Lalitgiri

During our tour of Orissa we did visit Buddhist triangular circuit and we could learn lot about the history of the place. One such place is Lalitgiri which is a majestic place couched between hills of Parabhadi and Landa of the isolated Assian range. The landscape here is dominated by ruins of the huge brick monastery, the remains of the chaitya hall. 

A.S.I has carried out extensive excavations from 1985 and this has unearthed remains of a huge stupa, and relic caskets along with other important structure and archaeological remains. The important discovery out of excavation are structures of the time between 1st to 12th century A.D:

• Mahastupa
• Monastery No.1
• Monastery No.2
• Monastery No.3
• Monastery No.4
• Aapsidal Chaityagriha

This place is just 90 km away from the state capital, Bhubaneshwar. The site seeing here can be covered in one day along with other two sites of the Diamond Triangle: Udaygiri and Ratangiri.

Birds of Hebbal Lake - 11, Bangalore

Glimpses of birds at Hebbal Lake in north Bangalore.

Images of India - 80

A glimpse of India in black and white. A flower at one the flower shows.

Statue of Baji Rao I

Baji Rao I was one of the prominent general part of Maratha Empire. He was general to the fourth Maratha Shahu Raje Bhonsle until his death. The famous palace Shaniwar Wada of Pune was built by him.

In his memory right in front of this structure is equestrian statue of Pradhanpant Shrimant Bajirao Peshwa.

He is known to have fought over 41 major battles and many others. It is said that he has never lost a battle which has been confirmed by British General Montgomery in his writings. An outstanding cavalry leader, he was loved by his troops and his people. 

He fought freed central and western India from Mughals. Under his command, Marathas defeated the Portuguese, and Nizam. He passed away because of ill health when he was not very old.

Sun Temple, Konark

After the early morning breakfast in the road side eatery in Konark close to Sun Temple complex we were in front of Sun Temple that resembled a gigantic chariot. This 13th century temple built in the form of a chariot with twelve pairs of wheels dragged by seven rearing horses. 

King Narasimhadeva I of Ganga Dynaty initiated construction of this temple. In the olden days the main sanctum of the temple had a lofty tower, the audience hall and a detached dance hall in the same axis. But today the sanctum no longer has a tower and it is in ruins.

The sanctum and the audience hall together stand on a common platform studded with an intricate wealth of decorative ornaments and sculptures. The 30m tall  roof of the audience hall is made of horizontal tiers grouped in three stages with life-size female sculptures of matchless charm and delicacy adorning each stage.

This temple of imposing dimensions has been built using Khondalite rocks. The huge wheels of the chariot has been carved exquisitely with minute details in every inch.

The temple exudes grandeur in its size, and in the detail and excellence of its carving. The temple oriented towards east and as a result first rays of sunrise strikes the main entrance.

The external walls of the temple have very grand carvings depicting musicians, dancers, animals, nagas and various motifs. In the above image we can see one of the horses that is designed as if to pull the chariot.

Sparrows at Nandi

In the small village of Nandi on the outskirts of Bangalore there is the 1000 year old Bhoganandishwara Temple Complex. This place has still retained its old world charm and one can see birds that we no longer see in the cities.

One such bird is House Sparrow. When here you will be treated by their melodies chirping music.

It is fun to see this birds constantly moving around.

Images of India - 79

A glimpse of heritage monument of India in black and white. Other posts will give you more details about this monument.

Palace interior in Meharangarh Fort at Jodhpur

Sun Temple Complex, Konark

When touring Orissa, if one does not visit Sun Temple Complex at Konark on the shores of the Bay of Bengal that you have not seen anything. We left Bhubaneshwar early in the morning to visit this UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

There are many small hotels nearby and we had breakfast in one of the small eatery here. And then we entered the complex that has various structures which strongly represent the Kalingan architecture, that is a outstanding testimony to the 13th century Ganga Empire.

It was built over a period of 12 years by 1200 committed artisans led by master builder, Bisu Moharana. The various architectural marvels are:

• Sun Temple (1, 2)
• Natmandir (Dance Hall)
• Mayadevi Temple

The masterclass of this site even though in ruins can be fully appreciated by being there in person. We shall se more of this place in subsequent posts.

