On the quest for hidden Hoysala temples

Sipping a hot cup of ginger tea and lounging in an easy chair, I start penning my travel diary – “ This is the best holiday I’ve ever had …”  The diary goes blank after that ,as a pleasant lethargy takes over my senses and lulls me into a deep sleep. I dream about a colonial bungalow with warm fireplaces , an endless fabric of coffee plantations, birds  singing melodies and refreshing rains that purges my mind. A gentle tap on my shoulder and I wake up from my reverie, only to realize that my dream is real.

I am in a colonial bungalow in a coffee estate near Belur,  watching the rains bathe the landscape . Outside the frogs and the crickets are at it, creating a fusion of sorts, which only gets interrupted  when the birds take over. I stir out into the garden and the rain seems just right – neither a drizzle nor a downpour. I let the drops trickle down my skin as I let go with gay abandon . 

“Would you like to go to Belur or Halebeedu ? “ asks Vipin, the polite manager of the estate.  “ Neither, “ I say ,as I soak in the lethargy. He looks at me, a bit surprised, aware of my keen interest in anything Hoysala. But I am content to spend my last day in the estate , just like the way I spent the rest. Besides a walk in the plantations and a little bit of bird and butterfly watching , the rest of the day is given to vegetating. I could have written an ode to indolence  instead of a travel diary.

But my travel companion, Aarti insists that we  go to Dwarasamudra or Halebeedu as it is called today.  We discuss old monuments  and my mind wanders  off to a map of the ancient Hoysala capital, that I had seen in a book. There were several temples marked on it and I told her that three of them still elude me, even after my many trips to the Hoysala capital. “Lets go look for them,”  persuades Aarti, drawing me out of my lethargy . And so we set out towards Halebeedu, on a rain swept Saturday afternoon, based on weatherman and driver, Chinna’s prediction that it might not be raining there.

The rains tumble down as we continue on our journey,  past Belur and onwards to Halebeedu .In my bucketlist are three  temples – Veerabhadra, Kumbaleshwara and Buccaneswara. I have no idea where to begin. I call up friend and Hoysala enthusiast Arun , who asks me to look for a lake, Bidarikere . The Veerabhadra temple he says  is located south east  to the lake . “Now where do we go and look for a compass  here ?” retorts Aarti. Chinna gives me a blank look.  I decide to go with my instinct and ask the locals.

Guides and vendors surround us the moment we land in Halebeedu. Chinna is right. It is not raining here. I start with my first clue and ask them the direction to Bidarikere. An old vendor strokes his beard and gives Chinna the route . We are told it is just a couple of minutes away on the outskirts of Halebeedu .

 We reach the lake where we find a  group of cowherds , grazing their cattle and ask them the way to Veerabhadra temple. “There is only  a Yoga Narasimha temple, old one, but small, Hoysala, yes yes..” They show us the way. Standing at the edge of the road, in the midst of corn ,sunflower, potato and cabbage fields is a small  temple. For miles around, there is not a single soul. The fields just stretch out into to the horizons. This is India’s countryside at its best.

We disturb a brahminy starling as we walk  around the shrine. It is a well maintained  ekakuta which has just one tower .  An idol of Vishnu  with his consort is located outside , mounted on a garuda . This is serendipity, I thought.  We come looking for a Veerabhadra temple and we see a beautiful shrine, far away from the tourist circuit.

Chinna meanwhile is bitten by the discovery bug . There is another temple inside he says after some conversation with some locals in the nearby fields. We  drive into a mud road . We face a wall of a temple, but there is nothing “ Hoysala “ about its structure .  An  inscription leans against it, while another sculpture is on the ground. We see a group of people , sitting there drinking milk  from a big can, while some of them crowd around us . “Why do you want to know about this temple ? “ they ask , amused. “It used to be a Hoysala , now it’s a Basava temple , “ But for all practical purposes, it also serves as a milk booth for the villagers.

