Select Dravidian Gems

Mysore (Mysuru) has been and still is a part of my life, in a very adjacently important sort of way. A whole bunch of ma's first cousins along with her favourite aunt were long time residents of the princely city. Childhood was vacation in Mysore at least once in two years. Other than running away from uncles who pinched my nose, I was a hardcore chaperone/bodyguard to many an aunt who was engaged to be married and needed monitoring when they met their 'to-be'. It was the early eighties, clarifying, because people think, I lived in the fifties. They cannot believe that stuff like this happened in the eighties.

My uncle's departmental stores (small ones), south-indian dry Bhel on the street, sitting in the front of a cycle, bugging the younger ones for books - I was a book forager as long as I can remember, homes with open courtyards in the middle, big women with big hearts cooking big meals etc. There were not so nice things too, I was 10, a girl and it was not always safe. Again a different time and era; a sad by-product of the times.

For the most part, in my recent life, Mysore has been a stopover - weddings, day-cation, a via as we travel to Ooty, Coorg, Sulthan Bathery and some just Mysore visits when my grandma was around. The palace, temples, Tipu's reign remnants were just places that I passed by.

The two recent trips were nice and different. The first I researched and then explored and the second I explored and then researched. Let's start with the first.

Somanathapura

A quiet temple, one and a half hours away from Mysore, one that I dragged my uncle and aunt to see. A well-maintained one too; good job ASI (Archeological Society of India).

The temple was consecrated/built by an army commander in the 13th century, 1258 to be exact (the ages were not that dark for South India), with the blessing of the Hoysala king Narasimha III. My first sight is amateurly captured, picture below; mind blowing or what?

The main east-facing temple is built on a Jagati/worldly platform, with many small shrines dotting the outer pradakshina (circumambulation) pathway.

Intricate Hoysala structure with the epics visualised on many panels. Walking around one could get lost in a small 5 inch square. The craftsman and detail shows a level of patience that I can't even begin to fathom. The Hoysala emblem of a warrior battling a lion is prominently displayed. Hoysala architecture was developed in Karnataka. Though it has quite a few unique elements, the design inspirations can be traced back to the Chalukyas of Badami 6th CE, which were further developed by the Rashtrakutas of Manyakheta 8th CE.

The temperature dropped a few degrees as we walked inside. In the true Vaishnava tradition the temple had a Keshava (missing) idol. The Hoysalas were known to acknowledge the Shaivite devotees, so a panchalinga idol was built in the temple. Some Hoysala temples included Jain idols too. They made sure everyone was happy in their lands. Most of this knowledge comes from multiple inscriptions all over the temple walls.

The idols were beautiful. Taking in all the symmetry and sharpness, along with the echoes of honest prayers; it was hard not to succumb to the notion of God in beautiful stone sculptures.

Some of the sculptors' sense of humor was also etched on these walls - monkeys holding up the legs of the horses in battle, etc. Also many scenes depicting the daily lives of the people of the town of Somanathapura, on the banks of the Cauvery were interspersed - points to focus on as you try to take in the details of this magnificently etched temple of the Dravidian traditions.

Srirangapatna - Tipu's capital city.

A me-forced detour on our way to Bandipur landed us at the entrance of the Ranganathaswamy temple; I walked in and the partner decided catch a quick nap while I wandered in. Every time I see a Gopura, the immensity of it always reminds me of a line in The Art of Travel, 'We come closest to God when we see the ‘massiveness‘ of nature. Something that is much more overwhelming than our overwhelming lives.' Gopuras do that for me, even though they are people-made.

The temple was built by the Ganga dynasty in the 9th century (CE), The Gangas were feudal lords, allies and related to the Chalukyas by matrimony. They were inscribed in stone for their love of of art and music and most importantly their ability to be fair towards all faiths. The temple is a Vaishnavite temple and was renovated over the centuries first by the Hoysala and then the Vijayanagara empire. The deity, Ranganatha swamy is part of trio that was built on large islands - here (adi ranga), Shivanasamudra (Madya Ranga) and Srirangam (antya ranga).

