Hampi alive....

Hampi alive....

My nephew was getting married at Chennai and I had taken two days leave to be with the family. Amidst the revelry, I received a phone call from the General Administration Department informing me of my appointment as Counting Observer for 62 Gangavati Assembly Constituency in Koppal district of Karnataka. I was asked to report on 13th May in the constituency. My mind was immediately racing with thoughts of going to a new place and leaving family behind. Yet out of habit I googled the place and immediately warmed up to my assignment when I found that Hampi, the glorious capital of Vijayanagara Empire was near Koppal. Apppointment as observers is always welcome by most of us because we get to visit other states and learn from their experiences but the historical angle here made the assignment much more exciting.
The city is surrounded by rocky hills and extremely hot. On arrival I first completed my task of visiting the counting centre and seeing the arrangements and found that I had free time. I decided to spend the morning fruitfully by visiting Hampi in the early hours of the day so as to avoid the afternoon heat.
I felt bubbly and excited. My last visit to this glorious empire was about 30 years ago as a student of History. Those memories hadn't faded, yet, there was this urge to relive those moments.
We began our trip with the Vithala temple. The approach to the temple itself unfolds the grandeur to be absorbed as one sees remains of the lake, horse market, Natya Mandap even before one enters the temple. It was like reliving in that era.
The chariot standing magnificently in the centre of the temple left me awestruck with it's precision. Once upon a time it's wheels rotated but have now been cemented to avoid damage. Legend says that it was constructed to commemorate the victory over Odisha. Whatever be the tale, the once mobile wheels of the chariot amaze you as also the Kalyana Mandapam which has beautiful sculptures including musical instruments and the musical pillars which still emit melodic sounds.
The main shrine is devoid of idols of the Gods which were destroyed by the plunderers.To them they were just rocks to be destroyed but the other pieces of sculptures are in place and include idols of Gods, Godesses, animals, human beings and figures of merchants from Portugal, Persia and China indicating strong trade relationships with these regions. My head bowed in gratitude to the Lord that some of it still remained for posterity. They certainly could not have been created without His divine intervention nor would I have got this opportunity to see them without His desire.
From the temple we moved on to see what was once the headquarters of the Vijaynagar empire, the palace. The guide had warned us that nothing remained there except ruins. However they were enough to make us imagine the glory and grandeur of the empire.
My heart missed many beats when we reached there, for indeed , all that we could see there , were the architectural ruins. However my mind followed the guide's instructions and I soon found myself living in that era, imagining and recreating the past in my mind. Living in that age and time, moving in the palace, witnessing the Darbar, interacting with Maharaj, having leisure time with the queens, watching merchants trade in pearls and rubies , listening to the glories of the empire from international historians like Abdur Razzak and Paes and laughing with Tenali Rama's wit and humour !
The palace had a very strong stone base but upper portions were made of sandalwood therfore nothing remained after the defeat of the empire because the plunderers set it afire. Legend says that the city burned for more than 6 months. The thought itself was horrifying and gave me goosebumps.
As we stood on the highest point, the Mahanavami platform, also called as the "Great Platform", "Dasara monument", I could sense the grandeur of the court, the empire and the king. The sculptures on the existing walls depicted the stories and glorious history of Vijayanagara.
Adjacent to the platform was an exquisite granite stone cut step tank and an olympic size swimming pool. They excited me as much as the secret room for discreet talks with the king and the hidden outlet for escape in times of emergency.
My mind was curious to know more and so I was taken to the Lotus Mahal used by royal women for bathing and leisure. It is in Indo-arabic style and probably escaped destruction due to this reason. The architectural symmetry there is fascinating.
The elephant stables, Gajashala adjacent to it consist of eleven square chambers with arched roofs and were stately as well.
Vijaynagara is full of temples and monuments, all witness to the grandeur but the Virupaksha temple is the oldest shrine and presently, the only place of active worship of Lord Shiva, Pampa Devi and Durga. It also has the largest Gopuram. The square mandapa before the temple has exquisite paintings on the ceilings depicting Shiva-Parvati marriage, legend of Rama-Sita, of the Vaishnavism tradition, the love god Kama shooting an arrow at Shiva to get him interested in Parvati; and the Advaita Hindu scholar Vidyaranya being carried in a procession. The mandapa pillars as in other places have outsized yalis, mythical animal with the features of a horse, lion and other animals with an armed warrior riding it which is a characteristic Vijayanagara feature at all temples.
It is also fascinating to see ancient neem trees standing tall at all the places.I had never seen such ancient and beautiful neem trees before. Other trees like the banyan tree, champa flower were equally attractive.
The temple has a a Shiva linga with a face embossed with brass.The Manmatha tank and a pathway to the river with stone reliefs related to the Ramayana can also be seen. The Tungabhadra river flowing along side at a short distance tempts one to take a holy dip. If not for the scorching afternoon heat I would have also indulged myself there.
We however chose to return to cooler climes of our air-conditioned comfort and also rest before getting back to work in the evening.
However the journey of the morning left a deep imprint on my mind, as if magic was recreated . My heart was definitely asking for more . This piece of poetry in stone is irresistible and a must visit for all of us. The empire maybe dead but our visits would keep the flame of it's glory alive and ignited forever......