Pure pastoral pleasure

A unique aspect of the district is that it has daivasthana for Koti-Chennaiah (also known as garadis), temple for Sun God and a temple for Mahathma Gandhiji too.

Amidst all these, the district also has a unique daivasthana where Pancha Pandavas and Draupadi are worshipped. Perhaps, it is one and the only place where idols of Pancha Pandavas (Yudhistira, Bheema, Arjuna, Nakula, Sahadeva) and Draupadi are worshiped.
Interestingly, all the 6 idols, a satya kallu (the stone of truth), yaksha peeta (the seat of yaksha) and 31 ‘nagana kallu’ (various forms of serpent god carved in stones) were found in the same vicinity just a few years ago.

It all happened when localites were working in an arecanut plantation when they found 3 stones pertaining to serpent god. Upon digging, they found a total of 31 stones petaining to serpent god, 2 stones pertaining to yaksha peeta and stone of truth and 6 idols. Then they decided to hold a ‘astamangala prashne’ following which a daivastana was constructed in 2008.

‘Yaksha kere’

Though the Sri Krishna Yaksha Pandava Nagabrahma Kshethra at Keddotte (‘Kedu’ means tank and ‘oate’ means a kind of bamboo) in Kunthoor (said to be the village where Kunthi lived) village, about 8 kms from Alankar on Uppinangady - Subramanya road, was constructed in 2008, a lake located next to the Kshethra has a long history.

The lake, which once measured about 60 acres has today reduced to 11 acres, due to silt accumulation. Speaking to City Herald, localites Vishwanath and Shivaprasad said that there is a belief that those who are suffering from skin diseases will be cured if they use the water. On the other hand, no villager comes near the lake during their menstrual cycle.

Legend

Legend has it that when Pancha Pandavas were living in the forest, adjacent to the lake, a deer took away the stick used to make fire from a sage’s home (also in the forest) in its antlers. Then, he requested the Pandavas to trace the deer and get back the stick. The Pandavas followed the hoof marks of the deer throughout the day and reached deep in the forest.

Yudhistira (Dharma Puthra), the eldest of the Pandavas, became very tired and wanted to drink some water before carrying on the chase any further. Sahadeva, the youngest brother volunteered to bring the water.

 He spotted a lake nearby. The lake was bare of any living beings, but he hears a voice (of Yaksha) which tells him that he would die if he drinks water without answering his questions. However, Sahadeva did not bother and drank the water from the lake and died.

After some time Nakula came in search. And was surprised at seeing the dead Sahadeva. He too dies as he too neglects the voice. Arjuna and Bheema too die in a similar manner. Seeing that all his four brothers are missing, Dharma Puthra came in search only to find his brothers dead. However, as he answers all the questions asked, to Yaksha’s satisfaction, he brings back alive all his four brothers. Hence the name Yaksha Sarovara (also known as Visha Sarovara).

There are other stories too pertaining to this lake, and according to one such story, there is ‘treasure’ in the lake and snakes guard it.

Rs 1 cr for lake

The State government has promised Rs 1 crore to de-silt/develop and construct retaining wall around the lake, but villagers feel that it may require around Rs 5 crore to save and safeguard the lake with historical significance.

Lake may submerge?

There was a proposal to construct a dam across River Kumaradhara and Kurumbi Anekattu Parisaravadigala Horata Samithi President Padmanabha Gowda is of the opinion that if the dam is constructed, then the lake may submerge. However, he and the villagers are happy following the recent High Court order against hydel power projects in Western Ghats.  

Draupadi’s saree

River Kumaradhara flows about one kilometre away from this lake and the region is filled with huge rocks. Quite interestingly, there is a long stretch of black mark on one of the rocks and villagers believe that it is indelible mark left out by Draupadi’s saree when she dried it there. Perabe Gram Panchayat Vasanth Gowda said that a lot of fish (‘kari meen’) are found in the lake in a particular period.

Panoramic view

Apart from the beliefs, the location near the Yaksha Sarovara (Visha Sarovara, Keddotte) as well as the banks of River Kumaradhara are simply fascinating.

One can spend a long time in the calm and serene surroundings where you can only hear birds chirp or the sounds of the breeze helping you to forget the ‘terrible’ road you travel to reach the destination.The region once ruled by Ballals and later resided by Malekudiyas is today occupied by Gowdas. There are 14 houses in the vicinity and all are related to each other.