Gommateshwara statue, Karkala (ಗೊಮ್ಮಟೇಶ್ವರ ಪ್ರತಿಮೆ ಕಾರ್ಕಳ) is located at
Karkala
Karkala ( ) ( ) is a town and the headquarters of eponymous Karkala taluk in the Udupi district of Karnataka state in India. It lies near the foothills of the Western Ghats, Karkala has a number of natural and historical landmarks, and is a m ...
in the Indian state of
Karnataka
Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
. It is the second tallest statue of
Bahubali
Bahubali (, ) was the son of Rishabhanatha (the first ''tirthankara'' of Jainism) and the brother of the ''Chakravarti (Sanskrit term), chakravartin'' Bharata (Jainism), Bharata. He is a revered figure in Jainism. He is said to have meditated ...
in the world with the largest statue located at
Shravanabelagola
Shravanabelagola (pronunciation: ) is a town located near Channarayapatna of Hassan district in the Indian state of Karnataka and is from Bengaluru. The Gommateshwara Bahubali statue at Shravanabelagola is one of the most important tirthas ...
.
History
Gommateshwara statue at Karkala was built in 1432 CE by Veera Pandya Bhairarasa Wodeyar of
Santara dynasty on advice from Lalitakirti, the
Bhattaraka of Karkala
Jain Matha. The statue was inspired from the larger
Gommateshwara statue
The Gommateshwara statue is a high monolithic statue on Vindhyagiri, also known as ''Indra-giri'' in the town of Shravanbelagola in the Indian state of Karnataka. Carved of a single block of granite, it is one of the tallest monolithic statues ...
at
Shravanabelagola
Shravanabelagola (pronunciation: ) is a town located near Channarayapatna of Hassan district in the Indian state of Karnataka and is from Bengaluru. The Gommateshwara Bahubali statue at Shravanabelagola is one of the most important tirthas ...
built in 983 CE.
'Kalkuda' was a great sculptor who built the Gommateshwara statue in Karkala. After he completed building beautiful temples and monumental statues, the ruler of Karkala cut off his left arm and right leg so that he could not create such beautiful sculptures for any other king.
''Karkala Gommatesvara Charitre'', composed by Chadura Chandrama in 1686 CE, is poem describing the mahamastakabhisheka at Karkala.
Statue
The idol of Lord
Bahubali
Bahubali (, ) was the son of Rishabhanatha (the first ''tirthankara'' of Jainism) and the brother of the ''Chakravarti (Sanskrit term), chakravartin'' Bharata (Jainism), Bharata. He is a revered figure in Jainism. He is said to have meditated ...
, carved out of a single rock of granite, is tall, wide and is said to be the second tallest statue of
Bahubali
Bahubali (, ) was the son of Rishabhanatha (the first ''tirthankara'' of Jainism) and the brother of the ''Chakravarti (Sanskrit term), chakravartin'' Bharata (Jainism), Bharata. He is a revered figure in Jainism. He is said to have meditated ...
in the world. The idol is placed on a pedestal and enclosed by cloistered
prakaram
A prakaram (प्राकारः in Sanskrit), also spelled pragaram or pragaaram) in Indian architecture is an outer part around the Hindu temple sanctum. They may be enclosed or open and are typically enclosed for the innermost prakaram. ...
. In the entrance room, a few sculptures of
Tirthankara
In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (; ) is a saviour and supreme preacher of the ''Dharma (Jainism), dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a ''Tirtha (Jainism), tirtha'', a fordable passage across ''Saṃsā ...
s are displayed. In front of the temple is a
manastambha
In Jainism, a ''manastambha'' () is a pillar that is often constructed in front of Jain temples or large Jain statues. In North India, they are topped by four Tirthankara images.
According to the ''Digambara'' Jain texts like '' Adi Purana'' ...
with image of
Yaksha
The Yakshas (, , ) in Mythology are a broad class of nature spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in Hindu, Jain and Bud ...
within a niche. The statue is depicted in
kayotsarga
Kayotsarga ( , ) is a yogic posture which is an important part of the Jain meditation. It literally means "dismissing the body". A tirthankara is represented either seated in yoga posture or standing in the kayotsarga posture. ''Kayotsarga' ...
posture with curly hair ringlets, large ears and palms stretching up to knees. The idol weighs over 80 tonnes. It is located above sea level.
Gommateshwara statue at Shravanabelagola,
Dharmasthala,
Venur
Venur or Vēnooru is a small village on the banks of the Phalguni river in Belthangady Taluk, Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka, India. It was once the seat of Jainism and the capital of the Ajila Dynasty. It is on the Dharmasthala- Mooda ...
,
Gommatagiri along with the one in Karkala are the five monolithic statues of Bahubali in Karnataka. The monolithic colossal statues of Bahubali at Shravanabelagola, Karkala and Venur are considered as wonder of the world.
Mahamastakabhisheka
Mahamastakabhisheka is organised every 12 years. As the ''Mahamastakabhisheka'' begins, consecrated water is sprinkled onto the participants by devotees carrying 1,008 specially prepared vessels (
Kalasha
A kalasha, also called Pūrṇa-Kalaśa, Pūrṇa-Kumbha, Pūrṇa-Ghaṭa, also called ghat or ghot or kumbh ( , Telugu: కలశము Kannada: ಕಳಶ literally "pitcher, pot"), is a metal (brass, copper, silver or gold) pot with a large ...
s). The statue is then bathed and anointed with libations such as milk, sugarcane juice, and
saffron
Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of '' Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent ...
paste, and sprinkled with powders of
sandalwood
Sandalwood is a class of woods from trees in the genus ''Santalum''. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and, unlike many other aromatic woods, they retain their fragrance for decades. Sandalwood oil is extracted from the woods. Sanda ...
,
turmeric
Turmeric (), or ''Curcuma longa'' (), is a flowering plant in the ginger family Zingiberaceae. It is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia that requires temperatures between and high ...
, and
vermilion
Vermilion (sometimes vermillion) is a color family and pigment most often used between antiquity and the 19th century from the powdered mineral cinnabar (a form of mercury sulfide). It is synonymous with red orange, which often takes a moder ...
. The event has been attended by multiple political personalities including
D. B. Chandregowda &
V. S. Ramadevi in 2002,
Vajubhai Vala
Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala (born 23 January 1937) is an Indian statesman who was the 12th Governor of Karnataka from 1 September 2014 to 6 July 2021. He is also the longest-serving governor for Karnataka after Khurshed Alam Khan.
Vajubhai served ...
in 2015.
Other temples
Neighbouring areas have 18 Jain
Basadi
A Jain temple, Derasar (Gujarati: દેરાસર) or Basadi (Kannada: ಬಸದಿ) is the place of worship for Jains, the followers of Jainism. Jain architecture is essentially restricted to temples and monasteries, and Jain buildings ge ...
s including
Chaturmukha Basadi, Karkala, and
Kere Basadi,
Anekere.
Moodabidri is another important Jain centre near Karkala.
See also
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Kumbhoj
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Statue of Ahimsa
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Navagraha Jain Temple
References
Citations
Bibliography
Books
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Web
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External links
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{{Jainism Topics
Jain rock-cut architecture
Jain pilgrimage sites
Monoliths
Colossal Jain statues in India
Tourist attractions in Karnataka
15th-century sculptures