Tourist and pilgrim sites in and around Mantralaya, Raichur

In my earlier articles, I had written about different routes to Mantrayala from Bangalore. Several friends and readers have asked me why I have delayed writing about places of interest in and around Mantralaya.

Mantralaya is in Andhra Pradesh. It is is 53 km from Adoni or Adwani, 24 km from Yemmiganur ,100 km from Kurnool, 250 km from Hyderabad,  35 km from Raichur and 120 km from Bellary.

Raichur is in Karnataka and it is just an hour’s drive from Mantralaya. There are several places associated with Raghavendra Swamy in the district.  

Raichur district was known as the Doab as it is sandwiched between the Tungabhadra and Krishna rivers. The Doab was the reason for several wars between the Vijayanagar Kingdom and the Bahamanis and later the Adil Shahis.

Raichur is known as the rice bowl of India. It is today the only place producing gold after the closure of KGF in Kolar district of Karnataka. There are several small islands in the district formed by the Tungabhadra and Krishna rivers and you can enjoy them.

Raichur can be very hot during summers. So avoid it from say March to July. It is also home to one of the biggest thermal ppwers stations in India-RTPS.

Some of the historical and religious places of interest in and around Raichur are:

Bichale or Bhikshalaya

This is the place on Tungabhadra river where Raghavendra Swamy or Rayaru spent 13 years of his life with Appanacharya. Take in the Japada Katte where Rayaru and Appanacharya spent hours discussing philosophy and religion. There is an Ekashila Brindavana of Raghavendra Swamy which is the first outside Mantralaya.

The house of Appanacharya that Rayaru stayed has been rebuilt after the flood waters of Tungabhadra damaged it in 2009.

Madhwacharya has consecrated the idol of Ugra Narasimha here and Vyasa Raja, the previous avatar of  Raghavendra consecrated the  Hanuman temple.

Combine you visit to Bichale with  Panchamukhi Anjaneya Temple.

Panchamukhi Anjaneya Temple

This is in Raichur district. It is 22 kms from Mantralaya. The route is through Madhavaram village from where the stone slabs for the Brindavana were used. Even today, a piece of the stone used to make the Brindavana, is left behind.

After Madhavaram, take a right turn and proceed till you reach Tungabhadra river. When you cross the river you enter Raichur district.

Take the road till you reach Chiksugur camp junction. The road to the right leads to Panchamukhi Anjaneya Temple while the left leads you to Bichale.

The Panchamukhi Anjaneya Temple is open for Darshan from 5 -30 a.,m to  1 p.m.  It opens again in the evening and close at 8 p.m. This idol is closely associated with Rayaru.

From here, Bichale is 18 kms.

The Panchamukhi Temple is in Gandhal. It is about 31kms south of Raichur.

The temple  is situated on a hillock and is closely associated with Raghavendra Swamy.

During his stay at Manchale, Rayaru  regularly visited holy places nearby. Two of these villages which he visited very frequently were Bichale  and Gandhal.

There was a cave in Gandhal where he frequently meditated. Locals say Rayaru spent days in meditation here. The cave is in top of a hillock. Rayaru meditated only after finishing the pooje of  Rama at the cave.

He has himself carved the figures of Venkateswara and  Lakshmi on the rock. One day, Hanuman appeared before Raghavendra Swamy with five faces.

Rayaru saw the five faces as that of Hanuman, Hayagriva, Narasimha, Garuda and Varaha. It is this form as Panchamukhi he carved on the rock.

The rocks around the hillock are a sight to see.  There are fifty steps that lead you to the cave. A narrow passage will lead you to the sanctum

Deodurg

Deodurg is 34 miles west of Raichur. It has a fort. It was the stronghold of the Bidar chieftains. There is a hill here which contains talc.

Devarbhupur

This small town  is 11 miles from Lingsugur. The Amareshwara temple is located amidst hillocks and rolling forests.

The deity is also known as  Gurugunta Amareshwara which is a Shiva Linga.
There is a small well besides the  idol called Gadagi Bhavi. Bhavi in Kannada means well. The water from the well enters the main temple and reaches the Linga and then forms into a pool. Devottes take the water as Theertha.
The annual fair of the temple is held in Phalguna and commences from the day of Holi, Kamana Hunnime or Pournami. The fair will continue for a month and several theatre groups pitch their tents here.