We return to Halebeedu , still wondering about my bucketlist, when Chinna drives  past the Kedareshwara temple and  offers  a local a lift .  His face lights up when I mention a Veerabhadra temple “ It is right at the entrance of Halebeedu on the way from Belur. Just enter an arch and go straight .”We follow his directions and  find  a Devi temple  . We speak to many locals.  “That’s an old temple..Why do you want to go there ?” We cross the Devi temple and see another temple in ruins , bound by a fence. “That’s a Hanuman temple. Go a little more further. “ 

It is twilight  and the lights come up in some isolated houses. We start walking . The temples still elude us. And then Chinna points to a  twin temple – one which looks  like it is freshly painted and another in Hoysala style, in complete ruins. “ This is the Veerabhadra – the old and the new..you want to see three more temples – follow us. “ We turn around and meet our guides - two kids, who are siblings . They take us through a detour  where we see an entire settlement within Halebeedu. Houses, temples, cows, dogs, bikes, cycles, shops are all scattered around in the narrow lanes.

 The siblings take us to the Kumbaleshwara temple right in the middle of the village. The sculptures are mismatched, but the Hoysala friezes are typical. The next stop is another Shiva temple  . Some women are sitting in front of a small shrine, while we walk into the adjoining old temple, only to stop dead in our tracks. Next to a Hoysala pillar, stands a cow , not happy with the intrusion. Another two are tied to the pillar .We shifted the diety,” said one of the women.” Now this is a cowshed..we needed a place for cows-after all, who will repair this temple.” The roof has  indeed caved.

 Our last stop for the evening  is the Ranganatha temple. “ But where is the Buccaneswara temple ?” I ask the siblings. They look puzzled, but Aarti draws my attention to the small board in front of the Ranganatha temple. It said that it was an amalgamation of various sculptures found from different sites and it was earlier called the Buccaneshwara temple . Aarti and I walk into the temple and sit on the steps for a while as the siblings beam at us . We pass some moments in silence and then Aarti sums up the trip ,” Nothing like exploring and discovering hidden places..it is the best holiday Ive ever had,” I smile, a sense of déjà vu has just crept in. The siblinds wave back to us as we leave Halebeedu.

The story was published today in Deccan Herald, Spectrum . 

Inside Story - Nubra Valley, Ladakh

“ Just 20 minutes , “ warns Dorjee , my driver as we finally reach the summit at 18380 feet  . Stepping out into the cold, I realize that Khardungla pass looks like any other tourist destination . Patches of snow cover the dry mountains.  The shutterbugs are all around, capturing the moment for posterity. Looking down , I see the treacherous roads snaking their way up, bringing a group of adventure tourists on bikes and bicycles . But Dorjee’s warning , I realize , is real. Although I have no trace of altitude sickness, my head is rather giddy with excitement. I look hurriedly for a dry toilet and then continue with my journey. 

The starkness of the landscape becomes more pronounced as we drive down one of the ancient trading routes.

However as we plunge downhill, the landscape changes dramatically. Dorjee  says we are lucky. “ The road was closed last week due to heavy snow.” We look around and see the Karakoram range around us, the Siachen glacier in the distance and the river Shyok flowing beside us.  

Some desert flowers bloom here and there , as  Dorjee calls it Ldumra or his valley of flowers . The Shyok joins the Nubra or the Siachen river and creates a lush valley here filled with apricot and apple orchards. The altitude drops suddenly and we are amidst sand dunes.  Bactrian camels  make a surreal appearance here against the setting sun , as we stop by to take in the moment.

We head to Diskit ,  where a 14^th century monastery awaits us. Dorjee gives us a brief introduction about the various orders practiced by the lamas here. Most monasteries he says  are either founded by the Drug-pa or the red hats or the Gelug-pa or the yellow hats . Diskit monastery was  founded by Changzem Tserab Zangpo, a disciple of Tsong Khapa, founder of Gelug-pa order. 

We climb up the stairs, a bit breathless and see a mighty Maitreya , some fierce guardian deities and a wonderful fresco of the Tashilhunpo Gompa of Tibet. A huge drum catches our attention. Dorjee explains that the monastery celebrates the  Festival of the Scapegoat or Desmochhey with a mask dance that depicts the victory of good over evil . He then goes on to narrate the story of a Mogul demon who haunts this Gompa even after he was killed. Locals believe that the Gonkhang or the temple of the guardians still houses his wrinkled head and arm .