The myth goes that Gautama Maharishi did an intense penance as he wanted to see Vishnu in his reclining position (very few temples have a reclining Vishnu idol). The lord appears and Maharishi requests the lord to stay and bless the land.

The temple itself has the vastness of many south indian temples. It was an un-important day and time so my wandering was uninterrupted.

Ran into this stone with inscriptions and did an image search and multiple day google searches on this stone yielded nothing and so for the first time I asked chat gpt and lo and behold, got this answer, "One of the prominent inscriptions is a Hoysala-era stone inscription that describes the temple's consecration and the wealth donated for its construction. Another notable inscription mentions the construction of the pillared hall and describes how sculptors and artisans were rewarded. The presence of multilingual inscriptions shows the cosmopolitan nature of Srirangapatna as a center of trade, religion, and governance."

The inscriptions at the Ranganatha Swamy Temple are in Kannada, Tamil, Sanskrit, and other South Indian languages, reflecting the diverse cultural and political influences over centuries.

The light and shadow effect made the Hoysala architecture ethereal and real depending on where I stood.

Utility and spirituality balanced in the Kalyani (pond) which held the water from the Kaveri - provide water for the rituals and symbolises purity & sanctity.

Walked out, shook out the stupor of the past and registered the road, to look for the car I came in.

As we drove out, the outline of the dilapidated Srirangapatna Fort drew my attention, much to the mild annoyance of the ever-so patient partner. But when I positioned it as walk in dense (not) forest, he perked up.

The fort was built by Timmanna Nayaka, Vijayanagar dynasty, then the Wodeyars of Mysore and finally Tipu. Tipu died fighting the British at this very fort and his famous sword is said to be taken from this battlefield. Ruins are amazing for this one thing - big things happened and people moved on, lives were altered irrevocably - two middle-aged people trudging three hundred years later can re-live all this in their imagination and be glad they were not there as it happened.

Tipu's fort is surrounded by the river Kaveri on three sides and in a wild mess. I walked gingerly not wanting to step on a minding-its-own-business snake or worse.

Ran into the usual parts of the fort, the underground prisoners-holding cells, the impenetrable walls of stone and open spaces that never makes you feel like you are walled. Pretty much like my brain.

The fort also housed an old Ganesha temple, as we got to it the priest was finishing up for the day. He was chatty, told us that the pathway to the entrance to the city of Srirangapatna was via the temple - about 300-400 years ago. Was very easy to picture as he pointed out the path and spoke with conviction.

Masjid-i-ala, a mosque built by Tipu in 1786 towered in front of us as we got out of the fort area. I went in. Got looks, ploughed through, walked around for a bit. Quiet, clean and filled with men. The mosque has two minarets, is built on a platform and surprisingly does not have a dome. Controversial - the inscriptions in Persian say that Tipu built it but an Indian newspaper clipping from 1935 says that archaeologists found inscriptions from the Hoysala period that points to a Hanuman temple - truth could be both things?

All in a all, a fruitful detour.

Mahabalipuram - 'city of rathas' (chariots)

One of my favourite places to visit in the South of India. The water close by and the ruins in sand - nothing more romantic for a history-buff. A massive complex of stunning stone buildings, temples, courtyards and stories. Best to have a car and move from one area to the next.

The first mention of this was by Sopatma (an unknown geographer), in his book, Periplus of the Erythraean Sea in 1 CE; he called it Malange. It was also known as the 'the seven pagodas' by Marco Polo; of course, much later.

There was evidence of life from the first century BCE in the form of cistern burials (a cistern is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water but were a common burial practices couple of millennia ago). Coins from trade with the Chinese and Romans show a vibrant city in the 4th century CE. Many Pallava coins points to a city with a strong port and thriving business during the time of the Pallavas - the kings ruled from their capital city of Kanchipuram. Mahabalipuram port was used to trade with the far east and Sri Lanka.

