Lighting the way for the faithful
Tradition
By Shona Adhikari

AS in most cities in southern India, Bangalore despite its cosmoplitan aura, has as many as 500 temples. These are spread all over the city , in the old as well as the newer areas and are an indication that no amount of modernisation can change religious beliefs, ingrained over centuries.

The temples of Bangalore can easily be identified by their characteristic terracotta and white striped walls, and in the case of the older ones, ornate wooden doors. The traditional Meenakshi Temple-styled Gopurams or gateways that make an appearance here also, are perhaps an indication that the temple is at least a 100 years old.

A temple cast in this classical mode is Someshwar Temple at Ulsoor, said to be over 400 years old. This temple with its characteristic striped walls, is located just off the main Madras road, and lies at the end of Appa Rao Street, in the busy Ulsoor area. At the other end of the 200-yard-long road, stands an ancient wooden cart, in its own tall ‘garage’ — the temple’s Gopuram directly facing the cart.

This ancient cart is reputed to be 200 years old, a fact substantiated by the state of its exquisite carvings. From the row of prancing horses at the base, to the highest point of the wooden framework, the carved figures are worn and weather beaten.

That some of the carvings on the cart are regularly worshipped, is indicated by the red sindhoor and marigold offerings, on the figures of Ganesha, Shiva seated on Nandi, and Parvati. The ancient wooden wheels are somehow held together by iron girders. Ancient iron rings fixed at the base are used by devotees to pull the cart during the sacred ‘Karaga’ cart festival, helds around the month of April every year, the occasion when the images of the presiding deity of the temple is taken on an annual Rath yatra.

Just in front of the entrance to Someshwar Temple, is a tall carved pillar with a three-layered base. Flower sellers sit around the pillar, with theirbaskets piled high with garlands for the devotees. One of the flower sellers Lilamma has been vending flowers for the past 20 years, and says on a good day, she manages to sell as many as 60 garlands, earning up to Rs 200.

It was my luck to decide to visit the temple on a day that a scene from a Kannada film was being shot with the temple as a backdrop. The entire street was full of people, jostling to get a closer look at Kannada film hero Shivraj Kumar. The scene, a recreation of the Karaga festival, was an important part of the film, aptly named ‘Om’ full of exciting religious fervour!

The simulated cart was decorated more in keeping with a scene from a film, and totally unlike the exquisite original. Unable to get too close, one could not see the image, but a white-clad purohit could be seen accepting offerings. The camera crew were on an elevated level, to enable it to get a better view of the milling crowd, while huge reflectors were trained on the interior of the cart and on the hero.

It was a great effort that I managed to get through to the temple. Once inside, all was peace and quiet, and totally deserted. The lure of a chance to be photographed in a film, even if only in a crowd, is difficult to resist !

The Gopuram of the temple was white-washed, but the love of colour had manifested itself in the smaller shrines and the main temple, the spires of which were painted in the traditional pinks, yellows and green.

Someshwar Temple follows the basic plan of all Hindu temples, with a central square shrine for the image of the main deity, in this case Someshwar or Shiva. There is the customary ambulatory passage around the main shrine, while the large area in front of it could well have served in years past, as the dance hall, or Nritya Mandap. In front of this lies the colourful Vahan Mandap, a shrine to Shiva’s traditional mount, the Nandi bull.

The Viman or spire of the temple, rises to the customary pyramidical shape over the main shrine, while Nandi is a colourful miniature of the same shape. ‘The 15-foot high three tiered lamp, standing tall next to the Vahan Mandap, was traditionally lit by oil and cotton wicks. Now, bowing to 20th century modernity, this lamp is lit by the flick of a switch, and electric bulbs light the way for the faithful.