Tag: heritage tourism

Group of Monuments at Hampi, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the town of Hampi in Vijayanagara district, east-central Karnataka, India. Hampi is one of the most sought-after heritage tourism destinations in India, renowned for its architectural and archeological significance.

 Hampi   group of monuments include Hindu, Buddhist and Jainist temples depicting a mélange of tradition and culture. The city was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire which ruled this part of Karnataka from 1336 to 1565.Later it faded into oblivion with Muslim invasion of the empire.

This heritage site remained in total neglect until the mid-19th century, when Alexander Greenlaw visited and photographed the site in 1856. These photographs were away from public domain for decades in the United Kingdom, till it published in 1982. Greenlow had created an archive of 60 calotype photographs of temples and royal structures of that period which have great historical and cultural significance as the most valuable source of evidence of the mid-19th-century Hampi.

Location

 Hampi is a small modern town with the city of Hosapete 13 kilometres (8.1 miles) away in Karnataka state, India. It is situated on the banks of the Tungabhadra River in the eastern part of central Karnataka. It is 140 kilometres  southeast of the Badami and Aihole archaeological sites of Karnataka.

The ruins of a sleeping empire -Vijayanagara

Hampi was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire which ruled this part of Karnataka from 1336 to 1565. The Vijayanagara Empire was defeated by a coalition of Muslim sultanates in 1565, after which Hampi was faded into oblivion for many decades.

   The ruins of this ancient heritage town are spread over 4,100 hectares and it has been described by UNESCO as an “austere, grandiose site” of more than 1,600 surviving remains of the last great Hindu kingdom in South India.

 Hampi group of monuments includes forts, riverside features, royal and sacred complexes, temples, shrines, pillared halls, mandapas, memorial structures, water structures etc.

Hampi was a major centre of trade at the time of Vijayanagar Empire, attracting traders from Persia and Portugal mostly. During 1500 CE Hampi was the world’s second-largest medieval-era city after Beijing.  It was one of the wealthiest cities of Indian subcontinent which fascinated many 16th-century traders from across the Deccan area, Persia and the Portuguese colony of Goa.

 The Vijayanagara rulers fostered developments and they were also lovers of various art forms. The dynasty focused on developing roads, waterworks, agriculture, religious buildings and public infrastructure. According to the accounts of UNESCO, Vijayanagara empire had many forts, riverside features, royal and sacred complexes, temples, shrines, pillared halls, mandapas (halls for people to sit), memorial structures, gateways, check posts, stables, water structures, and more”

Being a mighty empire Vijayanagara maintained a strong military and fought many wars with sultanates to its north and east.

The centuries old city was multi-religious and multi-ethnic;  Still the ruins and vestiges show Hindu and Jain monuments next to each other.

The buildings predominantly followed South Indian Hindu arts and architecture dating to the Aihole-Pattadakal styles, but the Hampi builders also used elements of Indian architecture in the Lotus Mahal, the public bath and the elephant stables.

The monuments at this site probably might have been built in colours rather than the sandstone tint visible in the current era.

The empire has been mentioned in foreign texts and documents and it adds to the global significance of Hampi. Robert Sewell published his scholarly treatise A Forgotten Empire in 1900, which brought into light this heritage town.

   Alexander Rea, an officer of the Archaeological Survey department of the Madras Presidency within British India, published his survey of the site in 1885.

The growing interest led Rea and his successor Longhurst to clear and repair the Hampi group of monuments.

The site is significant historically and archaeologically, for the Vijayanagara period  and  the previous years of sleeping history. The Archaeological Survey of India continues to conduct excavations in the area.

According to the Hoysala-period inscriptions Hampi was known by alternate names such as Virupakshapattana, Vijaya Virupakshapura in honour of the old Virupaksha (Shiva) temple there.

Sacred links of myths encircling Hampi

According to Sthala Purana, Parvati (Pampa) pursued her ascetic, yogini lifestyle on Hemakuta Hill, now a part of Hampi, to win and bring ascetic Shiva back into householder life. Shiva is also called Pampapati as the husband of pampa or goddess Parvati. The river near the Hemakuta Hill came to be known as Pampa river.  As in many other parts of Indiian subcontinent here also the sacred linking of geographical regions is evident. The Sanskrit word Pampa morphed into the Kannada word Hampa and the place Parvati pursued Shiva came to be known as Hampe or Hampi.

Rising up of Vijayanagara empire from the ashes of pampapura

 Emperor Ashoka , the great Mauryan ruleris connected to Hampi according to Rock Edicts in Nittur and Udegola [ in Bellary district ]269-232 BCE. It suggests that this region was part of the Maurya Empire during the 3rd century BCE. A Brahmi inscription and a terracotta seal dating to about the 2nd century CE have been found during site excavations.