 
Devasugur

Devarsugur is on the  Krishna river. It is famous for the Surugeshwara or Veerabhadra Temple.The annual jatra of this temple, held in the month of Margashira, attracts a large number of people.

Gabbur

Gabbur has many ancient temples and inscriptions. In ancient days, Gabbur was a major centre of education. It was then called Gopurugrama. There are many temples but some of the most important  are those of Male Shankara, Hanuman, Bangara Basappa, Venkateshwara and Ishwara or Shiva.

Another fascinating monument is a gateway Chandigage. There is a temple on either side of the gate. The Male Shankata Temple is built of rough grey stone.

The Venkateshwara Temple has three deities-two of Vishnu and another a Linga. There are seven cisterns called Sat Baoli.

The Bangara Basappa Temple houses a beautiful idol of Ganesha and two nandis.

Hutti

Hutti, which is the only gold producing area of Karnataka today, is 17 kms from Lingsugur. You have to take prior permission from the authorities if you want to see the mines.

Jaladurga

Jaladurga, in Lingsugur taluk, is an island fort surrounded by the Krishna.It is 13 kms from Lingsugur. The fort was held by the Adil Shahs of Bijapur.

Kadlur

Kadlur, in Raichur taluk, is a sacred place. It is here that Bhima joins the Krishna. The Vijayanagara Emperor Krishna Deva Raya visited this pilgrim center with his family and offered worship at the temple.

Kallur

Kallur is in Manvi taluk, located 19 kms from Raichur. The village is surrounded on all sides by granite hills except the east. There are six temples of which the Markendeshwara Temple is famous. Look  at the many wells here which are a thing of beauty.

The fort wall is in ruins.

 There is a temple of Srinivasa and Padmavathi here. According to legend, couples who want a child come here and worship the deities.

Kalmala

Kalmala,  9 miles from Raichur, has the samadhi of a saint, Kariappa Tata.

Kavital

Kavital is on the Raichur-Lingsugur road, about 64 miles from Raichur and 30 kms  from Lingsugur. There is a hillock to the south-west of the village which has several natural caves. Several pre-historic implements and pieces of pottery were discovered along the slopes of the hill here.

There is an ash mound on the top of  a hill where a temple has been built. The ash mound was the site of an old smelting factory. The Tryambakeshwara temple has three shrines, two of which are lingas. There are two Kannada inscriptions in the temple and a beautiful carving of Mahishasuramardini on the temple wall.

Korva or Naradagadde

Korva is in Raichur taluk. It is a small but beautiful island surrounded by the Krishna river. It is 30 kms  north-east of Raichur. Narada performed penance here. Hence, the name Naradagadde. There is a temple dedicate to Narada.

There is also a Veerashaiva Matha, the samadhi of  a saint called  Channabasava Swamy who lived about four centuries ago and a temple of Basavanna.

A little away from Naradagadde is Koormagadde (Kurumakshetra or Kuravakala) which has a Dattatreya Peetha and the samadhi of Sripadavallabha Swamy. This place is said to be the original place of Dattatreya. It has a temple dedicated to him.

Kotekal

Kotekal is in Manvi taluk and it is situated on the Raichur-Lingsugur road. The village has two hillocks with each having a fort. The slopes along these hillocks have yielded artifacts, iron-slag and gold-crushers, belonging to the prehistoric period.

Manvi

It is closely associated with Jagannatha Dasa. It has a fort and Jagganatha Swamy Temple.

Maski

Maski is in Lingsugur taluk, situated 26 kms south-east of Lingsugur. It is archaeologically important as several artefacts have been found here.

Mudgal

It is a historical place. The Vijayanagars and Bijapur kingdoms fought over this city.

The Mudgal fort is on a hillock. The fort was initially built by the Kakatiyas. It was conquered by the Vijayanagars and Adil Shahis.  

Mudval is in Lingsugur taluk is situated about 20 kms  from Lingsugur.

Several pre-historic artefacts have been discovered here.

Mukkunda

It is a small village located 32 kms from Sindhanur. There is an old fort on top of a hill. There is an old temple of Murari, built of stone. A small island in Tungabhadra has the dargah of Gaddikhader Wali, a saint.

Raichur

Raichur is the  headquarters of the district. It was ruled by the Khiljis, Vijayanagars, Bahmani, Bijapur, Mughal and Asaf Jahi kings.

