The Splendor of Virupakshapura

The Beautiful Virupaksha Temple

If you thought that the people of yore had faded away into the sands of history...you are in for a rude shock. This picture was taken in the mid summer of 2009, a trip my dad and i made to the state of Karnataka. Our initial program was to visit the holy place of Navabrindavanam, the place where the followers of Madhava Acharya are living in thier samadhi state. I strongly recommend you all to visit, for its scenic location, spiritual aura and its eternal tranquility. 


As part of the 3 day trip to Karnataka, once we had finished sight seeing the beautiful locales of Anegundi, we decided to make a short trip to the erstwhile Kingdom of the Vanaras. Hampi. After two hours of travel from our Hotel, we finally reached the ruins of the Vijayanagara City. My eyes popped out..and my jaw dropped. My mind frantically searching for a way to describe what i saw in front of me. Then i got it. Only one word. Breathtaking. The picture below from Wikipedia (i could not take an overview shot myself) is testimony to that.

Wikipedia - Creative Commons Share Attribution Alike 3.0 License

Given the limited time we had, my excitement meter shot up to a 1000 points, my inner child wanting to see every single historical site and my knowledge-seeking self wanting to savor the intricate details of the architecture, myths and stories of this great village/city.


Some of the notable places to see include the awesome Virupaksha Temple, said to have uninterrupted service from the 7th century. The temple by itself is a hallmark for the architecture marvel of the ancients. Within the temple, inside a room the shadow of the main gopura appears inverted through a hole on the wall. Today we call it the Pinhole Effect. Amazing right ?


There are many other places at Hampi, which unfortunately i could not visit..but i did walk through the old Hampi Bazaar, saw the huge Nandi at the end of the bazaar and a few other interesting sites. Sadly i could not see the Vittala Temple...But adding effect to the already mesmerising Hampi, were the sudden rains! To be surrounded by such stunning monuments with the rain pouring was...just out of this world! 

Krishna Temple

A Part of the Ruins

Hampi Bazaar

It was definitely one of the best places i'v been to...would definitely want to go back again, spend a couple of days more and see everything else i could not see previously! Being one of the core areas of the Vijayanagara Empire, even to this day you can feel the people from the past living, basking in the old glory of this enormous empire...

Like i said, the people of yore have not faded away in the sands of history. Incredible Karnataka indeed!


Finally.. with a heart full of memories, i bid adieu to you all! Until the next time...Cheers!


P.S - All the pictures shown here except the one from Wikipedia were taken from my Sony Digital Camera. :) Your thoughts on the photos are welcome! Do leave a comment below!