murudeshwar the land undiscovered

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THE ROAD TOMURUDESHWARRubina P. Banerjee recounts the sights, smells and tastes on herpilgrimage to the temple town of Murudeshwar, on a beautiful beach


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The car seemed stuck in an

impasse as we made our way

through the trac-logged streets

of Bangalore, yet today, nothing

seemed to matter and every aspect of the

journey the jams, the innumerable packets

of peanuts and the incessant chatter was

proof of the excitement that could scarcely

be repressed. Yes, we were on a long drive

to Murudeshwar, a beautiful beach in Uttar

Kannada.

Once the city limits receded, the drive was

a dream. Small villages seemed to melt away

as we passed Hassan, Kunigal, Sakleshpur,

and the names seemed to y by. At

Sakleshpur we noticed the signs indicating

that the Gomatheshwara statue was but afew kilometers away. A detour was in order.

Leaving the road to Bantwal we took the

road to Mudigere and from there to Karkala!

is is the beauty of a trip spurred by pure

wanderlust roads to be taken at will

without conforming to any plan or having to

meet a deadline.

Down the mud roads we went, leaving the

black asphalt roads to Karkala, and quaint

little villages unfolded with their open

skies, embracing the vast stretches of green.

Canopies of huge tamarind trees shielded

us from the midday sun and shimmering

lotus ponds beckoned as we turned into a

small red mud road, lined by humble huts

which skirted the monument. Karkala, the

name of the town derives from kari-kal,

meaning black stone in Tulu. Located in

the Udupi district of Karnataka, the town

is known for its black granite from which it

derives its name. Karkala or Pandya Nagari

as it was called, shot into prominence from

the time of the Hoysalas. Its history hails

back to antiquity, the Vijaynagara period.One of the eminent Kings of Karkala was

Veera Pandya, who built the famous single

stone 42-foot (13 mt) black granite statue

of Gomateshwara (Lord Bahubali), at the

insistence of his Jain guru in 1432. It was he

who installed the Brahmadeva Pillar in front

of the statue in 1436. e statue of Lord

Bahubali towered over us and gleamed in th

sun. It is second to only Shravanbelagolas

67- statue of Bahubali. From the base of

the hill, a slightly curving set of steep steps

leads to the top. Enroute to the top is the

Parshwanatha Padmavati Basadi, a Jain

shrine. e statue is enclosed by a square

compound in front of which stands the

Brahmadeva Pillar. e midday sun beating

down on our backs was reason enough

reason to beat a hasty retreat. is huge

exquisitely carved monolith seemed like

such a contradiction amongst the small huts

it stood amidst. It seemed like the past was

mocking the present! Shops selling Mogra

malas, kumkum, pujaware, lined the lane an

at one of these I found a beautiful Ganapati,carved out of a single black granite stone for

a mere hundred rupees.

e route from Karkala to Mangalore is

one of the most picturesque routes Ive ever

taken, surrounded by dense vegetation and

groups of monkeys, who sat on the skirting,

indierent to speeding cars. A slight nip

Statue of Lord Bahubali in Karkala

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in the air and the beautiful smell of foliage

announced our spectacular ascent into the

ghats! Little streams hidden in the dense

green, gleamed like strings of pearls, as the

road rose and fell, aording breathtaking

views that only the minds camera could click

and record for posterity. e drive lasted for

an hour and we found ourselves welcomed

by the smell of the sea in the coastal town of

Mangalore.

It was almost 3pm. e heat, the drive

and the salty sea air stirred up quite an

appetite. Food was the need of the hour!

Asking around at MG Road, we settled for

e Village restaurant on Bondel Road. e

ambience was in keeping with the name,

thatched roofs and a waterfall to boot!

Since we were the late lateefs we got a table

immediately, which only made us like theplace all the more. We wolfed down the

starters Prawn sukka and Kane fry and

were ready in a trice for the Mangalorean sh

curry with the traditional unpolished rice,

ghee roast crab, lobster Neeruli and some

so sannas, complimented by a spicy sambar

and some papad. e meal nally over, we

waddled out and the car groaned under our

collective bulk. Now we needed a break and

maybe a short siesta. It was almost evening

and the suns rays had mellowed when we

hit the Panambur beach. Picturesque is the

only apt word to describe the orange ball of

the sun as it emblazoned the waves with a

vermillion glow and the catamarans riding

the waves, framed by the silver sands of the

beach and a wisp of a sea breeze. Lying on

the sand was one of the the most beautiful

moments for me sun-warmed sand and

the so lapping of the waves and the feel of

freedom that only the sea can give. When

we woke, a sliver of moon had appeared in

the yet-to-darken skies. It was time to catch

the aarati at the famous Krishna temple in

Udupi. e drive to Udupi is only 58 kms,but the roads were narrow and crowded and

it took us some time.

