Talagunda
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 India
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| State : | Karnataka | ||
| District : | Shimoga | ||
| Sub-district : | Shikarpur | ||
| Location : | 14 ° 25 ' N , 75 ° 16' E | ||
| Height : | 620 m | ||
| Area : | 7.22 km² | ||
| Residents : | 1,892 (2011) | ||
| Population density : | 262 inhabitants / km² | ||
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Talagunda or Thalagunda ( Kannada ತಾಳಗುಂದ ) is a village with almost 2,000 inhabitants (2011 census) in the Indian state of Karnataka . From the 4th to the 6th century the place was a sub-center of the Kadamba empire - here was a settlement of Brahmins or a religious center ( agraharam ) , in which probably Mayurasharma or Mayuras Varman , the later founder of the Kadamba dynasty, grew up, lived and studied.
location
Talagunda is located in the transition zone between the water-rich mountain range of the Western Ghats and the much drier Deccan Plateau to the east, at an altitude of around 620 m, about 40 km (driving distance) southeast of Banavasi , the former capital of the Kadamba Empire. The temple site is about 1 km northwest of today's village. The climate is temperate because of the altitude; Rain (approx. 1965 mm / year) falls almost exclusively during the monsoon months from June to October.
Residents
The inhabitants of the place are almost without exception Hindus ; other religions are of minor importance in the rural regions of southern India. The male population is about 9% higher than the female population.
economy
Coconut palms and other fruit trees thrive in the region ; in addition, grain and vegetables are grown - mainly for self-sufficiency . Cattle breeding (sheep, goats, chickens) is of little importance.
history
The place is mentioned for the first time under its previous name Sthanagundur in the time of the Kadamba Empire, which emerged in the second half of the 4th century. Here - probably in the immediate vicinity of an already completed or yet to be built temple - 32 Brahmins and their families were settled, creating a Brahmin village (agraharam) .
Attractions
_at_Talagunda.JPG)
- The flat-roofed and largely undivided, windowless Pranaveshwara Temple is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva and was probably built in the 4th or 5th century. It would thus be - even before the buildings in Aihole - one of the oldest (preserved) stone temples in central and southern India. The temple consists of an externally closed vestibule ( mandapa ) with pillars on the inside and the only slightly wider cella ( garbhagriha ) ; the interior of the temple receives its light only through the always open portal, which is the only component with sparse relief decorations ( gajalakshmi in the lintel; kalashas and guardian figures on the side walls). The cella contains a Shiva lingam with a lotus rosette above it. There is no roof attachment, which puts the building on a par with the early North Indian Gupta temples of Tigawa and Sanchi .
- To the right of it is a small inscription stele.
- The most important monument of Talagunda is the approximately 18 m in front of the temple about 4.50 m high octagonal and made of only one stone, i.e. monolithic , inscription pillars with an initially round, but then tapering top, the eight sides of which have vertical double-row inscription bands are covered in Sanskrit in old Canarese script. A certain Kubja is named as the author , who created the inscription on behalf of the Kadamba king Santivarman (ruled around 450) and who also carved it into the stone himself. She mentions the founder of the dynasty Mayurasharma (around 350) who went to the Pallava court in Kanchipuram to study the ancient scriptures, but was humiliated there by a mounted guard, whereupon he took up the sword and became a warrior ( kshatriya ) . The inscription also praises the Brahmins as "gods on earth and guardians of the Vedas" ( Samaveda , Rigveda and Yajurveda are specifically mentioned ).
literature
- Lorenz Franz Kielhorn : Epigraphia Indica Vol. 8 pp. 24-36
Web links
- Talagunda, temple and inscription pillars - photos + information (English)
- Talagunda, temple and inscription pillars - photos + information (English)
- Talagunda, temple and inscription pillars - photo + information (English)