Imagine the royal family from the 7th century Chalukya dynasty resplendent in their silks and gold arriving in Pattadakal - a sacred place for the coronation of their prince. Pattadakal was situated on the banks of river Malaprabha where it took a turn northward surrounding Pattadakal on two sides.This was considered to be very holy and auspicious.
When we visited Ilkal in July, 2019 to source the incredible handloom Ilkal Sarees; we took the opportunity to visit Pattadakal- a UNESCO world heritage site which is about 22 miles to the west of Ilkal town. Pattadakal was one of three cultural centers and religious sites for innovations in architecture and experimentation of ideas ( the other two being Aihole and Badami).
Rekhanagara prasada (curvilinear shikhara style of North India) and dravida vimana (square roof of receding tiers style of South) were given their final form here and fused to form a third style of architecture. The Pattadakal monuments completed in the 7th and 8th century are evidence of the interaction between the early northern and southern styles of Hindu arts. All three styles of architecture can be found here and feature sculptures of gods and human figures alongside narratives from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and Bhagavatam.
Two of the temples are built by the two queens (and sisters) called Lokhamahadevi and Triloka Mahadevi to commemorate the victory of Vikramaditya II over Pallavas of Kanchi. These are dated 740-45 AD.
The only active temple here where daily puja and worship is performed is the Virupaksha temple. On the exterior is a big Nandi shrine.
This temple has many pillars leading up to the garbhagriha. The sunlight streams through these ancient structures to create a surreal vibe. It reminded me of the California giant redwood trees. A sense of serenity and oneness with the cosmos.
We traveled by overnight train ride on the Hubli-Solapur meter gauge line by Indian Railways that stops at Badami. I hadn’t traveled by Indian trains in over a decade so it was nostalgic and brought back fun childhood memories of summer vacations. The thrill of finding and getting into the right compartment within the 5 minutes that it stops in Bangalore central station; sharing a home cooked meal with my travel companions, settling down for the night to read a book and being lulled to sleep by the gentle and sometimes vigorous dhadak-dhadak swaying of the train was all very memorable indeed.
What an amazing historic site! Highly recommend it.