What a wealth of myths surrounds the

town of Udupi. It derives its name from the

Tulu Odipu or alternately from the Sanskrit

words Udu and Pa, which means Lord

of the stars. Legend has it the the moons

light was once reduced due to a curse by

King Daksha, whose 27 daughters (the

27 stars), were married to the moon. e

moon prayed to Lord Shiva to get back his

original sheen and the Lord answered his

prayers. It is said that the moon and his

wives then oered salutations to the Lord at

the Chandramouleeshwara temple at Udupi,

which till today boasts of the Linga at which

the moon and the stars prayed. Hence, Udupi

means the land of the lord of the stars, the

moon. And indeed it was the moon and a

sprinkling of stars that lit our way to Udupi.e journey was a short one but we were

already late. ousands of people thronged

for the Darshan and we wandered from

one line to another. Whenever Im waiting

in a queue in a temple, my bhakti seems

to evaporate! I kept walking around the

temple and then I saw the Kanakana Kindi.

People jostled there too but I was able to

get a glimpse of the Lord. It is believed that

in the 16th century, Kanakadasa, an ardent

devotee, was turned away from the temple a

he was not a brahmin. He tried to see Lord

Krishna from a small window, but was only

able to see the back of the deity. It is believed

that Sri Krishna was won over by his bhakti

and turned to face the window. To this day,

the deity of Lord Krishna faces the back of

the Mutt towards the Kanakana Kindi and

while all Hindu temples have their Vigraha

(Deity) facing the entrance of the temple,the Krishna Mutt is the only exception. e

Kanakana Kindi is decorated with carvings

depicting the dasavatars of Vishnu. rough

one of its nine small holes, I saw the deity of

Sri Krishna. e statue was of Krishna as a

very young boy, holding a butter churning

rod in his right hand and a rope in his le,

Murudeswar Temple

Murudeswara Linga

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reminding us o his Makhan Chor days.

us, like Kanakadas, I was privileged to

see the Lord despite the milling crowds. I

felt blessed! Strains of Krishna nee begane

baro trijagavanne toro. Krishna nee begane

baro (Come soon Oh Krishna and show your

blessed face), seemed to ring around me as I

made my way out of the temple.

e town of Udupi is perhaps more

famous for its cuisine. Crisp masala dosas

with sambar and coconut chutney, so uy

idlis, tasty rawa upma, all these are what

make Udupi famous the world over. When

in Udupi, masala dosa is a must and what

a sumptuous dinner it makes. Checking in

to the Sai Vishram resort, we retired for the

night. A blissful sleep was the reward for our

weary bodies!

e sunrise was serene and the sands

were inviting. Walking on the beach, I wasdelighted to nd beautiful speckled shells

in the dew-drenched sand. What could be a

better memento than this! But there was little

time to linger as we had to start our drive to

our destination, Murudeshwar!

A short drive and we were in the small

town of Manipal, which sits majestically atop

a hill and is renowned as a seat of learning.

Home to the Manipal University, the town

houses 19 colleges, in the elds of business,

engineering and health sciences. Students

walking with headsets, internet cafes,

gleaming contemporary buildings, Manipal

seemed to be the perfect compromise

between open and urban living. It commands

a spectacular view of the Arabian Sea and is

named aer the 400 metre-lake (Mannu or

mud and Palla or lake) at its centre. It was

once a barren hill and was transformed into

this cosmopolitan university town with the

eorts of Dr TM A Pai in the 1950s. Leaving

the civilized streets of Manipal, we reached

End Point at Manipal, where a small cli

overlooks the Swarna River. e view of the

Arabian Sea from here is truly a sight to see!

