The photos are on Google Album:
Not many people count Davanagere in their tourist circuit. India is
filled with tourism potential everywhere, but not well tapped in. Also domestic
tourists are not even considered into any administrative planning. It would be
good to develop all districts to attract people from other districts and market
it as a tourist destination rather than putting up a stall in Delhi or some foreign
country only for some specific spots. Only foreigners don’t generate jobs &
revenue for us. We have to do it for ourselves. And we are a billion plus to do
it.
Also with the flip flop of industries, their unreliability, new avenues
have to be found. May be the new avenues are old architectural wonders, natural
wonders calling for tourism. Besides may be revival of ooru jathre, habba,
theru etc., calling for traditional local religious tourism. It in turn
develops small agriculturists & market access for them too. This region
especially has many lingayat & many independent shrines and attracts pilgrims
for special occasions round the year.
For example, Dandeli was major paper mill town, now it attracts adventure
& nature lovers. Same is for HariHara which was a major industrial town,
now it is back to being a major temple town. Davanagere had major textile mills
closed down, now back to being a major trade & educational Centre. The
industries are short lived as they suck up nature fast and dry up. They are short
lived, makes few people rich for short time & then it moves to another
place. Whereas, cultural extravaganza lives on and on forever. It lives harmoniously
with the nature. It develops peace in Human nature, calming the society.
Our Trip:
We first stopped by my friend Badarish’s factory. It was a good
educational visit for kids to know about machines, tools, techniques and engineering
works. The job requires unskilled laborers and are paid daily wage. So in this
day of demonetization I asked if his business not impacted. He says not a bit
impacted. Surprising but true.
We visited Kondajji Kere. It is a beautiful very large lake just about
20kms from Davanagere atop a hill. Kondajji Basappa is a famous leader who
popularized Scoutes & guides in schools and has built a beautiful hiking
area there. So there is a memorial to him there. That’s it. Nothing else is
there. No boat ride, no park, no maintenance. Nobody to care. It has a good
potential to become like a Nandi hills for Bangaloreans. The road to the place
is also in bad condition. But well tree lined. So for cyclists, holiday joggers
it could be good if developed and taken care.
Bagali Kalleshwara
Generally most places I have visited in Karnataka have dozens of
Hoysala temples. But Davanagere seems poor in number of Hoysala architecture.
Apart from Hari Hareshwara temple in Harihara I guess this is the only one nearby.
This one is very rich and will make up for it. It has 64 very beautifully
carved pillars typical of Hoysala style. Some of the pillars have deities’
carvings in exquisite detail. It is very cool inside the temple with large
expanse of field surrounding the temple. The temple has hardly any visitors.
Locals hardly know it. Some tourists from Bangalore like us come often. ASI
maintains it. Some independent writers have put up some internet coverage of
the temple.
Nearby to Harapanahalli there is another beautiful ancient
Venkateshwara temple in Thimmalapura.
Kanthesha, Branthesha, Shantesha
This is a major religious tourist attraction in this area. This is
especially a pilgrimage circuit for Madhwa Brahmins. The 3 Anjaneya temples are
located some 50kms from each other in a circuit. It is believed to gain great
Punya to get all 3 Anjaneya darshana in one day between Sunrise to Sunset.
Sathenahalli Shantesha is believed to give peace of mind.
Shikaripura Branthesha is believed to remove our ignorance.
Kadaramandalagi Kanthesha gives boon to devotees of their desires.
Besides we visited Kaginele. It is the place of the great Haridasa
Kanakadasa of Vijayanagara period a contemporary of Purandara dasa. Kaginele
Aadikeshava is his Ishta devatha (personal deity). He has given a great
treasure of Haridasa Sahitya in the Ankitha nama of Kaginele Adikeshava. His
poems are simple & known for cryptic inner meanings to be extracted by
knowing the depth of philosophy.
Hosa Ritti is another piligrimage centre we visited on the banks of
Varada river which is a tributary to Thungabhadra. It is a serene atmosphere in
this remote village. We get blessings from 2 moola brundavanastha yathigalu
from Raghavendra Swami mutt order here.
The 3 Anjaneya temples have very rich heritage & history. During
British period as it happened all over India, the temple's land properties were
taken over by the Government. But still our powerful Anjaneya has created a
boon for the locals there. People from all classes and communities have
something special connection with the powerful deity here. All the communities
are involved in the contribution & development of the temples. The
committees are working independently from Government or any individual
holdings. The main deity Pooja is performed by Brahmins and Non-Brahmins
together.
This is a typical representation of rural India. I have seen this everywhere. The devotional faith has
harmonized and brought people together. All across India, these powerful
deities are binding communities together and celebrating the beauty and the
bounty.
It is a pity that the educated urban class, media, politicians and our
text books depict India as divided and chaotic. However the rich culture, harmonious
society is living by itself very peacefully unmindful of all the bad picture India’s
rulers & educated class give to the world. Why do they not visit places and
see for themselves? Why some people take pride in depicting India in bad light?
Santhebennur Honda & Shanti Sagara
Shanti Sagara is also called Sule Kere. Because it is constructed by a Sule
(Courtesan or a Royal Prostitute) by name Shantavva. This is one of Asia’s
largest man-made lake. You cannot see the end. You can stand on the ridge and
understand the topography of the area to appreciate why a lake is natural there.
But constructing bund along and making it a controlled tank with 5 sluice gates
for overflow and irrigation is a marvelous effort. And that too by a courtesan
for the benefit of the people!! What sacrifice, what forethought. All around
the place, the fields are very green. Mostly they grow areca. The ground water
table should be very good throughout the year to give that kind of greenery all
around.
Again the tourism infrastructure is pathetic. Not even a view point.
There is a dilapidated locked rest house. No board about the tank. Nobody to
explain anything there. There were few visitors from Bhadravathi & we were
there. That means the local tourism potential is very high. But nobody to care.
It can easily be made a very attractive picnic spot with information Centre.
Santhebennur Honda is just a few kms from Shanti Sagara. It is a very
beautiful step well. Very unique in Karnataka. Green fresh water with full of
life. Large and small fish in plenty. We spotted a tortoise at the ridge. Very
neatly maintained by ASI. Again it is all internet based information. Nobody to
explain. Board is there from ASI to give small info. The locals don’t know
much. All visitors are mostly from Bangalore due to internet info gathering. The
dome shaped monument in the centre of the pond is actually a lotus mahal in
Hindu architecture build by a palegara by name Hanumanthappa nayaka. Later days
it changed hands to the Bahamani sultans and local subedars. There is no
religious significance so nobody knows much about the place. It is a good place
to visit.
