R.I DISTRICT 3180

THE MANY SPLENDOURED DISTRICT

Karnataka, the eight largest state of the Indian union is a state with legends, mythology and history intertwined together. R.I District 3180 encompassing the revenue districts of Mysore, Chamrajnagar, Hassan, Shimoga, Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Kodagu and Chickmagalur is a kaleidoscope exhibiting the multifaceted diversity of this region.

MYSORE - CITY OF PALACES

Mysore, also called the city of palaces is one of the southern districts of Karnataka. Legend tells us that the place got its name from Mahishasura, the demon king who ruled here and was killed by Goddess Chamundeshwari after an epic nine-day battle. The tenth day is celebrated as Dasara-the day of victory of good over evil, mythologically referred as Mahishamasti in the great epic Mahabharatha. Historically known as Hadinadu in some 10th century archaeological records, the city was named Mysore Nagara by the Chamaraja Wodeyar in 1524 AD. Ruled by a succession of dynasties like the Cholas, Gangas, Hoysalas, Vijayanagar emperors and Wodeyars, Mysore today combines traditional grandeur with modernity and emerges as one of the most beautiful and best planned cities in India. The city is famous for its fragrant jasmine, smooth silk and the traditional sandalwood carvings and inlay work.
Of the seven palaces strewn across the city, the main palace Amba Vilas is unquestionably the grandest of all, containing one of the most interesting objects associated with the Wodeyars. The 200-Kg golden throne displayed during Dasara is a piece of art.
The Jaganmohan Palace is a treasury of pictures and art objects illustrating Mysore's history and personalities. It also has a wide collection of Raja Ravi Varma's paintings. Established in 1892 the popular Mysore Zoological garden boasts of a wide variety of animals and has the rare distinction of breeding wild animals in captivity.
Other places of interest are the magnificent St. Philomena's Church. The Hoysalas have left their indelible stamp on the soil of Mysore in the form of the Channakeshava temple at Somanathpur and Dharmapura.
Several regional and central institutions such as C.F.T.R.I, Central Sericulture Institute, Defence Food Research Laboratory, Regional College of Education, Central Institute of Indian Languages, the Folklore Museum, the Directorate of Archeology and Museums and the oldest University in the state are situated in Mysore..

CHAMARAJNAGAR - THE CITY OF SILK

Part of the Mysore district; Chamarajnagar is 61 kms away from Mysore. Arikothara was named Chamarajnagar in 1818 AD by Sri Krishnaraja Wodeyar III in memory of his father Chamaraja Wodeyar who was born there. The earliest reference to this place dates back to 1116 AD during the reign of the Hoysala king Vishnuvardhan when the Vijayaparshwanatha Basadi was built there.
The most conspicuous structure is the large Chamarajeshwara temple built by KrishnaRaja Wodeyar III. A stone tablet on the wall of the temple states that the town with the temple was established in memory of Chamaraja Wodeyar in 1828 AD.
The Chamarajaeshwara temple has a large enclosure with golden pinnacles and several shrines all around. The presiding deity Lord Chamarajeshwara is in the form of a Shiva lingam, which is believed to have been originally brought from Sringeri with the blessings of the Shankaracharya.
The town has several temples dedicated to the various gods of the Hindu pantheon, notably the Narayanaswamy temple, the Bhujangeshwara temple and the Veerabhadra temple. It also has a historical mosque called Jamia Masjid ascribed to Tipu Sultan.
The modern town of Chamarajnagar is a busy active commercial centre having a large number of sericulturists producing several fine varieties of silk cocoons. Large tracts of land are forested having trees yielding valuable sandalwood, rosewood and teak. The towns of Haradanahalli, Hoealur, Honasur, Kestur, Kollegal and Maleyur have temples dating back to several centuries built by several dynasties from the Gangas to the Rayas of Vijayanagar.
The Taluk of Kollegal was under the Madras presidency in Coimbatore district after it fell into the hands of the British in 1799 after the 4th Mysore war. It was transferred to Karnataka after the reorganisation of states in 1956. According to a legend, two sages Kohala and Galava are said to have performed penance at this place and hence it became Kohalagalava Kshetra. A 1224 AD Tamil inscription mentions the name Kollagaara as an agrahara and a later record dated 1569 AD mentions the place as Kologaala. The town has a strong tradition of the Shri Vaishnava form of worship perhaps because people of Tamil origin have continuously inhabited it.
Krishnaraja Wodeyar III granted the town of Yelandur as a jagir to Dewan Purniah for his services rendered to the throne. The celebrated pilgrimage centres of Malai Mahadeshwara and Gopalaswamy are situated in this district. The 15th century Saint Mahadeshwara was the head of the locally popular Hardanahalli mutt. The dense forest forming the fringes of the western ghats are inhabited by the Soliga and Kuruba tribes..