Moodbidri, the Jainkashi

Moodabidri is a town-municipality just 38 kms from Mangalore. It is nestled in nature’s beauty, surrounded by lush green paddy fields and natural water ponds. 

It is regarded as sacred for Jains by virtue of its being a Jain center. As a result it is known as Jainkashi. It is a pilgrim center for the Jains not only because of several sacred Basadis, but more so because of the most sacred scriptures of Jainism, the Dhawalas found in their original form on palm leaves.

We were here in search of  "Thosand Pillar Basadi". But we were pleasantly surprised to discover many more of heritage structures. There are 18 huge Basadis or temples here of which some I have visited:

• Guru Basadi
• Thousand Pillar Basadi
• Badga Basadi
• Settara Basadi
• Ammanavara Basadi
• Betkeri Basadi
• Koti Basadi
• Vikrama Setty Basadi
• Kallu Basadi
• Leppada Basadi
• Deramma Setty Basadi
• Chola Setty Basadi
• Mahadeva Setty Basadi
• Bykanathikari Basadi
• Kere Basadi
• Padu Basadi
• Shri Jain Math Basadi
• Jaim Pathshala Basadi

The nearby places of interest are:

• Mangalore
• Udupi
• Karkala

White-throated Kingfisher at Karanji Lake, Mysore

Karanji Lake at Mysore is a beautiful lake spread over a area of 55 hectares with many trees all around even in the lake. 

It is one of the favorite haunts of many birds and we spotted one such bird the White-throated Kingfisher.

Images of India - 78

A glimpse of heritage monument of India in black and white. Check other posts that will give you more details about this monument.

Mallikarjuna Temple, Basaralu

Grinding Stones, Citradurga Fort

Once one crosses the fourth gate of the Chitradurga Fort, an interesting area is to see is massive stone grinder popularly known as Grinding Stones.

It is made of masonry of 3 metres depth and about 7 metres diameter. It has four massive grinders with teeth or slots. These were rotated either by elephants or bullocks standing in the central circular space.

It is believed that these grinding stones were used for preparing gun powder. Each of the four grinders have their own independent collection points to collect the explosive gunpowder.

Poetry in Stone - 22

This is twenty-second in the series on the rich cultural heritage of ancient temples in India. The ancient temples are richly carved and they behold ones attention for their craftsmanship. 

The external walls of the 10th century Amrutesvara Temple, Amruthapura are beautifully carved various patterns. The symmetry in the design at the corner is very exclusive.

In the 16th century Aghoreshwara Temple of Ikkeri there are many beautiful sculptures. One such sculpture of Lord just outside the main sanctum that has been carved out with utmost care.

The external walls of 10th century Mukteshwar Temple at Bhubaneshwar has been carved at every inch. On the wall above there are patterns, snake design, humans have been carved beautifully.

On the left is sculpture of elephants with lions on top of it at the bottom of a pillar near the entrance of Rajarani Temple, Bhubaneshwar. On the right is a carving of musicians on the top of the Lakshmi Devi Temple, Doddagaddavalli.

Mysore Zoo - Cheetah

Mysore Zoo is the most popular zoo at Mysore in India. There are various wild animals and birds at the zoo. One among them is Cheetah.

It is the fastest land animal with a speed of 120 km/h  in short bursts covering distances up to 500 m. It's slender, long-legged body is built for speed. 

It's chest is deep and its waist is narrow with tan in color with black spots all over their body. There are no spots on its white underside, but the tail has spots, which merge to form four to six dark rings at the end. It has a small head with high-set eyes.

Stone House, Ooty

Stone House at Ooty is the first bungalow that has been built in the region. It was built by John Sullivan of Eat India Company in the year 1882 on a land acquired from the tribe Todas.

It is a simple bungalow built in the style of British cottages with sloping roofs. The surroundings are lush green with withe ferns and pine trees.

Today, it is the official residence of the Principal of the Government Arts College, Ooty.

Images of India - 77

A glimpse of heritage monument of India in black and white. Check other posts that will give you more details about this monument.

Mukteshwar Temple area in Bhubaneshwar