Wednesday, 20 June 2018

Hero Stones / Nadukarkal / Nadukal / Veeragallu / நடுகற்கள் at Amachavadi, near Chamarajanagar, Karnataka - A Talakad Heritage Walk.

17th June 218.
After Chikkahole Hero and sati stones visit we headed towards Amachavadi. Mr. John Peter had brought a newspaper cutting in which a group of hero stones, which had appeared in the recent day's newspaper, were identified by a researcher. Before that, We had seen a Hero stone erected for 7 persons at the entrance of the Village. The Villagers guided us to a group of 12 hero stones erected under a tree. But we could not identify the location of the group of Hero stones, which appeared in the newspaper till we left the Village. On the way, 4 hero stones were erected inside a Vinayagar Temple, a hero stone in an Amman Temple, and a hero stone by the side of the road. The details are….

THREE TIER HERO STONE.
This hero stone was erected for a group of 7 persons. In the bottom tier the heroes are on the horses and fighting with other groups. In addition to the battlefield, two women are shown on the left side. It was told that the fight was for the women, maybe to save them. In the middle tier, the 7 heroes are taken to heaven by two angels. In the top tier, the seven heroes are shown in sitting posture and worshiping lord Shiva. Out of 7 heroes, 3 heroes are sitting in yoga posture with yoga patti. Since the stone was eroded, the first two look like women.




HERO STONES AT VINAYAGAR TEMPLE
There are 5 hero stones erected in a row. The first one is a 3 tier hero stone erected for a group of 4 heroes. In the first tier, a battlefield is shown in which the heroes are fighting. In the second tier, the 4 heroes are taken to heaven by the angels. In the top tier, the 4 heroes worship Lord Shiva in sitting posture.


The second hero stone is also of 3 tiers in which the hero is fighting with the opponent  and in the second tier the the hero is taken to heaven. In the top tier, the hero worships Lord Krishna in a sitting posture. Krishna playing flute with cattle around him is shown since the hero is a Vaisnavite.


The 3rd Nadukal is a sati stone in which the hero and his wife are shown in the first tier. The husband and wife are taken to heaven by the angels shown in the second tier. In the third tier, both worship lord Shiva in a sitting posture.

The fourth one is also a 3 tier ‘Pulikuthu kal‘ (hero stone for killing a tiger). In the top tier, the hero is shown doing pooja to lord Shiva.


The 5th one is an ‘ondi kai masti stone’ is nothing but a sati stone in which the hero and his wife are shown below a hand holding a lemon.


A GROUP OF 12 HERO STONES.
This group of 12 hero stones was erected under the trees and a platform was also constructed. Let us see the important hero stones alone. The bigger/ taller one is a 3 tier hero stone. The bottom tier is shown with two heroes on the left and the opponent on the right. In the middle tier, the two heroes are taken to heaven by the three angels and they are Ramba, Menaka, and Urvasi. In the top tier, the two heroes worship lord shiva in a sitting posture.




Another important Nadukal is also a 3 tier hero stone erected for a lady, who died due to a snake bite. The snake is shown in the bottom tier.


In addition to the above, we had seen some hero stones in this village and a Koil Veedu for a sati stone.

 A roadside hero stone 
 A sati stone – near the Amman temple 

 A sati stone – near the Amman temple 

 Kovil Veedu with ondi kai masti – sati stone 
 Kovil Veedu with ondi kai masti – sati stone 


The yantra stones erected at the entrance of the Village, probably for not allow any decrease inside the Village 
---OM SHIVAYA NAMA---  

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