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Showing posts from February, 2012

Lost Temples of Karnataka: Koodli

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  Overview: On our visit to Mattur , we chanced upon an opportunity to visit Koodli, around 15 kms from Shimoga. Koodli has a very old history of human occupation. The villages around Koodli are said to be inhabited from 2nd century under the Chutu-Satavahana occupation of Vaijayanti(now Banavasi). This place was then occupied by the Kadambas, Badami and Kalyani Chalukyas and Hoysalas. And around the 16th century, they Keladi Nayakas established themselves under the Vijayanagara rule. The Rameshwara temple at Koodli, dated back to 12th century is situated at the confluence of the rivers Tunga and Bhadra. Its a simple Hoysala temple without any intricate carvings. The temple in east-west orientation has a Garbagriha, Antarala and a closed Sabhamantapa with a central raised podium accommodating the structure of Nandi. The pillars in the Sabhamantapa are lathe turned and polished. The sanctum has a Shiva Linga.           There is another temple beside this temple called Chintamani Nara

Belum Caves: Amazing Cave Exploration – My 50th Post

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   Please Click here to read the main post Overview: One of the greatest wonders of nature I have seen is the Belum Caves, a 3.5 kms long cave discovered by a German explorer in the 1980s and was thrown open to the public in 2002. This also happens to be my 50th post after a silent start in May 2011. The Caves have the following sights to admire according to the board displayed at the entrance: 1) Meditation Room 2) Thousand Hoods 3) Mantapam 4) Banyan Tree Hall 5) Maya Mandir 6) Patala ganga 7) Stalactites and Stalagmites 8) Pit holes in the ceilings 9) Lines and fracture in the passage It is believed that in ancient times many sages used to meditate inside the caves. Also some of the ancient Buddhist and Jain relics have been found inside the caves. The beginning of our exploration started with a spacious hall and the passage got narrower as we got inside the cave. At some point its quite difficult to squeeze through the walls. The highlight of our trip was Paatalaganga, where th

Owk Reservoir: Sights of a submerged village

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   Please Click here to read the main post Overview: Hidden between Yaganti and Belum Caves is the Owk reservoir. Though we did not explicitly plan to visit Owk reservoir, we could not resist stopping our vehicle at the reservoir and clicking pictures. The reservoir was full with water and the other side offers a scenic view of the countryside. A little further ahead, one can see the remains of the village submerged under the reservoir. One can still see the houses and trees submerged under water.      How to reach: Bus: From Bangalore, there are direct buses to Tadipatri. From there the buses going towards Banaganapalli go via Owk or Avaku. Car: From Bangalore, head on NH7 towards Hyderabad road, at Anantapur, turn right and move towards Tadipatri. Proceed further 40kms to reach Owk Reservoir. Food/Accommodation: Nearest towns are Banaganapalli and Tadipatri.

Yaganti: Discover Spirituality

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   Please Click here to read the main post Overview: Our first place for the day was Yaganti. We started from Banaganapalli at around 6:30am and reached Yaganti in around 20 mins. Yaganti is a spiritual place which is known for a pushkarni, Uma Maheshwara temple, a growing Nandi and a series of cave temples. We first went to the Pushkarni where several devotees were having holy bath in the clear waters. The water was lukewarm and was continuously flowing from the mouth of Nandi. One legend says that once when sage Agastya was meditating here, some crows disturbed him so he cursed them never to be seen around this place. Ever since then no crows are seen around Yaganti temple. We could see the Nawab Palace which belonged to the Nawab of Kurnool on the way to Yaganti. The structure looks marvellous but due to time constraints we could not visit the palace.     From here we went to the Uma Maheshwara temple which is surrounded by huge rocky hills from 3 sides. This is a 15th Century tem