Give your spirit a break

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Give your spirit a break This temple constructed in the Vijayanagara style,

located a little away from Bangalore, is a witness to the golden history of the

Avathi rulers, SRINIDHI RAGHAVENDRA L V tells us.

Avathi is a small village away from the hustle-bustle of Bangalore. Flanked

by rocky hills and lush green fields and endowed with historical temples, the

village makes an ideal locale for the spiritually inclined.

 

The Gautama Girikshetra located here, is perhaps one of the most beautiful

hillocks around Bangalore city. The Thimmarayaswamy temple atop the hill is

believed to have been built by Gautama Rishi. The hill also hosts three natural

water springs and a cave passageway believed to link Avathi and Tirupathi.

Moreover, the hill offers picturesque vistas of the surrounding countryside with

its lakes, fields and quaint villages.

 

The Channakeshava temple here has an interesting story associated. It is said

that the temple was built by Ranabhaire Gowda of the Avathi Nadaprabhu clan, who

found several pots of gold coins with an idol of the Lord who immediately

ordered a temple to be built in the honour, with a part of the money that he

found. The main idol of the temple is starkly similar to the early Vijayanagar

style. The temple has a large courtyard and beautifully sculpted pillars are

located in the Navaranga and the Garbhagriha.

 

Behind Avathi, under the precincts of Yambarahalli, about 2.5 kms away, is

another hill popularly known as Gautama Girikshetra. There is a road leading to

the hilltop, which is crowned by an ancient temple dedicated to Thimmarayaswamy.

The temple has the deity of Channakeshava believed to have been installed here

by Sage Gautama. This hill Gautamagiri is one of the seven hills in this region

viz., Nandigiri, Dibbagiri, Govardhanagiri, Kukkutagiri, etc. For those who

would rather climb to the top, there is also a flight of steps leading to the

temple. The steps are flanked by fine parapets with recent engravings in Kannada

of selected quotations on moral education, names of months, days and important

Hindu festivals etc. The temple over the hill is built in the Vijayanagara style

distinct with that of the Avathi rulers. The Navaranga pillars have many

beautiful relief sculptures carved on them. To the left of the main sanctum, is

another cell where an idol of goddess Lakshmi is enshrined. The seated statues

of Alwars and Ramanuja, are also an attraction in the Ardhamantapa.

 

The entrance of the temple has two aesthetically carved idols of Dwarapalakas

with a Gajalakshmi idol over the lintel stone. The outer walls of the temple are

adorned with exquisite sculptures depicting episodes from the epics of

Bhagavatha and Ramayana.

 

Events such as Gopivastrapaharana, Kurmavatara, Kalingamardana, Govardhana,

Narasimha, Prahalada Charitre, Vamana, Trivikrama are among those which are

depicted in an attractive manner.

 

The hill also has three fresh water springs known as Shanka Theertha, Lakshmi

Theertha and Chakra Theertha. The Shankha Theertha is so called because the

spring is shaped like the mouth of a conch shell. The water of the Shankha

Theertha can be accessed by climbing down a precarious flight of steps, a chain

has been fixed to hold on for support. There is a board adjacent to the spring

which is 51 ft in depth and contains fresh drinking water.

 

The Chakra theertha is rounded and so its name (Chakra – Wheel). Lakshmi

Theertha is a small hollow in the rock about two feet in diameter and quite

deep. It is said that these springs have never dried up as the source of water

is quite deep, inside the rocks.

 

Nearby, between Shankha theertha and Chakra theertha is the Gautama Gavi Ashrama

– a cave where it is believed that Gautama Rishi performed penance.

 

A modern structure has been constructed in front of the cave to serve as an

entrance to the cave. It is believed that the cave is quite deep and leads to

the interior of the mountain. To enter the cave, one has to crawl on all fours.

The cave is filled with insects, snakes and bats, so it is advisable not to go

too deep without wearing protective clothing.

 

How to get there

 

Take the Bellary Road (NH7) and move towards Yelahanka, proceed straight towards

the Airforce station and reach Devanahalli town. Drive ahead and four kms down

the road is Avathi, turn left and proceed about 1.5 km ahead to reach Gautama

Girikshetra. The road is very bad and almost unpaved at some stretches.