I shiver a bit, more out of the cold and head to Hundar, a charming hamlet by the river side with mani walls and chortens scattered all around.  The capital of the ancient Nubra kingdom, Hundar houses the Chamba Gompa and is probably one of the last few Indian villages before the Pakistan border. Small streams and waterfalls make it  the only oasis in this cold desert. I walk up to a prayer wheel , probably the last in the Indian border and wish for peace.

To read more of the story , click here

Tips about Cheap Hotels

Internet offers wider selection of tips about cheap hotels. Just simply type on the name of city that you’ll entirely be staying in and dates that entirely needed into the room. Aside of that, list of neighborhoods in the city will be offered as part of its mere choice. If selecting New York City, a full list of neighborhoods will be offered that includes the Midtown East, Downtown, and the Midtown West. Afterwards, simply choice about one or more neighborhoods that entirely be willing of staying in and choose the preferred hotel star level.

• Name on its owned price rating. Priceline will check out as to see if any of these participating hotels will eventually be accepting its offering. Not only that hotels will often be accepting those offers that got about 50% or lesser than the usual rating. Since, most hotels would usually prefer to have someone being able to stay into their room in a vastly well reduce rate price rather than remain the room vacant.

• If the offered will be accepted, the credit card will entirely be charge in an automatic price rating that been named by thyself. Only at this point, this offer will be accepted that been learn on by its name and exactly got same location to its hotel. However, this customer will be using the price line in frequent setting intended for this hotel reservation and had never been offer any rejection.

• If the offer will be rejected, then you will eventually be waiting for an about 24 hours before making an exact similar offer.

• Once the offer will be accepted, take on some pride upon receiving the bargain and plan on what to do into the next out town vacation with the entire money that been save into this hotel room.

Sunday snapshot - What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas

A journalist from the UK who visited Singapore during the YOG mentioned that she found Vegas very tacky, especially the casinos. I found it very unreal - but there was something about the place that attracted me. Was it the casinos, the night life, the energy, the lights - I couldnt tell !Probably it was  the fact they converted an entire dry desert into a larger than life  attraction , or may be it was outright touristy with no pretensions whatsoever !The casinos for instance - it seemed like a  potpourri of people who threw cautions to the winds and gambled their way through..it was lady luck they were courting - nothing else mattered . I too felt that life is nothing but a gamble...We won, we lost..we lived it up - but as they say, What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

Welcome to Pallava cave hunting

A small rusty board brings our car to a sudden halt. Surrounding us are lush paddy fields set against massive boulders . A lone woman is working on her crop, as we cut through the thorny bushes and walk across the fields. Following the path, we meet a huge hill loaded with boulders , standing precariously, one on top of each other. The hill seems to open out to us, as we walk through the narrow opening to reach our destination- the cave temple at Mandagapattu carved out of a 100 feet hillock.

“Welcome to Pallava cave hunting. You will probably find it addictive , “ says Vijay Kumar, who had initiated me earlier into the world of  Pallava and Chola temples through his website poetryinstone .  At Mandagapattu, I realize that I am already lost in the world of stone. A flight of steps leads us to the cave temple, carved  for the trinity, flanked by the door guardians or the dwarapalakas. The shrines are empty . “This is the first prototype of the Pallava rock cut cave temple, built by Mahendravarman 1 in the 7^th century, “ says Vijay .

 To me , Pallava architecture has always been synonymous with Mahabalipuram or Mamallapuram or Kadal Mallai , as it was originally called . Built by Narasimha varman or Mamalla, the rock cut cave temples here , I am told ,owe their inspiration to the early Mahendravarman  caves shrines ,which are  strewn around Ginjee, Tindivanam, Kanchipuram, Arakonam , Chengelpet among other districts . “ The early pallava style has bulky pillars, not too many embellishments either in the form of relief sculptures, even the door guardians are not too bold in their depiction, but later on you will find the architecture being more evolved as they move towards building structural temples, “ explains Vijay.

Our companion Arvind shows us the Sanskrit inscription. Here , Mahendraman declares that he is not building the temple from any perishable material – brick, wood, metal  and limestone or stucco.  “ That is why he is titled as Vichitrachitha, an innovator in many ways,” he explains. The temple in the inscription is referred to as Lakshita Yathaanam .