The town Hampi is mentioned in Badami Chalukya’s inscriptions as Pampapura, dating from between the 6th and 8th centuries. By the 10th century,  pamapapura had become a centre of religious and educational activities under the reign of Chalukya empire. Kalyana Chalukyas ruled this area and the inscriptions of the century state that the kings made land grants to the Virupaksha temple.

 Several inscriptions from the 11th to 13th centuries are about the Hampi site, with a mention of gifts to goddess Hampa-devi.

Between the 12th and 14th centuries, Hindu kings of the Hoysala Empire of South India built temples to Durga, Hampadevi and Shiva, according to an inscription dated about 1,199 CE. Hampi became the second royal residence; one of the Hoysala kings was known as Hampeya-Odeya or “lord of Hampi”.

The Kampili kingdom in north-central Karnataka followed the collapse of Hoysala Empire. The Kampili kingdom ended after an invasion by the Muslim armies of Muhammad bin Tughlaq. In 14^th century Muslim rulers of the Delhi Sultanate, Alauddin Khalji and Muhammad bin Tughlaq, invaded and plundered South India. The Hoysala Empire and its capital Dvarasamudra in southern Karnataka was plundered and destroyed in the early 14th century by the armies of Alauddin Khalji.

In 1326 CE the army of Muhammad bin Tughlaq destroyed the kingdom mercilessly.The Hindu women of Kampili committed jauhar (ritual mass suicide) when the Kampili soldiers faced defeat by Tughlaq’s army.

 In 1336 CE, the Vijayanagara Empire arose from the ruins of the Kampili kingdom. It grew into one of the famed Hindu empires of South India that ruled for over 200 years.The Vijayanagara Empire built its capital around Hampi, calling it Vijayanagara. Historians suggests that Harihara I and Bukka I, the founders of the empire, were commanders in the army of the Hoysala Empire stationed in the Tungabhadra region to ward off Muslim invasions from the Northern India.

Another story  proposed is that these people were Telugu people, who took control of the northern parts of the Hoysala Empire during its decline.

 As per texts such as Vidyaranya Kalajana, Vidyaranya Vritanta, Rajakalanirnaya, Pitamahasamhita, Sivatatvaratnakara, they were treasury officers of Pratap Rudra, the King of Kakatiya Kingdom.

When Muhammad Bin Tughlaq came looking for Baha-Ud-Din Gurshasp (who was taking refuge in the court of Pratap Rudra), Pratap Rudra was overthrown and Kakatiya was destroyed. During this time the two brothers Harihara I and Bukka I, with a small army came to the present site of Vijayanagara, Hampi. Vidyaranya, the 12th Jagadguru of Sringeri  took them under his protection and established them on the throne and the city was called Vidyanagara in A.D. 1336.

Decline of vijayanagara

In 1565, at the Battle of Talikota, a coalition of Muslim sultanates entered into a war with the Vijayanagara Empire.  They captured and beheaded the king Aliya Rama Raya, followed by a massive destruction of the infrastructure fabric of Hampi and the metropolitan Vijayanagara. The city was pillaged, looted and burnt for six months after the war, then abandoned as ruins, which are now called the Group of Monuments at Hampi

Monuments of Hampi

Most of the monuments of Hampi were built between 1336 and 1570 CE during the reign of Vijayanagara empire. The site has about 1,600 monuments and covers 41.5 square kilometres .

The Hampi site has been studied by hisorians in three broad zones such as :

• sacred centre
• urban core or the royal centre
• metropolitan Vijayanagara.

The sacred centre, alongside the river, contains the oldest temples with a history of pilgrimage and monuments pre-dating the Vijayanagara empire.

 The urban core and royal centre have over sixty ruined temples beyond those in the sacred centre, but the temples in the urban core are all dated to the Vijayanagara empire. The urban core also includes public utility infrastructure such as roads, an aqueduct, water tanks, mandapa, gateways and markets, monasteries. This distinction has been assisted by some seventy-seven stone inscriptions.

Most of the monuments of Hampi are depicting Hindu temple architecture and the public infrastructure such as tanks and markets include reliefs and artwork depicting Hindu deities and themes from Hindu texts.

 There are also six Jain temples and monuments and a Muslim mosque and tomb in Hampi.

 The architectural style of monuments of Hampi is Dravidian, rooted in Hindu arts and architecture of [the second half of the 1st millennium] the Deccan region. It also included elements of the arts that developed during the Hoysala rule of the empire  between the 11th and 14th century such as in the pillars of Ramachandra temple and ceilings of some of the Virupaksha temple complex.