The hill fort of Raichur, which was of great importance in the past, is surrounded on three sides by a double row of massive but low circuit walls. The inner wall of the fort was constructed by placing huge blocks of well-dressed and nicely fitted stones on top of each other, without the using any cementing material. The oldest inscription of the inner fort is dated 1294 AD. The inner fort wall was built by the Hindu kings.

The outer wall was built by he Muslim Kings. It contains five gateways: Mecca Darwaza on the west, Naurangi Darwaza on the north, Kati Darwaza on the east, Khandak Darwaza on the south and the Doddi Darwaza on the south-east.

The inner wall has two gateways: Sailani Darwaza on the west and the Sikandari Darwaza on the east.

The Mecca Darwaza and the adjoining walls were built  by Mallu Khan in 1470 during the reign of the Bahmani king Muhammad Shah III.

There are some marvelous drawings near this gate. A little away is a large depression known as  Banda Baoli.

There is a tomb of a Muslim saint, Pir Sailani Shah built in the Adil Shah style. There is also small mosque called the Kali Masjid.

The Jami Masjid  is a beautiful building having two entrances, one in the south and the other in the east.

The cemetery here contains the graves of some members of the Adil Shahi dynasty.  Opposite the Jami Masjid are the remains of an ancient Hindu palace. The structure is in ruins now, except for the old walled enclosure and the big entrance by the side of the present jail.

The Ek-Minar-ki_Masjid was constructed by Amber.

It has only one minaret which is 65 feett high and 13 ft. in diameter. The minaret has two storeys, each furnished with windows and surrounded by projecting galleries.

The Bala Hisar or the citadel is situated on the middle and the loftiest of the hills in the south-west corner of the fort. It is approached first by a flight of steps. There is agun placed on a circular platform.

The Panch Bibi Dargah or the Dargah of five lady saints is located here.  A Nandi or bull carved in granite is found here.

Roundkunda

Roudkunda, in Sindhanur taluk, is situated about 6 miles to the east of Gorebal, on the Sindhanur-Gangavati road. There are two hills with forts here.

Somalpur

Somalpur, in Sindhanur taluk, is 14 miles from Sindhanur. The Amba Devi temple, situated at the foot of a hill, is well-known.

Venkatapur

Venkatapur, in Lingsugur taluk, is about 3 miles due north of Maski. To the south of this village are two hills, along the skirts of which 45 cairns or man made stacks of  stones were found. Some of them are in pairs.

Chinna Tumbulam

The Narasimha Temple here is  200 years old. It is easily approachable from Mantralaya which is 25 kilometers away. Brigu Muni consecrated the Narasimha here.

Kowthala

Also known as Kowthalam, it is the native of  Jagannatha Dasa, the famous Haridasa. The temple is being renovated and a Harikathamruthasara mandira is being build by K Appannachar a desendent ofSri Guru Jagannatha Dasaru. This place is about 30 kilometers from Mantralayam off the Adoni Road.

Urukunda

The Narasimha Tample here has been recently renovated. It is 30 kilometers from Mantrlaya off the Adoni Road.

Ibharampura Kshetra

This is about 6 kms from Mantralaya. It is the abode of  Krishnacharya popularly known as Shri Ibharamapura Appavaru.

Basaladoddi

It has is a temple of Mukhya Prana consecrated by Vyasaraja.

Kosigi

This is the birth place of Jagannatha Dasa, an ardent devotee of Raghavendra Teertha, and considered to be an amsha sambhuta of Appannacharya. 

Jagannatha Dasa installed a Mukhya Prana idol here and regularly  worshipped it.

Kamavara

Gopala Dasa consecrated and worshipped a Mukkhya Prana idol here.

Budamala Doddi

Vyasaraja installed a Mukya Prana idol here. It is known as palikedevudu which in Telugu means  God who talks.

Holagunta

This village is home to the Mrithika Brindavana of  Vijayeendra Teertha (Kumbhakonam) and Shri Raghavendra Teertha.

Hatthibelagal

This is a small village where Raghavendra Swamy consecrated one of the two Hanuman  temples.

A Madhwa scholar, Narasimhacharya popularly known as Aralikatti Narasimhacharya, lived here. He is considered to be an amsha-sambhuta of Karna.  He is adyatma Guru of  Raghuprema Teertha of Kudli Akshoba Theertha Matha. 

The Brindavana of of Aralikatte Narasimhacharya and his disciple  Bilvapathre Acharya can be seen here.