From here our drive began along the

coast. e serene sea meeting the sky at thehorizon, the golden sands skirting the road

and the sea-kissed balmy breeze, what more

could we ask for. Before reaching Bhatkal we

came to a little village, where market day was

on in full swing. Women in large kumkum

bindis and the typical green or maroon

Karnataka weave saris, lined the little road

with their vegetables, fruits, rewood strewn

in piles on the dust road. Raw tamarind

was hard to resist and I picked up a few,

relishing it with a little salt, while I took

in the colours. At one end under a circle

of trees we chanced across a group of men

dancing. Later, we learnt this dance is know

as Kolata. Kolata or stick dance is a kind of

valour dance involving groups of people wh

indulge in bending, swaying and jumping to

the tune of rhythmic clashing of sticks. With

two sticks in hand, each dancer can strike in

various patterns and rhythms. Sticks clickin

ebony bodies move to the beat, all sweat and

smilestruly magical!

Leaving beautiful Bhatkal behind,

we nally catch sight of Murudeshwar!

Astoundingly beautiful is the initial

reactione vast expanse of the beach and

the blue skies, with only Lord Shiva lookingon! is statue of Shiva is the tallest in the

world (127)! Seated in the posture of the

ascetic, with his trishula and damaru, the

Lord looked a bit troubled. His eyes seemed

to express his displeasure at being drawn

away from his abode in Kailasa and the

beatic smile of Shiva was missing from his

Lord Shiva gazes down on his devotees on the beach Waterfall near

Murudeswar

Pilgrims in te

temple town

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Murudeswar beac

lips.e towering Raja gopuram (249 ) was

also visible. It has been built in recent times,

as testimony to our living heritage and cras.

Despite these new additions the town of

Murudeshwar is ancient, and nds mention

in the Ramayana as Mrideshwara .

An ancient myth surrounds the origins

of the temple. e demon king Ravana won

over the Atma Linga from Shiva with his

penance. Lord Shiva agreed to give him

a boon, with the condition that it should

never be placed on the ground, for if the

AtmaLinga was placed on the ground, all

the powers would return to Lord Shiva. Sage

Narada realised that with the Atma Linga,

Ravana may obtain immortality and create

havoc on earth. He approached Lord Ganesh

and requested him to prevent the Atma

Linga from reaching Lanka. Lord Ganeshwas well aware of the devotion of Ravana

and his ritualistic prayers every evening.

He came up with a plan to trick Ravana. As

Ravana was nearing Gokarna, Lord Vishnu

blotted out the sun to give the appearance

of dusk. Ravana was worried, because with

the AtmaLinga in his hands, he would not be

able to do his evening rituals. Lord Ganesh

arrived, disguised as a little Brahmin boy.

Ravana requested him to hold the Atma

Linga until he performed his rituals, and

asked him not to place it on the ground.

Ganesh struck a deal with him saying that

he would call Ravana thrice, and if Ravana

did not return, he would place the Atma

Linga on the ground. Before Ravana could

return, Ganesh had already placed the Atma

Linga on the ground aer calling out to

him. Ravana, realising he had been tricked,

tried to uproot and destroy the Atma Linga.

Due to the force exerted by him, one piece

fell in Surathkal. e famous Sadashiva

temple is said to be built there. He decided

to destroy the covering of the Atma Linga,

and threw the case covering it to a place

called Sajjeshwara, en he threw the lid ofthe case to Guneshwara (now Gunavanthe),

and Dhareshwara, 12 miles away. Finally, he

threw the cloth covering the Atma Linga to a

placed called Mrideshwara in Kanduka-Giri

(Kanduka Hill), and it became the Aghora

linga, later renamed as Murudeshwara.

Learning of the incident from Lord Vayu,

Lord Shiva, along with Goddess Parvathi

and Lord Ganesha, visited these places and

consecrated the lingas. He declared these

lingas as his pancha-khshetras and said tha

worshipping these idols can wash o the

sins of his devotees and free them from the

cyclical re-incarnation of the soul.

Inside, the temple was entirely

modernized with the exception of the

sanctum sanctorum which was still dark

and solemn. e main deity, Sri Mridesa

Linga, is about two feet below ground level.

e Lingam is essentially a rough rock

inside a hollowed spot in the ground ad is

illuminated by oil lamps. As devotees we

could only view the deity from the threshol

of the sanctum.

As we le the temple aer Darshan it

started raining torrentially and we werecompletely drenched. Taking refuge in the

RNS hotel, we sipped our steaming hot lte

coee, watching the rains lash the beach an

the waves crash against the rocks. Lord Shiv

seemed to be raining his blessings on us and

a silent prayer rose to my lips Om Namaha

Shivaye!

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murudeshwar the land undiscovered

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