There has been much debate on
the sands that covered Talakad, the once magnificent capital of the mighty
Gangas who ruled over several areas of what is today known as South
Karnataka .
Talakad or Talakadu is
today a small town on the left bank of the Cauvery, 45 kilometres from Mysore , 29 kms from T.
Narsipura and just a few kilometers away from Somanathapura.
A few decades ago, Talakad
was home to more than 30 temples, most of which are now buried in sand. A few
temples have been excavated and retaining walls built to keep away the sand
away.
The sands to this famous
temple town are brought by the Cauvery, which flows just across the town. The
sands, over centuries, have acquired mystical proportions and thousands of
tourists and pilgrims visiting Talakad are told a fascinating tale of why and
how the town came to be buried under sand.
Though the origin of Talakad is
lost in the maze of antiquity, it is an undeniable fact that it gained
prominence only after the Gangas (the Western Gangas ,
350-1100 AD) made it their capital. Madhava, the first ruler of the Gangas,
proclaimed Talakad as his capital in 350 AD.
The Gangas were initially
feudatories of the Chalukyas and then the Rashtrakutas of Manyakheta or
Malkhed. They were overpowered by the
Cholas during the 11th century and Talakadu was renamed as Rajapura. In 1117, the
Hoysala Emperor, Vishnuvardhana, seized Talakad from the Cholas and assumed the
title of Talakadugonda. He is said to have ground Talakad to dust and killed
scores of people. In commemoration of this achievement, he built the
Keerthinarayana temple at Talakad.
Today, most of the temples are submerged in sand. Many of the stone pillars of these temples lie scattered across Talakad which today is better known for the Pathaleshwara, Maruleshwara, Arkeshwara, Vaidyanatheeshwara and Mallikarjuna temples which together is called the pancha linga temples.
Today, most of the temples are submerged in sand. Many of the stone pillars of these temples lie scattered across Talakad which today is better known for the Pathaleshwara, Maruleshwara, Arkeshwara, Vaidyanatheeshwara and Mallikarjuna temples which together is called the pancha linga temples.
A fair is held every 12 years
for these five temples of Shiva and this is called Pancha Linga darshana, which
was last held in 2005.
Apart from these five
temples, historians and archaeologists aver that there are several other
temples buried under sand. While scholars and historians are debating how so
much sand came to Talakad and how they could bury an entire city, geologists and scientists say it
was an ecological incident or rather accident that left Talakad battling the
sands of time.
Localites, guides and others
claim that the sands are a result of a curse. This fascinating tale of sands
covering temples and burying a town is closely linked to the Wodeyars of
Mysore.
As we all know, Raja Wodeyar
defeated Sriranga Raya, the Viceroy of Srirangapatna, which was a province
under the Vijayanagar dynasty. Sriranga is supposed to have left Srirangapatna
and gone towards Malangi, a small village on the opposite banks of Talakad.
Raja Wodeyar was desirous of
getting hold of the jewels of Alamelammaa, the second wife of Sriranga Raya, alo known as Tirumala. Hearing of this, Alamelamma went
towards Malangi. She was hotly perused by Raja Wodeyar. When Raja Wodeyar was
on the verge of taking her captive, an angry Alemelamma cursed the King thus: (ತಲಕಾಡು
ಮರಳಾಗಿ; ಮಾಲಿಂಗಿ ಮಡುವಾಗಿ, ಮೈಸೂರು ದೊರೆಗೆ
ಮಕ್ಕಳಾಗದೆ
ಹೋಗಲಿ!)
The English translation of
the Kannada words mean: “Talakadu Maralagi, Malangi Maduvagi, Mysuru Dorege
Makkalagadirali.”
The curse was the beginning
of the end of Talakad which subsequently came to be buried under sand. While
Malangi became a whirlpool, the Mysore Emperors did not have direct descendents
and they had too adopt a son to carry on the lineage.
Howsoever interesting and
fascinating this tale of curse, there appears to be a more scientific and
geological reason for the sands to bury Talakad and this can be traced to an
event during the Vijayanagar period.
Talakad and all of Mysore and south
Karnataka were once part of the famed Vijayanagar Empire. Bukka was the ruling
Emperor of Vijayanagar. One of his many ministers was Madhava Mantri.
Madhava Mantri was a Brahmin.
He was as apt at debates as he was at war. Buka deputed him to conquer Goa from the Bahamanis. Madhava Mantri seized Goad and
built the Gomanteshwar
Temple .
Bukka then ordered Madhava
Mantri to look after the Mysore
province. Madhava Mantri then decided to build a dam across the Cauvery a
little upstream Talakad. He did so as he wanted to divert the water for
irrigation purposes.
The dam led to the river bank
splitting into two. The swift south-westerly winds that blow across this region
regularly began depositing sands at Talakad which lat directly in the path of
the wind. Thus, we see that the fist incident of the sands blowing towards
Talakad occurred sometime in 1336 and they continued for several decades.
In just a mater of sixty
years, Talakad lay buried under sand and it came to be abandoned. Malangi,
which is on the opposite bank came into prominence.
Centuries later, and this was
sometime after 1610 when Raja Wodeyar defeated Sriranga Raya, the tale of the curse
came to be told and today the curse is believed to be the reason for the
Wodeyar Kings inability to produce a male heir.
While the dam will easily
explain the sands, what scientific explanation can one give to the Wodeyar Emperor’s
inability to produce a male heir. If a Wodeyar King has a son, the son will have
to adopt a male as he will not be able to produce a son. This has continued for
centuries after Raja Wodeyar.
Whatever the curse, Talakad
is best explored for its temples that lie scattered across sands. The temples
are worth a visit and each one of them is an architectural marvel. Apart from
the Gangas, the Cholas and Hoysalas have also contributed to the temple
construction. By the way, it was the Gangas that gave us the Gomateshwara
statue in Shravaanabelogala.
The swirling Cauvery at
Talakad makes for a great boat ride. The royal city of Mysore is a little more than a hour away. All
in all, Talakad makes a great picnic spot.
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