Rebuilding of magnificent ancient temple nearing completion

Mysore, Aug 7: The magnificent 12th century Venugopalaswamy temple, dismantled from the depths of river Cauvery and being rebuilt stone by stone, at a remote village in Mandya district of Karnataka, is fast nearing completion.

The historic temple was set to emerge in its original avatar almost 75 years after it submerged when the Krishna Raja Sagar (KRS) reservoir was built in the 1930s.

The relocation and restoration of a temple of such proportions was reckoned to be the biggest project undertaken in the State with private initivative.

The temple was being rebuilt at Hosakanambadi, a remote village along the backwaters of the KRS, at a cost of Rs 2.5 crore, thanks to the efforts of Khoday Foundation.

After obtaining permission from the Government to relocate and restore the architectural marvel, the Khoday Foundation arranged for the entire temple to be dismantled under the supervision of architects and archaeologists and transported it to a 4.5-acre site donated by the locals. The land was just one km to the north of the original site.

Work on the project was now nearing completion, with expert sculptors from Tamil Nadu working round-the-clock. Once completed, the backwaters would touch the outer walls of the temple whenever the water level of the dam touched its maximum level of 124.8 ft.

The original temple was a massive complex and the structure measured about 100 yards by 60 yards. It displayed Dravidian and Chalukyan style of architecture and art historians were full of praise for its architectural splendour.

The complex was described as a symmetrical building enclosing two 'prakaras.' The outer gate or the 'mahadwara' had verandahs on both sides and was flanked by the 'yagasala' and the kitchen. This was enclosed by the second 'mahadawara,' which led to the inner enclosure and it was akin to the Somanthapura temple.
A complete description of the original temple was found in the gazette, edited by late historian Hayavadana Rao in the first decade of the last century when the temple was still intact and the KRS project was not conceived. As per the description, the original temple had 46 shrines - 17 on the southern side, 12 on the West and 17 on the North in the inner prakara, all of which were embellished with 24 idols. It also had idols depicting the ten avatars of Lord Vishnu, besides the idols of Brahma, Saraswati, Harihara, Hayagriva and Jayasayana.

The sanctum sanctorum, which was being replicated, was situated in the middle of the courtyard, consisting 'Navaranga' or middle hall and 'Mukha Mantapa' or front hall.

The original temple had a beautifully sculpted idol of Lord Venugopalaswamy, standing under a 'Honne' tree, accompanied by gopikas.

When the dam was built, the villagers of Hosakanambadi could save only the idol from submerging. The temple complex went under the swirling waters of Cauvery. The villagers reinstalled the idol in a new temple and performed poojas regularly.

The temple would surface only when the water level declined in the reservoir and thousands of people used to throng the place to have a glimpse of the ancient temple.

Karnataka would have yet another tourist attraction once the temple was restored in all its grandeur.

UNI