After the Virupaksha temple, our guide asked if we wanted to visit the next place on foot or on rick. Not being sure why he was asking thus, we inquired & were told that there are a few prominent places which could be covered if we went on foot. So, we decided to walk from Virupaksha temple to the Vitthala temple, which is a good 2.5 - 3 Km walk. En route are few important temples. Rama - Sugreeva temple (called Kodandarama temple), where it is believed Lord Rama & Sugreeva (the monkey king) struck friendship. Here we can see Rama, Lakshmana, & Seeta, and in place of Hanuman is Sugreeva. This is a temple where worship is still being carried out & we could smell the fragrance which is typical of an ancient temple in India. A little above is another temple dedicated to Hanuman. This is called Yantroddhaaraka Hanuman temple. It is believed that a great devotee of Hanuman did not want him to leave the place. To ensure that, the devotee captured Hanuman in a mystical symbol and established the temple so that devotees like himself could have darshan & seek Hanuman's blessings. Very close to these temples is Sugreeva's cave where it is believed Sugreeva had hidden from his brother Vaali, who was killed by Rama & crowned Sugreeva as the king of the region. This region is widely believed to be Kishkindha kingdom predating to the Ramayana period. All along our walk, everywhere we found ruins...of temples, market places, ponds, lakes...
A lonely Dhwaja Sthambha (flag post) in front of what was perhaps a temple dedicated to a Deity stands witness to the havoc unleashed on Hampi.
Here's another mute witness to the ruinous siege of Hampi.
A dilapidated temple amidst natural rocky terrain of Hampi & view of the empty sanctum sanctorum of the temple where once the Deity was worshiped. When we see the inside of such destroyed temples, we can notice the granite blackening and flakes of granite coming off. We can also smell an acrid odor inside such temples. This is because, during the siege of Hampi, after destroying the temples, the invading armies filled the destroyed temples with firewood and set afire. Because of the heat and fire, granite used in constructing the temples lost their natural properties, were blackened, & over a period of time, flakes of granite started coming off and began giving odor.
Narayana (Vishnu) & a female figure amidst the ruins. We were surprised to see quite a few ruins like the ones below still in pretty good shape...
Architectural marvel amidst the ruins...
This is the soole (prostitutes') bazaar, where the trade was carried out openly. Just near the entrance to this bazaar is a big Pushkarani (tank) which still has water, but in a dilapidated condition.
On the banks of the Tungabhadra is located what is called the Purandara Mantapa. This is dedicated to the famous singer, poet, & saint Purandara Daasa, a very great devotee of Lord Vishnu. It is said that in this mantapa, Purandara Daasa used to sing in praise of Vitthala (Vishnu), whose temple, the Vijaya Vitthala temple is located nearby. Saint Purandara Daasa has composed almost 5 lac songs, mostly on Vishnu. It is said that he had a vision that the temples & the presiding deities would be destroyed in the war. Hence, he took the image of Vitthala from the Vijaya Vitthala temple, carried it all the way to Maharashtra, & established them in the famous Hindu pilgrimage center of Pandharaapura, where Vitthala is the presiding Deity. Below is the image of Purandara Daasa in the mantapa.
The Tungabhadra flows in all majesty amidst the backdrop of the ruins. At Purandara Mantapa, we spent some time in the river.
No comments:
Post a Comment