Karnataka Tours and Travel

Sringeri :
Sringeri is in Chickmagalur district of Karnataka State and is situated on the banks of the Tunga. In the past, with the advent of Rama, Vibandaka Rishi and his son Rishya Shringa did intense tapas here. It was only due to Rishya Shringa's blessings that Dasaratha became the father of Rama, Lakshmana, Bharatha and Shatrughuna.

When Sri Adi Shankara and his disciples were coming towards this holy place, Sri Adi Shankara saw a pregnant frog suffering from the extreme heat. It was wilting from it and slowly dying. Suddenly a cobra came out to the spot, spread its hood over the frog and provided shade to the frog. Sri Adi Shankara saw this and was amazed at the sight of two sworn enemies helping each other. He then and there decided that this place where enemies became friends, was the perfect spot to establish a peetam for the south. This was also another reason for Sri Adi Shankara choosing Sringeri as his Southern Peetham.

The Sri Chakra, the very embodiment of all mantras, was consecrated on a hill and Goddess Sharadambal was installed there, Goddess Sharada is the embodiment of all the Vidyas of all Mantras. Sri Adi Shankara also did poojas to Chandramouliswara, a spatika linga and a Ganapati idol with a manikkam stone embedded in the centre and which was named Ratnagarbha Ganapati. These idols are still being worshipped by the Jagadgurus of Sringeri Mutt, over the last 1200 years.

Sri Adi Shankara consecrated four deities in the four directions of the Sringeri Mutt. They are Kala Bhairava on the Chinnamalai Hillock (East), Durga (South), Hanuman (West) and Kali (North). These four remain the Guardian deities of Sringeri.

After living in Sringeri for 12 long years, Sri Adi Shankara decided that the reason for His staying at Sringeri had come to an end and appointed Sri Sureswaracharya, as the head of the Sringeri Mutt and started on a padayatra once again.

Belur - Halebid:
The Hoysala temple towns of Belur and Halebid, have some of the most magnificent temples in India. These temples have become rich repositories of ancient Hindu culture, with several thousands of visitors from all over India and overseas coming to witness their intricate and distinctive architectural style.

Belur was once the capital of a powerful empire on the banks of River Yagachi, now called the Banaras of the South, aka Dakshina Varanasi. Belur's main temple, Chennakeshava (dedicated to Lord Krishna and set in a compound with several smaller temples and a pond), was commissioned by King Vishnuvardhana in 1117 AD to celebrate Hoysala military victories. It took over a hundred years to complete and its architecture is foreign to the prevailing Hoysala style of the 12 th century - it is exceptionally large (about 100-ft high) and its decoration very lavish (with a magnificent gateway tower - gopuram) in Dravidian style. It is delicate in its filigree work, with the added attraction of bracketed figures of celestial dancers, called Madanikas and exclusive to Belur, and an innumerable variety of intricate pillars. Contrary to Indian tradition, these Hoysala sculptors signed their work at this temple.

Halebid (Hale'beedu) literally means 'the ruined city'. During the 12 th and 13 th centuries AD, it flourished as the capital of the Hoysala Dynasty for about 150 years. It was then known as Dwarasamudra (gateway to the seas). However, it was twice attacked by invaders who robbed it of its treasures, leaving behind the ruins of the once-magnificent Shiva temple. The Hoysalas then shifted their capital to Belur, leaving behind Halebid, a city once grand and since reduced to poverty and ruins. The Shiva Temple, Hoysaleshwara, is unique for its two shrines in the Linga form and gigantic figures of Nandi (sacred bull). It is actually two temples attached along the north-south axis by pillared walls. This temple is twice the size of Belur's Chennakeshava Temple and the figures are larger as well.

Both these temples are masterpieces, with their exteriors adorned with horizontal friezes, sculptured in succession from the bottom. Stories from the Puranas, the Upanishads and other mythological sources have been executed in most exquisite and authentic detail, as have tales from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Each work has a significance, a tale to tell. It takes at least two hours to do a round of the temple exteriors. You will completely lose yourself as well as all track of time here. There is so much to see in just one temple and it could take a few days to do all.

How did the Hoysala Dynasty get its name?

It is said that 'Hoy Sala' , meaning 'Strike Sala!', were the words called out to Sala, the legendary head of this dynasty, as he was involved in armed combat with a tiger. Sala immortalised himself and the tiger by single-handedly killing the beast, and this tale of heroism inspired the royal emblem of the Hoysala Dynasty, also to be found in the temple carvings. Hoysala architecture has its roots in today's Chikamagalur District in Karnataka. The ancient artists developed a new style of temple architecture and conceived their shrines as star-shaped structures (Vesara style) as opposed to the usual cubical form, set upon raised platforms. The Hoysalas built for their age but also for the ages to come. In their 300 years of rule, the entire area was so saturated with religious establishments that it restricted the succeeding dynasties from building more. There are over 1,500 temples at 950 centres, the guide informs us. The temples at Belur and Halebid are the best of what remains of the Hoysala Dynasty.

Location
Belur is 222 km from Bangalore, 149 km from Mysore and 34 km from Hassan (27 km from Halebid). Belur and Halebid are 17 km apart.

Shravanabelagola:
Shravanabelagola in Hassan District is 157 km away from Bangalore is an important Jaina centre. There is a pond and two stony hills, called 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 Gommata 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.

Getting here:
Shravanabelagola is well connected by road and rail to Bangalore, Mysore and Hassan. Regular buses ply from Hassan.