“Mahendravarman showed leanings towards Jainism initially and then he moved towards Hinduism- which is probably why one would find jain settlements near his cave temples” adds Vijay. We are at Thalavanur, closer to Mandagapattu where the temple, Shatrumalleswaram is carved at the edge of another hillock, overlooking boulders. 

 The temple houses door guardians flanking a linga.  “Note the advancement in art here, “ mentions Vijay ,” as we take in the makartoranas in the front façade .” A small flight of rock cut steps carved on the hill takes us to the shelters of Jain monks who probably meditated here and used this as their beds.

An old man walks up to us from across the fields and proclaims he is the caretaker.  A stray dog follows him, his howls echoing through the hills, as we retrace our steps .

The story was published in Inside Story, my column in the Metro Plus, The Hindu. A detailed travelogue will soon be published in Windows and Aisles, the inflight magazine of Paramount Airlines

Seeyamangalam-cave temples of the Pallavas

When we think of  Pallava art and architecture, the rock cut caves and the shore temple at  Mahabalipuram comes to our mind. However there are quite a few cave temples built by Mahendravarman 1 in early 7th century which were the inspiration for his descendants to build the monuments at Malai or Mahabalipuram as its now called.

One such place is Seeyamangalam, which is about 80 kms from Madras (Chennai). Dedicated to Stambeshwarar, a form of Shiva, the temple has been further extended by the Chola and the Vijaynagar kings who have built the Gopurams and the Mandapams, besides the Murugan temple atop a rock with small steps carved on the stone.

A simple shrine with pillars and pilasters , the temple was called h“ Avanibhajana Pallaveshwaram, Avani, being a title of Mahendravarman 1.

The temple has one of the earliest interpretations of the Ananda Thandava posture of Shiva that we know as Nataraja carved  in one of the pilasters, while the other has a low bass relief of Rishabhantara.  We were anyways not allowed to take pictures of the deities inside the cave,  but were allowed to take a few of the sculptures on the pillars and pilasters - so am sharing the Nataraja or the Ananda Thandava here .

For more great skies across the world, click here 

Its festival time in India !

Indians are forever celebrating - births of Gods and Goddesses, their marriages and the victory of deities over demons. For some the celebrations are wrapped in a religious fervor, but for me, its always been more of a cultural tradition , rather than a religious affair. I love most festivals because of their color and vigor and very often , they bring the great Indian family together. All celebrations begin and end with food.

Today we celebrate Krishna Jayanthi or Gokul Ashtami or Janmashtami as it is called in various parts of the country. The celebrations are also as diverse as it can get and today most of the festivities spill from homes and temples to the streets.  The legend goes that Krishna in his childhood used to steal butter from earthen ware pots held aloft or hidden around the homes. In towns today, young boys or girls perform acrobatics by forming a human pyramid to break the pots which are tied up in the air on a rope.  The pots normally carry money and the spoils are celebrated by the community . 

In South, some families welcome Krishna home. As a child, my mother used to tell me that Krishna  will visit our homes during midnight. " He was born in the midnight, remember, " she said and narrated the story all over again. She used to painstakingly create designs of tiny feet on the floor , leading from the entrance to the puja room.Very often I used to wake up and wonder if Krishna had walked down the path. Sometimes I used to place my feet on those designs and pretend to be in Krishna's shoes and get yelled at in the bargain ." Krishna will not come home if you do that, " she used to warn and I used to run away to play. While most of these are rubbished today as superstitions, I believe there was so much of innocence and belief in those little things that made our day. Today, most festivities lack those little things, which gave us so much of nostalgia and connected us to our community and our culture. 

I was in Madras (Chennai ) recently when the street vendors were busy selling terracotta idols of Krishnas to families. With Ganesh Chaturthi , Navratri and Dasara around the corner, the painted terracota idols are making a quick sale. I am down with a bad stomach and hence can  neither enjoy the butter, the sweets and the savories today, nor am I painting feet of Krishna on my floor - but I would just like to revel in the festivities around.