping into the hands of the British's East India Company. In 1781, British appointed their representatives to look after Madurai. George Procter was the first collector of Madurai.After India's independence, Madurai is one of the major districts of Tamilnadu State. Later on Madurai district was bifurcated into two districts namely Madurai and Dindugul Districts.

The history of Madurai will not be complete without mentioning the name of Rani Mangammal, the woman of great skill and sagacity. History does not provide many instances of ruling queens in Tamil Nadu. Though it was considered that women were not suited to succeed the throne of a kingdom, Rani Mangammmal, however shines in almost solitary eminence as an able and powerful ruler in Tamil Nadu.

Madurai is famous for its temples. The Aappudaiyaar Koyil Tevara Stalam and the Koodalazhagar Divya Desam are the most important temples one should rarely miss to go. In the vicinity of Madurai is Tirupparamkunram, one of the 6 padai veedu shrines of Murugan (glorified in Madurai Sangam Nakeerar’s Tirumurugaatruppadai). Also is Alagar Koyil, one of the prominent Divya Desam shrines of the Sri Vaishnavite faith.

Meenakshi - SundareshwararTemple - The enormous temple complex is dedicated to Shiva, known here as Sundareshvara and his consort Parvati or Meenakshi. The original temple was built by Kulasekara Pandya, but the entire credit for making the temple as splendid as it is today goes to the Nayaks.

The temple complex is within a high-walled enclosure, at the core of which are the two sanctums for Meenakshi and Sundareshwara, surrounded by a number of smaller shrines and grand pillared halls. Especially impressive are the 12 gopuras or towers and are covered with stucco figures of dieties, mythical animals and monsters painted in vivid colours.

Many festivals are celebrated in the Meenakshi temple which is known as the 'Temple of feasts'. The numerous festivals celebrated at the shrine almost around the year, represent the ideas and thoughts of the cultured and progressive people of that region in the field of philosophy, religion, science and art.

The other important features of complexes within the temple complex are the Ashta Shakthi Mandapam, Meenakshi Nayakkar Mandapam, Potramaraikulam ( Golden Lotus Pond ), Oonjal Mandama ( Swing Mandapam ), Swami Sundareswarar Shrine, Velli Ambalam or Silver Hall, 1000 pillar mandapam with the musical pillars, Vasantha Mandapam,Thirumalai

Nayakars Palace - Nayaka's architectural masterpiece was his own palace. Even in its present remnants show, what a marvellous building it should have been when it was completed in 1636 A.D. There is a tradition that Chokkanatha Nayaka, his grandson, dismantled portions of the palace and its golden decorations and other ornamental structures and transferred them to Tiruchirapally. The great palace was allowed to be neglected and go to ruin. In 1886 A.D., when Lord Napier was the British Governor of Madras, he ordered to preserve this palace as a historical monument.

Vaigai Dam – This dam on river Vaigai is a very beautiful picnic spot, obviously, it is across the Vaigai river.

Kodai Kanal – Kodai is a hill station and is about 120 kms from Madurai.

Getting there :

Air : Madurai has a airport.

Road : Madurai is well connected by Road from all the other major cities.

Rail : Madurai has a railway station

Trip Duration : 2 days

Getting Around : Autos or Taxis

Best time to get there : August to November

Accomodation :

Hotel Royal Court , 4, West VeliI Street, Madurai - 625 001 , Opp: Railway Station,
Phone: +91-452 - 5356666(Hunting Lines) , Fax: 0452 - 5373333 , Email: royalcourt@eth.net

Hotel Best Western Germanus, 28,Bypass Road, Arasaradi, Madurai-625 010. Phone : 91-452-2382001 (7 LINES) , Fax : 91-452-2381478

Hotel Madurai Residency, 15,West Marret Street, Madurai -1. , Phone : 0452 2343140

Madura Park Inn, 38, Madakulam Main Road, Palanganatham, Madurai - 3. Phone:2371155

Taj Garden Retreat, Pasumalai Hill, Madurai-4 , Ph:2371601 (8 lines)