While the modern day Karnataka is known for and attracts a lot of tourists to its renowned places like "Mysore Palace" , "Hampi" , "Halebeedu" there are so many undiscovered marvels hidden in the shy villages of Karnataka which are often overlooked by many tourists.
If you take few off beaten paths there are some rich and sophisticated architectures waiting to be found in the small villages of Karnataka from the Southern part of India. Dating back to more than 1000 years , these places would definitely leave even the modern Architects and Historians of the 21st Century bewildered by their art , accuracy and beauty !!!
If you are in India these places are definitely worth a visit before you think of heading to Taj Mahal or paying a visit to the Rajasthan's palaces !!!
We are on a trial to visit and uncover these hidden gems , show you guys a whole new side of Southern India !!!
The Hoysala's
Hoysala, A powerful Empire from Southern India , ruled over what is now the modern day Karnataka and parts of Tamil Nadu during the 12th and 13th Century.
The Kingdom gained popularity under the rule of its King "Vishnuvardhana".
Vishnuvardhana , formerly known as "Bittiga" who had changed his name , converted to Hinduism and started building some of the most magnificent and sophisticated temples for Hindu deities under the teachings of Vaishnava reformer "Ramanuja" while his wife "Shanthala Devi" still remained a Jain and continued building Basadis for Jain deities.
His son "Narasimha I" and grandson "Veera Ballala II" followed his legacy and footsteps to complete these bewildering structures.
The Folklore
There is a folklore which came up first in Vishnuvardhana's inscriptions about how the name "Hoysala" happened to be and the story goes like this , a brave boy named "Sala" saved his teacher / Guru and his fellow students from a Tiger by striking it with his sword near the temple of goddess Vasanthika.
"Hoy" means strike in old Kannada and "Sala" being the name of the boy , the name HoySala came into being.
It is said that this boy grew to start one of the most powerful Empires of the Southern India "The Hoysala's". The emblem of the Hoysala's depicts this folklore with a warrior striking a Tiger but this story does not have any substantial proof and still remains as a popular folklore.
The Architecture
One of the most sophisticated architectures in the world , articulated with detailed sculptures depicting the social life of the era and ancient Indian epics of Mahabharata , Ramayana and Bhagawatham.
The character of the Hoysala temples is far different from any other temples in India.
The structures are mostly in the shape of a star or a staggered square when looked from an areal view and the shrines contain intricate carvings which could look like rhythmical mess of beautiful sculptures for an untrained eye , but there has been so much logic , accuracy , vasthu shastra and order gone into building these structures.
Interpreting these sculptures is quite difficult without a local guide or someone with a knowledge about the Epics , the sculptures and the history of the temple.
After 1000's of years later still many fine temples stand tall even after suffering the ravages of time and war.
Though Halebedu and Belur are two places that are popular destinations when it comes to Hoysala architecture , there are hundreds of more beautiful smaller temples which are hidden in small villages.
We have visited a couple of temples and are still on the trial to discovering more such bewildering beauties in an attempt to bring them in front of our readers.
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