His story exemplifies inner strength. He won everything from his brother and could have become an emperor, but he returned everything to the brother and renounced the world.
Bahubali is considered the ideal of the man who conquers selfishness, jealousy, pride and anger. The tallest among them, also the most popular, is the 57-feet statue at Shravanabelagola in Hassan district installed on top of a hillock on March 13, 981 AD by the order of Chavundaraya, the minister of the Ganga King Rachamalla. The statue is carved from a single stone. When standing at the statue’s feet looking up, one sees the awe-inspiring vision of the saint against the vastness of the sky.
The 42-feet statue at Karkala in Udupi district was installed on a rocky hill by Veera Pandya Bairarasa on February 13, 1432 AD. The statue is approached by a number of rock-cut steps. The 39-feet statue, weighing over 210 tons, at Dharmasthala in Dakshina Kannada district was installed by Veerendra Heggade on February 2, 1982 in a place called Ratnagiri hill.
The 35-feet statue at Venur, a village in Dakshina Kannada District was installed on March 1, 1603 AD by Timmaraja Ajila, a direct descendant of Chamundaraya, who built one at Shravanbelgola. The statue supposed to have been sculpted by Amarashilpi Jakanachari.
There is a 20-feet statue at Gommatagiri in Hunsur taluk, 20 kms from Mysore installed in the 12th Century AD. The 700-year-old statue of Bahubali is erected atop a 50 metre tall hillock called Shravana Gudda. The statue is an early Vijayanagara creation in granite. This attracts many pilgrims during the Maha masthakabhisekha.