HASSAN - HAUNT OF THE HOYSALAS

The beautiful Hoysala temples dotted all over the modern district of Hassan bear eloquent testimony and ultimate tribute of the Hoysala dynasty and their master craftsman to art in its finest form.
Situated in the south eastern part of Karnataka on the right bank of the river Yagachi, Hassan is today the centre of India's satellite programme as the master control facility is located in this town. It is hard to believe that the small village what is today Halebid was once the flourishing capital, Dwarasamudra of the Hoysalas before it was reduced to rubble by the invaders. The celebrated towns are Belur, Halebid, Arsikere and Javagal. The villages of Haranahalli, Hullekere, Nugginahalli, Koravangala and Mosale, to name a few, have temples that symbolise the confluence of Dravidian, Chalukyan and Chola art.
The celebrated Channakeshava temple at Belur is well known for its star shape and the 38 exotic bracket figures (Madanikas) displaying feminine form in playful, joyful and amorous moods. 17 kms from Belur is Halebid, which has the strikingly beautiful Hoysaleshwara and Kedareshwara temples and many Jaina shrines. The monolithic statue of Lord Gomateshwara (175 Mts.) towers over the summit of Indragiri peak in Shravanabelagola, which is considered the spiritual home of the Jain sect. Hassan is a picturesque town in the heart of the Malnad region of Karnataka with rich vegetation and a pleasant climate..

SHIMOGA - PRIDE OF MALNAD

Situated roughly in the mid-south western part of the state, Shimoga is an important industrial, commercial and educational centre situated on the bank of the river Thunga.
Ruled by the Satavahana dynasty in the 3rd century AD, it was a part of the Chalukyan Empire in the 6th century AD. A century later it came under the jain chieftains, ruled by the Rastrakutas from the 9th century until it passed on to the Hoysalas in the 11th century and then became part of the Vijayanagar empire in the 14th century. Around the beginning of the 16th century, the Keladi Nayakas took over the area and remained in control till 1763 when Hyder Ali annexed the kingdom to Mysore's Wodeyar dynasty.
The western part of the district has tropical forests; the eastern part has several lakes and river valleys. 19 kms from Shimoga, on the banks of the river Bhadra is the steel town of Bhadravathi. It was here that the first state owned Iron and Steel factory was started in 1923 and a paper factory in 1936.
Historically important imprints have been left by the succession of rulers in the form of breathtakingly beautiful temples like the Lakshminarasimha temple, built by the Hoysalas at Bhadravathi, the Aghoreshwara temple in Ikkeri, the Jain temple of Humcha in Hosanagara, the Kubatur temple at Soraba and architecturally splendorous Kedareshwara temple at Balligame to name a few. Home of a unique tribe, the Goravas, Shimoga also has it's own dance form in the vigorous folk drum dance "Dollu-Kunitha". The traditional sandalwood craftsmen, the gudigars have created a name for themselves in the Soraba-Sagar belt of Shimoga.
One of the grandest natural spectacles in this part of India is at Jog, where river Sharavathi flowing over a rocky bed reaches a deep chasm of 292 Mts. and leaps down in four distinct falls - Raja, Rani, Roarer, Rocket presenting a magnificent sight. .

DAKSHINA KANNADA - THE COMMERCIAL HUB

Mangalore, the district headquarters of Dakshina Kannada, is a mixture of the old and new. It is situated near the breakwaters of the converging Nethravathi and Gurpur rivers. It has a modern major port that boasts of a long history of maritime trade. The New Mangalore Port Trust is the lifeline supplying petroleum products to major towns in Karnataka and neighboring states and also exporting iron ore mined at Kudremukh to several destinations across the globe.
Although developed as a business and commercial centre, it still retains it's old world charm with tile roofed buildings amidst coconut groves and St. Aloysius College chapel with it's frescoes done by Italian Jesuit Antonio Moscheni cry for attention amidst high raised buildings and modern shopping complexes.
Kadri hills with its laterite caverns, Manjunatha temple dating back to the 10th century, Tipu Sultan's Battery, Jamma Masjid and the ancient Mangala Devi temple are the important places of interest. Dharmasthala with it's Shaivite presiding deity of Lord Manjunatha has vaishnavite priests and is administered by Dr. Veerendra Heggade, a Jain. Puttur, a Taluk headquarter is known for it's natural water springs 'Bendre Tirtha'.
Situated amidst captivating hill settings is the 'Gupta shetra'- Sri Subramanya temple, where the Nagas sought protection of Subramanya and lived in the caves. Karthikeya is worshipped here in the form of a cobra. The place is a sea of humanity during Subramanya Shasti.
Venur is known for the Gomateshwara statue installed in 1605 AD. Moodabidri, described as the 'Jaina Kashi' is known for the 18 basadis, the most famous of them being the Savira Khambada Basadi (thousand pillar temple), built in 1430 AD which houses a priceless collection of jewel studded metal images of Jaina Tirthankaras in the Sri Chandrakantha Swami Tribhuvanatilaka Jain temple. Karkala, 17 kms from Moodbidri, is renowned for the 42ft monolithic statue of Gomateshwara.

UDUPI-THE TROPICAL PARADISE.