Major temple monuments of Hampi

• Virupaksha temple complex

The Virupaksha temple is the oldest Hindu shrine, the main destination for pilgrims and tourists. It includes parts of the Shiva, Pampa and Durga temples existed in the 11th-century; it was extended during the Vijayanagara era. The temple is a collection of smaller temples.

According to local tradition, the Virupaksha is the only Hindu temple that continued to be a gathering place of Hindus and visited by pilgrims after the destruction of Hampi in 1565. The temple attracts large crowd during the annual festivals, with a chariot procession to mark the marriage of Virupaksha and Pampa [ Shiva &Parvati] is held in spring, as is the solemn festival of Maha Shivaratri.

• Krishna temple

This temple is also called Balakrishna temple, situated on the other side of Hemakuta hill, is about 1 kilometre  south of Virupaksha temple. It is dated back to 1515 CE.

The temple faces to the east; it has a gateway with reliefs of all ten avatars of Vishnu starting with Matsya at the bottom. Inside the ruined temple for Krishna ruined shrines for goddesses are also found.

South of the Krishna temple’s exterior are two adjacent shrines, one containing the largest monolithic Shiva Linga and the other with the largest monolithic Yoga-Narasimha avatar of Vishnu in Hampi.

• Achyutaraya temple

The Achyutaraya temple, also called the Tiruvengalanatha temple, is about 1 kilometre  east of Virupaksha temple and close to Tungabhadra River. It is referred to be in Achyutapura in inscriptions and is dated to 1534 CE. It is one of the four largest complexes in Hampi.

•  Vitthala temple

It is over 3 kilometres (1.9 miles) north-east of the Virupaksha temple near the banks of the Tungabhadra River. It is an artistically sophisticated Hindu temple in Hampi, and is part of the sacred centre of Vijayanagara.

• Hemakuta hill monuments

The Hemakuta hill lies between the Virupaksha temple complex to the north and the Krishna temple to the south. It has monuments that are preserved examples of pre-Vijayanagara and early-Vijayanagara temples and construction. The site has several important inscriptions. The hill has more than thirty small-to-moderate-sized temples, together with water cisterns, gateways, and secular pavilions.

• The Hazara Rama temple

This temple is also referred to as the Ramachandra temple in inscriptions, occupied the western part of the urban core in the royal centre section of Hampi. This temple was dedicated to Rama of the Ramayana.The inner walls of the temple has friezes containing extensive narration of the Hindu epic Ramayana

• Kodandarama temple and riverside monuments

The Kodandarama temple complex lies near the Tungabhadra River, and is north of Achyutaraya temple. The temple overlooks Chakratirtha, where the Tungabhadra turns northwards towards the Himalayas. The river banks has a Vijayanagara-era ghat and mandapa facilities for bathing. There  is a dipa stambha (lighting pillar) in front of the temple under a Pipal tree, and inside the temple there is a sanctum dedicated to Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Hanuman.

• Pattabhirama temple complex

This temple complex is in the southern suburban centre outside the sacred centre and the urban core, about 500 metres  from the ASI Hampi museum. It seems to be built in the early 16th century and dedicated to Rama  of Ramayana[ Incarnation of Lord Vishnu].It was at the nucleus of economic and cultural activity of this suburb, now located north-east of Kamalapura. The complex, also known as Varadevi Ammana Pattana.

• Mahanavami platform

This monument, is within a 7.5-hectare (19-acre) enclosure at one of the highest points inside the royal centre (urban core).  It is mentioned in the memoirs of foreigners who visited Vijayanagara and is referred as “House of Victory”.

 The largest monument in this complex has three ascending square stages leading to a large, square platform that likely had a wooden mandapa above it. This was burnt down during the destruction of Hampi.

It has reliefs—possibly a catalogue of 14th-century royal activities—and lines of marching animals including elephants, horses and camels.

 Reliefs on the south side show musicians and dancers, including female stick-dancers. The third level reliefs show a battle procession, couples and scenes of common citizens celebrating Holi (Vasantotsava) by throwing water at each other.

• The Square Water Pavilion, also called the Queen’s Bath, is in the south-east of the royal centre. It has a pavilion, a water basin and a method of moving fresh water to it and taking away wash water and overflows. The basin is enclosed within an ornate, pillared, vaulted bay. The building’s interior arches show influence from Indo-Islamic architecture, reflecting an era in which Hindu and Muslim arts influenced each other in India

The Hampi monuments include aqueducts to carry water to tanks and other parts of the city, as well as drains and channels to remove water overflow.

Several major temples in Hampi have an embedded kitchen and 100-or-more-pillared feeding halls.

Hampi also had a dedicated public Bhojana shala (house of food) where numerous thali (dish) were carved in series in a rock on both sides of a water channel.

