The monolithic statue was the cynosure of all eyes on Saturday as pilgrims began the steep ascent to the Vindhyagiri Hills.
Braving the searing heat, the hilltop was a sea of saffron and white with pilgrims occupying vantage points to witness the event. Sharing stage with the pilgrims were Jain monks exemplifying simplicity and commanding reverence from one and all.
The serene looking Gomateshwara whose captivating smile seems to be appreciative of the devotees’ adoration towards him, changed colours from the original grey to milk white, followed by golden yellow. A tradition whose origin is traced to the practice initiated by Chavundaraya, the commander in-chief of the Ganga ruler Rachanamalla, the first Mahamastakabhisheka is reckoned to have taken place in 981 AD after the consecration of the statue.
Consequently, the grand anointment held in 1981 marked 1,000 years of the consecration of the statue while the ongoing ceremony is the second of the current millennium.
Though Chandragiri and Vindhyagiri Hills came into prominence because of the consecration of the statue around 981 AD, Shravanabelagola has historically been a bastion of Jainism. For, it was in the Chandragiri Hills here that the first empire builder of India, Chandragupta Maurya, spent his last days after abdicating the throne in favour of his son Bindusara.
He followed the celebrated Jain monk Bhadrabahu to Shravanabelagola and died in 297 B.C. In later centuries, the last of the Rashtrakuta king Indra IV too fasted unto death in 982 AD.
So, the significance of Shravanabelagola as a Jain pilgrim centre is unquestioned but it is also a treasure trove of historical records with hundreds of inscriptions discovered in the region.