The recently bifurcated district of Udupi earlier formed part of Tulunadu, the land of the industrious Tuluvas. The district headquarters, Udupi is a noted Vaishnavite temple where Madhwacharya, the propounder of the Dvaita philosophy established eight sanyasi mutts. The geologically significant basalt columns at St. Mary's Islands nearby are a popular picnic spot.
5 kms from Udupi is Manipal, a centre of modern learning founded by the legendary Pai family. Manipal boasts of several colleges and Institutions of higher learning managed by the Manipal Academy of Higher Learning. Udupi is considered the cradle of banking and hoteliering.
Yakshagana is a unique dance drama which is an all night affair performed with gorgeous costumes, elaborate makeup, quick movements, beating of drums accompanied by a narration in poetic form, art form is indigenous of coastal Karnataka region. The institute of Yakshagana at MGM College is a pioneer in the revival and practice of this art form.
Malpe beach, 8kms away from Udupi, is quiet which is an ideal place for a swim in the frothing and foaming sea. Kollur is another pilgrim town at the foot of the western ghats known for its Mookambika temple. Adi Shankaracharya installed the idol here. North of Udupi along the coastal road towards Byndoor is the scenic Maravanthe beach. The Arabian Sea and the Souparnika river border the highway on either side.
The sea side towns of Kundapur and Byndoor have huge ancestral houses built entirely of wood. Udyawara near Brahmavara is the ancient capital of the "Allupas" who ruled Tulunadu in Kasaragodu between 700 to 900 Ad.
The district of Udupi viewed, as a strong hold of conservative Hinduism is also the centre for the distinctly non-brahminical tradition of Bhuta cult. The Nandishwara temple at Mekkekattu houses the largest collection of Bhuta icons made of jackfruit wood. Another sight not to be missed is the "Kambala" or the buffalo race, run in the paddy fields flush with water by a pair of buffaloes egged on by a strong muscled riot.

KODAGU-LAND OF THE BRAVE

Breathtakingly beautiful, complete with green-topped hills and lush valley, Kodagu or Coorg is the land where the legendary river Cauvery takes source and flows in all splendour.
Amidst the vast and verdant plantations of coffee, cardamom, orange and pepper, live the fiercely independent warrior planter clans of the Kodavas, who were never conquered by either Tippu Sultan or the British and so to this day, all Kodavas retain the privilege of carrying firearms without licence.
Madikeri, the district headquarters has a hill fort built by the Lingayat kings of Kodagu.
The Omkareshwara temple at Madikeri is a curious mix of Islamic and Gothic styles of architecture. Talacauvery is where the life giving river goddess Cauvery takes source and nearby Bhagamandala is dotted with apiaries, as bee keeping is an old tradition of Kodagu.
This is what the English man Hilton Brown had to say of this land of Field marshal K.M.Cariappa and General Thimmaya in his article 'The Astonishing land of Coorg' in 1922. "I have called Coorg an astonishing land so it is astonishing in the respect already mentioned that, being considerably smaller than Aberdeenshire, it is ranked as a fully and separately constituted province in a country where mere districts run to half the size of Scotland. That fact, in itself, should lead one to expectations".
"But it is astonishing in many other ways and principally because, being situated in the heart of the South Indian peninsula, it continues to be what it is, as solitary island somewhere in the South seas, it would be remarkable and beautiful, it would be at least credible, wedged in between Tellicherry and Hunsur, it is scarcely that we could solace ourselves with the water meadows of Fraserpet or climb to the wind swept grass plateau of the Brahmagiris, where the sambar walk in open solitude, and in the end descend into Malabar by the Saratabbhi Barapore river which must surely be as fine a piece of scenery on the grand scale as there is on earth".

CHIKAMAGALUR - CRADLE OF COFFEE

Legend says that Chikamagalur is said to have been given as a dowry to the younger daughter to Rukmangada, the legendary chief of Sakrepatna, while Hiremagalur (older daughter's town) which is another part of the city was given as dowry to the elder daughter.
Situated on the banks of the river Bhadra, the district is closely associated with the Hoysala dynasty, it was at Soseyur (today known as Angadi) in Mudigere Taluk that Sala, the founder of the dynasty killed the tiger which was later immortalised in the Hoysala crest by the master craftsmen.
Geographically situated in the southwestern part of Karnataka, carved against a mountainous canvas, this beautiful Malnad district is where the Europeans first sowed the coffee bean almost 200 years ago. Till today, Chikmagalur district remains the major producer of coffee in India.
The district with dense tropical evergreen forests also has some of the most picturesque spots like the Kalthatti falls in Tarikere Taluk, Sunlit valley at Horanadu, River valley near Kalasa, Muthodi forest range with Bhadra wildlife sanctuary the gentle hills of the mining giant Kudremukh, Sringeri the seat of the Adwaitha School of thought, the Balehonnur mutt, Channakeshava temple at Marle, Veeranarayana temple at Belvadi, Amritheshwara temple at Amirthapura and the Imam Dattatreya peetha are some of religious stops amidst the coffee plantations which blossom in an expanse of snow white in the flowering season.

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