Mysore and around Part 7 Halebid Hoysaleswara Temple

Date of Visit : 12-Feb-2011

I had visited Shravanabelagola,Halebid (aka Halebidu) and Belur in that order on a day's trip from Mysore.
I chose to write about Halebid first as I liked it the most.. not that the others were not good.. in fact all the three were not Good.... but Great..! I was kind of astounded by the carvings of Halebid more than the other two..In fact that was one of the reasons for my to kind of rushing thru the previous Mysore Posts.. Just to get to this post as soon as possible..! Simply Awesome..Awe-Inspiring place..!

The two Hoysala temples at Belur and Halebid are wonderful. Beautiful friezes, sculptures, carvings, interior columns, ceilings are all , I would say stunning...! If enormity and huge magnitude characterized Mamallapuram monuments, sculptures at Halebid are characterized by intricacy and miniaturization...! I am amazed at the workmanship and committment. Lot of hard work and dedication had gone into this great monument that was built over 80+ years..!

I have been dreaming of visiting this place for a long time (ever since I saw a song sequence shot at Halebid in the famous Tamil Movie Karnan ) and I am glad, I made it finally.
Truly speaking, I didn't imagine it to be this spectacular and awesome.. I have always thought of Hampi to be greatest of all monuments of Karnataka..and I am sure Halebid will rank among the bests, if not the best of Karnataka..!

17km apart, and about 2.5 hours by car from Mysore at a distance of 16o kms from it, Belur and Halebid were built in the 12th century during the Hoysala dynasty. Belur was dedicated to Lord Krishna while Halebid hosts a Siva Temple.

Of the two, the most impressive (in my opinion , of course!) was Halebid. The intricate carvings and idols depict some stories from Mahabharatha.

I also understand there are a couple of great Jain Temples in Halebid, I did not have time to visit them.

For more details, please consult our friend-wikipedia and Wiki travel

Halebid does not have many restaurants, I understand. I  had my lunch at KSTDC Hotel, just in front of the Hoysaleswara temple. In fact, you can watch this temple while eating there..! The food was mediocre.. not bad..! I had a thali.

I guess, I have given some information of this place on which lot of details can be browsed on the net too, if what I gave is insufficient..! So let's get going with pictures..!

They will serve you at the lawn/garden if you like it..!

My son was stunned at the marvelous structure..!

Entrance

The huge Nandhi is really imposing and elegant.! Harsh sun caused burnt some details  in my quest to capture the Nandhi in the shadow..!



Can we even carve these out of Soap cakes, leave alone wood or any other medium.?



While one pair of hands can carve this, isn't it ironical that another pair deems it fit to be destroyed?. No two persons in the world are same.!. I can't believe that human mind is capable of this cruelty..!

You can see the finger prints of Bamini Sultans every where..Painful isn't it?

Let's now get into the temple...The interiors are equally breath taking..!

These stone grids are really enchanting..

Can you see the broken hands here too?

I doubt, if such a nice polished round can be got even with today's machinery..!

Through the key hole..of the locked sanctum santorum (camera allowed..!)

The decorative carvings on the inner wall of the roof..

They would not move out of this elegant comfort..!

Full Set of 300+ Photos

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I left Halebid with a feeling of leaving behind a lot unexplored..The one and a half hour that i spent there was grossly insufficient to capture / assimilate the beauty of the exquisite carvings..! But I captured enough to keep me going till I visit this place again sometime in future again..! 

One can write a post for each sculpture here, as each has a story/theme behind it..!

Musical Slideshow of Photos

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