• Lotus mahal

The Lotus Mahal is a two-storeyed pavilion in the royal centre. The Lotus Mahal combines a symmetrical, square, Hindu mandala design with lobed arches, vaults, and domes of the Indo-Islamic style. Its basement and pyramidal towers are based on Hindu temple architecture.

Like almost all of the structures in Hampi’s royal centre, this monument has no inscriptions nor epigraphs mentioning its origin.

The Lotus Mahal and other structures in the Hampi urban core, however, were not built with Muslim patronage.

These buildings reflect the assimilative approach of the Vijayanagara Hindu rulers. Lotus Mahal looks like a syncretic, congested space and its purpose is unclear. Speculations include it being a council hall.

Hindu temple vestiges in Hampi

The Hampi site has more than 1,600 surviving ruins mostly of Hindu temples spread over a wide area.

Significant monuments include a temple near the octagonal bath for Saraswati, a Hindu goddess of knowledge and music.

temple in the suburbs for Ananthasayana Vishnu.

an Uddana Virbhadra temple for Shiva and Vishnu

a shrine for Kali, the fierce form of Durga unusually shown holding a ball of rice and a ladle (Annapurna).

an underground temple in the royal centre; a Sugriva cave temple.

the Matanga hill monuments; the Purandaradasa temple dedicated to the scholar-musician famed for the Carnatic music tradition.

the Chandrashekhara temple for Shiva near the Queen’s bath monument

the Malyavanta hill dedicated to Rama-Sita-Lakshmana and Shiva. The Malyavanta hill features several shrines including the Raghunatha temple and a row of Shiva lingas carved in stone.

Jain monuments at Hampi

Reliefs of Jain temples at Hampi include Hemkut Jain temples, Ratnantraykut, Parsvanath Charan and Ganagitti Jain temples. Most of the idols are now missing from these temples, which were built in the 14th century.

Ganagitti temple complex

 Hampi monuments attract millions of tourists every year to Karnataka from various parts of the globe. The monuments tell the story of many dynasties and the multi ethnic societies lived in this land. It stands as an integral part of the history of Indian subcontinent which tells numerous tales of conquests, expansion and widening of frontiers by various Northern dynasties and invasion by foreign Muslim rulers.

The Indo-Islamic style is visible in a few monuments, such as the Queen’s bath  and Elephant stables.  UNESCO  has commented that it reflects a highly evolved multi-religious and multi-ethnic society.

The Ganigitti Jain temple is near Bhima’s gate in the south-east of the urban core section of Hampi. In front of it is a monolithic lamp pillar. The temple faced north; it is dated to 1385 CE, during the rule of Hindu king Harihara II, based on an inscription in the temple. It is dedicated to Tirthankara Kunthunatha and has plain walls, a pillared mandapa and a square sanctum from which the Jina’s statue is missing.

A cluster of Jain 150 meters east of the elephant stables. One north-facing temple is dedicated to Parshvanatha Tirthankara. It was built by King Devaraya II and dates to 1426 CE, per an inscription in the temple. In front of the temple are two ruined temples

Muslim monument at Hampi

The Hampi site includes a Muslim quarter with Islamic tombs, two mosques and a cemetery. These are neither in the sacred centre nor in the royal centre of the Hampi site.

There is a Muslim monument in the south-east of the urban core on the road from Kamalapura to Anegondi, before Turuttu canal in the irrigated valley. This monument was first built in 1439 by Ahmad Khan, a Muslim officer in the army of Hindu king Devaraya II. The monuments include a mosque, an octagonal well, and a tomb. The mosque lacks a dome and is a pillared pavilion, while the tomb has a dome and arches.

How to reach Hampi ?

The nearest airport to Hampi, Bellary is 60 km away from Hampi.

Hubli Airport is another Airport which is 143 km away from Hampi.

 Also, JSW Vidyanagar Airport in Toranagallu is located approximately 40 kms from Hampi.

However, if you are a foreigner visiting the places you need to step down at Bengaluru Airport to get Visa on Arrival. You can book domestic flight tickets from Bengaluru to Bellary or Hubli to reach Hampi without any delay.

By road :

To reach Hampi you can choose buses or cabs.

Bangalore to Hampi           343 km          6 hours 2 mins        

Many buses are available to Hosapete town, Hospet has great road connectivity from Bangalore[ state- Karnataka]  and  Mumbai,Pune&Kolhapur[ state-Maharashtra].

By train:

People from other states of India may reach Hampi by booking tickets to Hosapete Junction (Hospet) railway station (railway station code: HPT).

 Hampi is 13km from the railway station.

written by dr sanjana p souparnika

References

• https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/241
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hampi
• https://ballari.nic.in/en/hampi/
• https://hampi.in/