Halebidu v1.0

Its been a while since my last post and it isn't because of not trying; there's a bunch of partially written drafts covering Bodhgaya, Goa - A RoadTrip, Hampi in various parts, Hogennakal and a few more that have now skipped my memory. The long holidays saw us return from a road trip to Goa, the plan of a similar trip to Pondicherry has been postponed to a different time.




What better way to start than with the remover of obstacles? 
This Ganesh Chaturti we thought of doing Halebidu and Belur. What we did not factor in our plan was the monsoon, the sheer size and innumerable carvings of the Halebidu Temple and the sheer size and innumerable pot holes that were generously sprinkled enroute. We'll get to the nittigritties of travel in Karnataka later. First, some background. ( As always I will refrain from providing details easily available from wiki )

The spots on the sculpture are rain drops

Observe the bells swaying

Quick History Lesson

Halebidu started life as Dwarasamudra, the Gate to the Sea, named so because of the lake in the city that looked like the sea. The lake is still there and is part of the temple complex. In the early 11th century this city was the capital of the Hoysala Empire. Halebidu means old or ruined city; the name and the ruin came thanks to Alauddin Khilji of the Mughal Sultanate. The city was laid to ruin twice, once in 1311 and then again in 1327.

By 1336, the Sultanate in Delhi had conquered the Pandyas of Madurai, the Kakatiyas of Warangal and the tiny kingdom of Kampili. The Hoysalas were the only remaining Hindu empire who resisted the invading armies. Veera Ballala III, the last king of the Hoysala Empire stood strong against the destroying forces and managed to hold them off until he was killed at the battle of Madurai in 1343.

But before we lose hope, be aware, all was not lost. Veera Ballala had 2 commanders, Harihara (Hakka) and Bukkaraya (Bukka) - do the names sound familiar? Thats because the remaining regions of the erstwhile Hoysala empire merged and formed itself into a kingdom under these able commanders. This new Hindu kingdom resisted the Mughal invasions and would later find fame and fortune as the great Vijayanagara Empire. This empire would give Karnataka the wonders of Hampi, which I hope to cover in satisfactory detail in a following blog.





This set of images depicts the Holy Trinity ( usually represented by Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva (Mahesh) ).
Here, I have placed them as they appeared on the temple wall, which featured Shiva in the middle, since this was after all his temple. Identifying is easy, Brahma has 4 heads ( 3 are visible 4th is behind ), Shiva is identified by the Drum, for Vishnu ( shanka, chakra, mace, padma ).

The Temple

The temple at Halebidu is actually a pair of shrines joined together. The deity is Shiva. The 2 shrines are for Hoysaleshwara ( Shiva given a name after the king ) and Shataleshwara. ( Shiva named after the Queen Shantala ). The King was Vishnuwardhana. Work on the temple began in 1121 AD ( ASI tells us that it was in 1120, funded by 2 merchants Ketamalla and Kesarasetti ).

The merchants must have had very deep pockets indeed because like the Energizer bunny, the sculptors kept on going and going. 190 years later, they were still not done. If you're guessing that either money or patience might have run out, you're wrong, the first invasion had occurred.

( Note: wiki says 87 yrs of work, the guide said 190. If you do the math, 190 matches exactly. Also some parts of the temple do look incomplete, so I would go with the guide on this one )





These two images show Shiva vanquishing baddies and doing the Tandav. Many of the sculptures are quite gory, showing severed heads, dripping blood, which is being lapped up by skeletons, dogs etc. Both these are the quite sober in comparison. Observe the right image, Shiva depicted with 14 arms, the left has only 12. I like how on the right image, the snake has made its way through the eye socket of the skeleton and exited through the ear hole. On the left image, the tail of Nandi the Bull ( the transport of Shiva) is depicted raised in anger as it does its bit, stamping on the villian in question.


What to See, How to see

The outer surface is covered with freizes that contain detailed storylines from Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Puranas. Be aware, to read the story in the right order you need to go clockwise. That's because circum-ambulation ( pradakshina ) is done clockwise in Hinduism. The best parts begin from the Royal entrance. The main "public" entrance has the shoe rack so you will start from there in all probability.

If you want to see Hindu mythology in glorious 3D, this is the place for you. The images fairly leap off the walls. Be warned this movie has gore, violence and explicit content which may not appropriate for younger viewers. ( I would give it a PG rating ). Where is all this you ask? The standard Hoysala building guidelines have 6 levels of decorative lines ( you can see it in the Somnathpura temple ) Here, there are 8. One of the additions is a running line of erotica from the Kamasutra.