The structures though credited to the Pallavas seem to have an older history; especially strengthened by the finding of a reclining Vishnu and many more smaller discoveries pre-dating the structure.

The site has over forty ancient temples and monuments spread all over. Some stunningly stunning - like the open-air rock relief of Arjuna's Penance. Sadly, did not take a picture; too many people crowding the space; just stood and admired. To be lost in making one thing all their life - the sculptors that is. They breathed their life into each and every sculpted stone. There was no question of imperfection; no room for mediocrity - do one thing well - a lesson I am just not equipped to learn.

10 major rathas, 10 mandapas, 2 rock-reliefs and three structural temples built in the glory of Shiva, Vishnu and Shakti. Stacked squares being the basic structure of the monuments. Just walk around to see the immensity of what was left behind, the sacrifice of the makers, the largeness (perceived - I would bet all my money on it) of the kings and the fear/appeasement/goodwill of the gods.

Been here at least a few times - but this time spent a lot of time. My understanding of the history of South India being better than before helped in contextualising pretty much everything I saw.

Such a good feeling, continually adding the puzzles pieces of a never-ending puzzle board. History is not for the faint-hearted or the close-minded. You need to constantly Modify | Add | Delete without attachment to what you think feels right or true. My life-long passion if I allow myself.

Nandi at Nandi Hills

Situated at the foothills of Nandi Hills, which are as old as the earth, Bhoganandishwara Temple and Arunachaleswara Temple are twin temples built in the 9th century CE by King of the Nolamba dynasty; the oldest temple surviving in the Nolambavadi style - lucky us.

My first introduction to this dynasty. They were also known as Nolamba-Pallavas, they were governing this region for the Rashtrakutas and the Ganga dynasties. The mother of Mahendra I, Devalabbarasi, built this in his memory when she ascended the throne with the help of her second son, Iriva-Nolamba. An amalgamation of the regional Hindu arts resulted in the Nolamba style of architecture. The temples, like many in those times continued to be supported and extended by the many Hindu kings and dynasties that followed.

This was a first of January drive - wanted to go to this site for a while but it being a living-temple; crowds were always a thing. We woke up early, picked up the child and drove out before the people woke up to start their New Year well.

Was well worth the trip.

Lepakshi

For once, in a very long time, the history is singular. The temple was built by Virupanna Nayaka and Viranna in the 16th century, both brothers who were Governors under the Vijayanagar Empire - no handovers, carryovers, break & build, etc. The temple only has Kannada inscriptions. Well not completely true, nothing in the world is unattached - the architectural influences of the Late Cholas, Pandyas and the Hoysalas.

A short drive from Bangalore but in the state of of Andhra pradesh, had to double check this; now that we have divided ourselves further. We are definitely going back to the times of smaller kingdoms with constant fights (political, thankfully) for resources and so many other things.

The main temple is dedicated to Veerabhadra (Shiva). The most unique part, for me, was the frescoes on the ceilings and walls. The colours and details are stunning - Mahabharata, Ramayana and the gods were mostly depicted. But they also gives great information about the life and social structure of the people of those times, especially attire and fashion. Many paintings depict a strong persian influence on the attire during the time of the Vijayanagara rule - white tunics and the long cap known as Kabayi are part of many citizen scenes.

Very large and supremely difficult to carve monolith sculptures take over the landscape - Nandi and Shiva to be specific.

The walk around the complex was familiar - many pillared smaller areas, mostly mantapas with intricate carvings. Mantapas, especially the Ranga mantapa or Natya mantapa has carvings of Shiva dancing ananda tandava, Brahma mesmerized by his drum and Narada lost in his tanpura melodies. Stories on stones.

This beauty was the Kalyana Mantapa, would have been lovely for sure. Maybe the child's, hmm.

The only way to really see is to imagine because actually being part of life then would mean the same thing it does now - how lucky you were with your genetic lottery. If you had the privilege you would enjoy it and if you didn't you wouldn't.