Heggunda

   Heggunda is one amongst  the very few places we had a chance of visiting more than once. We made sure to cover the hero stones that we missed during our first visit. On reaching this place, we headed straight to the temple of Lord Anjaneya. The temple is believed to be built during the Hoysala period.

Lord Anjaneya Temple

Colorful Gopura

Hoysala Emblem

 Later, we went in search of  the Viragals or Hero stones. We found a few in the fields surrounding the temple. It was disheartening to see the stones lay unprotected and carelessly spread all over the field. 

Hero Stone

Warrior and the Lady

    After this, we inquired  if there were any more such stones around. We met an elderly  man who looked disinterested in disclosing any kind of information and so, saying nothing  much, walked away. However, a lady sitting not much far away from this man showed an interest in replying to us and told us about a carving of  a Goddess on a rock which was worth seeing. She volunteered to join us but since she was quite old , we requested her to only give us directions and started walking having no idea what was in store for us. After walking a few miles, we realised we were unable to figure out the place. After  wandering  around looking for carvings in the nearby rocks, we decided to go back and bring the lady along. On going back to her and requesting her to come along, the old man sitting next to her murmured about us wasting their time. But, the lady was very much eager to show us that place. She came along and  we were amazed to see such an amazing  piece of rock carving hidden amidst the rocks. We would not be able to figure that place by ourselves for sure!! The carving of the Goddess (Devi) was really wonderful and exciting. The lady then told us that none knew about who carved this and the goddess has supreme powers in curing ailments. She also cited examples about many cases wherein the doctors were unable to cure but when people came to this place, they got cured.

The Hidden Carving!

Devi standing on the head of a buffalo head 

 Shepherdess

      Our sincere thanks to this lady for showing us this amazing place. She was very curious to know about why we we clicked her picture, though it was hard to explain to her why. One of the best parts of travelling is getting a  chance to meet such wonderful and lovely people. Altogether, a nice place for an adventurous climb, history and fairly good bird watching .

For more information on this place one refer our older post on "Heggunda"