This depiction narrates the story of the Parijata Plant ( flowering shrub ). This is an action sequence from the scene of the crime ( our gods were pretty human in their faults ). Vishnu and Satyabhama ( his consort ) are fleeing from the gardens of Indra with a cutting of the plant, their getaway vehicle is Garuda ( the eagle, Vishnu's mount ). Hot on their heels is the mighty Airavat ( 4 tusked white elephant of the God of Gods ) Indra is driving the elephant hard, Sachidevi his wife is barely able to hold on due to the speed. The raised tail of the elephant depicts agitation. 
 
After our tour of the temple with the guide, we began taking the photos; I started with the 70-300 to get the hard to reach ones and closeups. The heavens opened up with a drizzle that lasted 30 min and then finally became a downpour that had us imprisoned inside the temple for a good 30 min. So the photos I have are just the initial images, I hadn't even got to the good parts yet. So I didn't get to take any images with the 18-55, so no landscapes and big picture images.

Dwarapalas The gatekeepers. The handsome chap on the right seems a tad over adorned for someone who is just a security guard. Important to note is also that the weapons and dressing style seem to be very similar to the god being guarded. Observe the Drum he is carrying. This seemed interesting to me, so I did a little research which yielded more info than I had hoped. See "All about dwarapalas" at the bottom for the link. Apparently the grandeur of the gatekeepers is a reflection on the grandeur of the temple and the god. Dvarapalas of Shiva have names & are: (i)Nandi and Mahakala (to the East) (ii) Herambha and Bhringi (to the South) (iii)Durmukha and Pandura (to the West) (iv) Sita and Asita (to the North). The first named in each pair stands to the right of the doorway; and the other is stationed to the left.

From the Dashaavatar, from left to right, ( Vishnu Avatar version 3.0, 4.0 and 8.0 respectively )
Number 3 - Varaha - the boar, rescuing Bhoomi Devi - Mother Earth - from the demon Hiranyaksha
Number 4 - Narasimha - as Prahlad looks on, he extracts the intestines of his dad Hiranyakashipu

The demon names sound similar, coincidence? No, they are brothers. Hiranyakashipu was the elder brother of Hiranyaksha. Mystery solved.

Number 8 - Krishna - 2 armed ( mortal ) Krishna holds up the Govardhan Mountain to protect his village from the torrential downpour. The people are shown sheltering beneath.Infact if you look carefully ( follow flickr link and see large size image ) you can see the detail that has been carved, showing the inhabitants of the mountain, 2 tigers in a cave, 1 monkey, 2 hunters, 1 lizard, 2 birds, a cat catching a mouse.


The details

Wiki mentions that the temple is in dilapidated state, nothing could be further from the truth. The temple is in use and "in worship". And that for you and me means no footwear.
Entry is free, temple is open from Sunrise to Sunset on all days. There is a bored looking priest inside the temple, who will allow you to photograph him. There are guides, and here I must concede they are good. They know their stuff and they give a bill and have a standard charge. Guides speak in Hindi, English and Kannada. There are female guides as well, something I haven't seen anywhere else!

We had Raghu as a guide, and I tested him with lot of questions, being skeptical at first, he passed muster for me, his english was very good as well. Apparently there is a 6 month training provided by ASI to the guides that gives them all the info. Be warned though, later as I wandered taking photos, I found another guide giving a slightly modified version of what had just been explained to me. If you decide to hire the guide, and I suggest you do, ask questions. Do not let them parrot away, take them to the sculptures that they skip and point out areas of doubt. You may be surprised with what you learn. The guide will take 30 min usually, 45min - 1 hr if you ask questions.

The Mayura Hotel from KSTDC is directly opposite the temple. I recommend you eat there, it is clean and also has toilets. We had the Veg. thali meals there. Very simple food, but very yummy indeed.



The first image is a depiction of GajasuraMardhana ( the killing of Gajasura - the elephant demon). Here, Shiva has entered the body of the elephant and is killing the demon from within. Observe the 2 rear legs and tail of the demon at the top. The hollow being the inside of the elephant.
The next is a happy domestic scene, of Shiva and Parvati sitting on his lap, both looking pretty calm. The Mongoose beneath Parvati is her mount in her Calm State. In her Angry phase, she rides a lion.

