Markonahalli Dam and Kambadahalli- An engineering marvel and centuries old Faith
An old school friend and I planned on a short day trip to a nearby dam I read about sometime back. I was meeting this school friend after ages, and since he has also aged substantially with his bum not fitting on the rear seat of a motorcycle, we decided on taking the car.
Markonahalli Dam — An engineering marvel by Dr.Visvesvaraya.
A nondescript dam that is normally half full with the waters being supplied by one of the tributaries of the Kaveri, this place is a slight deviation from the Bengaluru- Mangaluru highway. What makes this place interesting is the water siphoning system which Sir M.V designed in the early 1900’s. This system does not use any electricity or man power to control the outlet of water from the dam into the canals. Designed more than a century back, this system still works without a hitch and makes one realize what being an actual engineer means. What nation building means and what genius means. This is a nice place to get out of the city, have lunch under the tamrind trees and relax for a few hours with family or friends.
Kambadahalli — Faith, lore and a man in search
Kambadahalli literally translates to the village of the obelisk (a stone pillar). There exists a tall pillar right across the Panchakuta Basadi (basadi — Jain temple) in the village with some bells hanging from this obelisk. Local lore says that anytime there is a impending calamity in the village, only then do the bells strike but never otherwise. It was a windy day that day and the bells never seemed to move even though they were perched high up on the obelisk. Call it lore or an old woman’s story, somethings just do not seem to have a logical explanation however hard you try to decipher them!
Right across this mysterious obelisk is the Panchakoota basadi. This basadi is standing here from 900 AD come rain or sunshine. With different idols of different tirthankaras of the Jain sect, this complex houses exquisite idols. The complex also contains yakshinis carved into the stone next to the main idols along with carvings on the ceilings and walls. Unlike other temples of this period, as beautiful as the carvings on the walls and ceilings are, it is the idols of the tirthankaras that catch one’s eye. Carved from the blackest of stones, these idols shine brilliantly when there is sufficient light. The swamiji in the ashram next door told us more about the history stating that this basadi was neglected for many years before someone informed the jain community of the existence of a basadi here. It was from then on that the government started to restore it and appoint a caretaker and classify this as an ancient monument of historical importance.
While exploring this temple complex, we did see a man clad in white robes, a shaved head with a manuscript in front of him sitting on one of the raised platforms of the temple complex. While we did not want to disturb him, albeit we were curious about him. When asked if it was all right to talk to him for a bit, he kindly obliged and walked up to us. What struck us most were his eyes. They were moss green, full eyed and seem to pop out if he spoke loudly. Lean, high cheeked and almost frail, he started his story…
A name does not matter for a monk and let us call him Mr B for the rest of story. Mr.B comes from a small town in Karnataka. The family has some lands which they look after,2 other brothers one of whom is still in college and Mr.B was all of 18 when a famous Jain monk from his village came visiting after travelling all over the country. Mr. B listens to all of the monk’s sermons and decides he wants to follow his path. Mr. B gives up his studies, informs his family and follows the monk to seek nirgrantha (a state of bondlessness). Under the monk’s tutelage, Mr.B studies all the important manuscripts of Jainism, learns Devanagiri and after 5 years, Mr.B graduates to become a digambara monk. For the un-initiated, digambara’s are monks who have given up everything, including their clothes and follow strict vows and rules to achieve nirgrantha. Mr.B travels all over the country for the next couple of years as a Digambara monk to spread the message of Jainism and achieve the ultimate liberation. Unfortunately, Mr.B falls ill during the course of his journey and comes back to Karnataka. The doctors tell him his illness will compound if he walks the world naked and he must stop doing that. Mr.B then decides to wear white robes, study for 3 more years again and stay put in Kambadahalli. Since Mr.B does not want to take medicines and not visit the doctors due his vow, but since they are essential to his survival, his family gets him his medicines each time they come to visit him. He is now at a state of enlightenment where he does not want his family to visit him often and hence their visits have decreased. Mr.B wants to read the sacred texts, finish his graduation as a robed monk and give up contact with his family all together.
Mr.B narrated his story to us in crisp Kannada, but there was no emotion in his story. It was as if he was embarrassed to share his story with people like us. We had to stand close to him since he barely spoke above a whisper, as if speaking strained him. And then we realized why his eyes mesmerized us. They were the eyes of a man who had given up everything on his own free will. They were the eyes of a man who was seeking something, something that only he understood. They were the eyes of a man who did not expect anything from this world, as if any expectation might shatter the fine balance between him and the world surrounding him. They were the eyes of a 29 year old man….
