The Emblem of Karnataka is the state emblem of

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The emblem is based on that of the

Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...

is carried on all official correspondences made by the

Government of Karnataka The Government of Karnataka, abbreviated as, GoK, or simply Karnataka Government, is a democratically-elected state body with the governor as the ceremonial head to govern the Southwest Indian state of Karnataka. The governor who is appointed ...

Design

The emblem has a red shield charged with a white two-headed bird,

Gandabherunda Gandaberunda () or Bheruṇḍa (Sanskrit: भेरुण्ड, lit. ''terrible'') is a two-headed bird in Hindu mythology, believed to possess immense magical strength. Later Vaishnava traditions hold it to be a form of Vishnu to fight Sharabha ...

bordered in blue. The crest depicts the

Lion Capital of Ashoka The Lion Capital of Ashoka is the Capital (architecture), capital, or head, of a column erected by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka in Sarnath, India, . Its crowning features are four life-sized lions set back to back on a drum-shaped abacus (arch ...

(also used as the emblem of the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

), on a blue circular abacus with a blue

frieze In architecture, the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Paterae are also usually used to decorate friezes. Even when neither columns nor ...

carrying sculptures in high relief of a galloping horse on the left, a

Dharmachakra The dharmachakra (Sanskrit: धर्मचक्र; Pali: ''dhammacakka'') or wheel of dharma is a widespread symbol used in Indian religions such as Hinduism, Jainism, and especially Buddhism.John C. Huntington, Dina Bangdel, ''The Circle o ...

in centre, a bull on the right, and the outlines of Dharmachakras on the extreme left and right as part of

Sarnath Sarnath (Hindustani pronunciation: aːɾnaːtʰ also referred to as Sarangnath, Isipatana, Rishipattana, Migadaya, or Mrigadava) is a place located northeast of Varanasi, near the confluence of the Ganges and the Varuna rivers in Uttar Pr ...

Ashoka Pillar The pillars of Ashoka are a series of monolithic columns dispersed throughout the Indian subcontinent, erected or at least inscribed with edicts by the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka during his reign from c. 268 to 232 BCE. Ashoka used the expressi ...

. The shield is flanked on either side by red-maned, yellow lion-elephant indicating the auspicious mythological character *Gajakesari* a hybrid form of two wise and powerful animals Lion and Elephant - a mythical creature believed to be auspicious and indicate strength, authority, and intelligence. The power of Gajakesari is believed to be upholders of stronger righteousness and spells a lot of abundance and bliss. It also refers to the fortunate momentum or energy in Hindu astrology. A person having 'Gajakesari Yoga' in his astrology chart is believed to be conquering the world as per Hindu belief, same referring to a kingdom which justifies all characteristics of a conqueror) standing on a green, leafy compartment. Below the compartment lies written in stylized

Devanāgarī Devanagari ( ; , , Sanskrit pronunciation: ), also called Nagari (),Kathleen Kuiper (2010), The Culture of India, New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, , page 83 is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental writing system), based on the a ...

, the national motto of India, "सत्यमेव जयते" (

Satyameva Jayate Satyameva Jayate (, ) is a part of a ''mantra'' from the Hindu scripture '' Mundaka Upanishad''. Following the independence of India, it was adopted as the national motto of India on 26 January 1950, the day India became a republic. It is inscri ...

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

for "Truth alone triumphs").

Historical emblems

File:Jamkhandi State COA Marathi.jpg, Coat of arms of the

Jamkhandi State Jamkhandi State was one of the Maratha princely states of British India. It was founded in 1811 and its capital was at Jamakhandi. It was administered as part of the Deccan States Agency of the Bombay Presidency and was one of the former states ...

File:Coat of arms of Kingdom of Mysore.svg, Coat of arms of the

Government banner

The

can be represented by a banner that depicts the emblem of the state on a white background. A flag was proposed in 2018 but was not formally adopted. The unofficial

Kannada flag The Kannada flag, a strip of yellow and red, symbolises both Kannada and Karnataka. Although it doesn't have any official status. Based on ancient Kannada, people believe the yellow and red colours in the flag stand for Arashina (Turmeric) and ...

is also in use. File:Flag of Karnataka, India.png, Banner of Karnataka File:Flag of Karnataka (2018 proposed).svg, Former flag proposal File:Flag of Karnataka.svg, Kannada flag

References

Government of Karnataka

{{karnataka-stub

Design

Historical emblems

Government banner

See also

References