Other Temples to be visited

Bellavadi - 5 km from Halebidu - we drove there in the rain to check it out for future reference - its smaller and in a tiny street, closely placed with people's houses. Parking will be a problem for the larger cars. But it looked most promising, so I would definitely recommend it. The road is tedious and potholes are many.

Belur - Halebidu and Belur can be done in a single day if you really want to, but I don't recommend it. These are leisurely pursuits, keep in mind that these temples took close to a hundred years to build, the least we can do is give it a few hours time to appreciate the work.

What we will probably do the next time: Stay in Hassan, and make take day trips.





Here we have Saraswati, identified by the beads in her right hand, and the book in the left. They signify spiritual and worldly knowledge, both of which she is the master of. Her mount, the peacock is at her feet. Musicians play as she dances.

The next is an action sequence, showing us in 3D, Gajendra Moksha. ( The liberation of Gajendra - king of elephants ) Here, we see that Makara ( the crocodile - a gandharva ( divine being ) cursed to be a crocodile ) has caught hold of the elephant's leg and is refusing to let go. Gajendra seeks divine intervention to rescue him, and it appears in the form of Vishnu on Garuda. Gajendra offers Vishnu a lotus, raised in his trunk as he prays for help.


Dont Miss These

Due to rain and shortage of time I couldnt get even half of what I wanted to capture. These are a few things you dont want to miss.

Ravana lifting Kailash mountain as he tries to move it to Lanka
Vamana Avatar's encounter with Bali, and his subsequent transformation from Dwarf to Giant.
Mahishasura Mardhini
Vishnu and Lakshmi sitting in the pose of Shiva-Parvati

Churning of the Ocean of Milk.

From the Mahabharat:
Arjuna and Karna Yudha
Chakraview and Abhimanyyu
Arjuna at Draupadi Swayamwar - targeting the eye of the fish

Moral Stories depicted, I was just wowed by how cool this is:
1. Consume Alcohol in moderation. Sage with Alcohol in a pot, bird drinking from it, Snake under the pot. Lesson - drink alcohol in small quantities and you will fly high. In large quantities it is as poisonous as a cobra.
2. External Beauty. Man with a Donkey headed woman. Love the inner qualities of your spouse not the external features.

Route Map


It took us close to 5 hours to get there. With a stop for breakfast and some for nature calls. We left at 6am and were there by 11:30am




View Larger Map  
Further Reading:

Wiki - Gothic Art
Wiki - Hoysaleswara_temple Wiki - Halebidu
Wiki - Hoysala_Empire
Wiki - Veera_Ballala_III
Hoysala Empire from Kamat Potpouri
All about Dwarapalas
Gangaikondacholapuram by R. Nagaswamy Indian Temples and Iconography

Somnathpura

Sick of the traffic in Bangalore? Go back in time this weekend, to a time before the Metro, traffic, flyovers and road widening. Head to the Temple of Somanthpur. Not to be confused with the Somnath Temple in Gujarat, this is the Keshava Temple in Somanthpura, 40kms from Mysore, Karnataka.


Looking as it might have done 700 years ago, expect for the watch on his wrist

It is the place to go to avoid crowds and still appreciate the wonderful architecture of the Hoysala Dynasty. Being little known and not very publicised, it has fewer visitors than the more popular temples at Belur and Halebidu. It also has much worse roads, sadly, but lets focus on the positives.

The Somnathpur Temple is said to be the finest example of Hoysala Architecture and was built in 1268 under the Hoysala king Narasimha III, it was built (funded) by Somanatha - a Commander in the army. The Town of Somnathpur also gets its name from him. It is built using chloritic chist (Soapstone).
The architect/sculptor was Ruvari Malithamma who has kindly left his signatures for easy id.


The Front of the East facing temple, inside the compound. I have cloned out a few wires

So what makes it the finest example?
It is among the last of the Hoyasala Temples, and it is also the best preserved ( although some parts and sculptures are damaged - some in war, some by tourist morons ). It is also symmetrical in its design, it has 3 shrines, each of which are equally important, having intricate carvings.
The King Vishnuvardhana was a Vaishnavite (Vishnu worshipper), his wife ShantalaDevi was a devout Jain. He built temples to all the prevalent gods to keep harmony - Jain, Vishnu and Shiva. Narasimha III was his descendant.


The rear of the temple

The layout



There is a high outer compound that surrounds the temple and a Lamp Pillar on the grounds outside, it could also be a Garuda Stumbha (Column) since it is the mount of Vishnu and this is a Vishnu temple. Once inside there is a lengthy inscription carved in kannada on an enormous tablet that describes the origins of the temple.

There is a covered walk way all around the temple, which is closed and currently held up by steel supports and apparently under restoration. There are huge lathe carved pillars that hold up the structures inside the temple itself.

The inside is a bit dark and hard to photograph, it is illuminated by some tubelights and no effort has been made to conceal the ugly wiring. There are 3 deities inside all are forms of Vishnu. There are no Shivaite statutes here.

What to notice


In Monochrome, from the top of the temple, where the vandals couldn't reach it

First off, the Hoysala Standard is the tiger. The name Hoysala is believed to have come from the story of a jain youth named Sala, who fought a tiger ( Hoy - means strike in Ancient Kannada ) to protect his guru. The standard can be seen all over the temple, and in some places has been vandalised, supposedly by soldiers of opposing armies during war.




Lakshmi Dancing


Goddess Lakshmi dancing to the drums

Observe the tiny lady at the bottom beating the drums to which she is dancing. She is holding a fruit in her hand signifying abundance( I thought it was a corn cob, but according to the archaeology site its actually a citron fruit )
The citron is native to india, and its cultivation has declined since the introduction of lemons.
Do follow the link for the history.

Seated Vishnu and Lakshmi




Whats interesting here, is the weight of lakshmi's foot on the lotus is shown causing it to bend over, and an elephant is added to support its weight.

Vishnu and Ganesh



Unusually, the sculptures are all signed (the square plaques). They are Mallithamma, Masanithamma, Chameya, Rameya, Chaudeya, Nanjeya, Pallavachari and Cholavachari.

Wall Friezes



The bottom of the frieze has elephants ( supporting the temple on their backs), signifying stability, next come the riders on the horses, floral patterns along with the hoysala tiger emblem, depictions of stories, a line of mythological beasts - a combination of various animals and finally swans.

The Ramayana is depicted on the friezes on the south side wall, stories of Hindu God Krishna on the rear and the Mahabharata on the north side.

Meditating Vishnu



Not usually depicted this way, shows Vishnu seated in a Buddha-like meditation posture.

Indra on the white elephant


Indra with wife SachiDevi on Airawath

Im borrowing this from Keshav's images since my own of this was over exposed.
The elephant is shown with tusks partially filed, as was the practice to prevent them from injuring themselves, riders and keepers. Indra has in his hand the Vajra (thunderbolt weapon).

Wait, Theres More

In addition to these, also do not miss the Krishna with Flute, the statue of Brahma, Saraswati with an unidentified instrument, the Dasha Avatars of Vishnu.
I missed these Im sorry to say, since we got there late and had to rush.


I liked this group, there is no damage to any of them, haven't figured out who they are yet

Getting there


Closeups and more hoysala emblems

It is 180kms from Bangalore. Guide books say "Somanthpur From Bangalore, going along the Bangalore Mysore highway, take the scenic country road from Mandya via Bannur." It is scenic alright, but did you miss "country road" ?

Much of the road looks like excavation in progress by the Archaeological Survey of India. Pot holes are the size of watering holes - you have been warned. In patches the road is excellent, don't give in to the temptation to speed, the bad patches spring up quite suddenly. Seems like no one of importance since King Narsimhan III has visited it since its inception.

For a detailed map pls check Keshav's directions on his blog, you can also see some more of his photos.


I liked the play of light and shadow here, this group is not identified yet

Tips

Shoes are not allowed in the temple, do wear socks, the stone can get very hot.
Carry a hat, mineral water and snacks are available at the small shops outside the temple.
Parking is scarce be prepared to squeeze into tight spots.
There are no toilets, be prepared to hold it as well :-)
There is a small tea stall, which serves excellent tea in thimble like plastic cups, we must have knocked back a dozen of them.
There are no restaurants nearby. No souvenir shops either.
You need to buy a ticket to get in. Carry loose cash.
We paid the guide 200 bucks to keep out of our hair.
Eat at Kamats on the way, there are 2 now, incase you miss the first.


If you look carefully no two people are alike

Do a little research before you get there, you'll appreciate it more. I did my research afterwards and am sorely repenting. Seeing all of it requires a lot of time, don't rush. The guides will pester you, so finish that off first. Its more fun to figure out which sculptures they are on your own.

Sources:
Wikipedia
Art and Archeology