Jain Journal 1981 04

Author(s): Jain Bhawan Publication
Publisher: Jain Bhawan Publication

Page 4

120
overcome by a severe grief at having caused so much pain to his brother for the lust of power, and relinquished his claim and retired to the jungle, where resided his father. Having been initiated by him into asceticism, Bahubali engaged himself in severe austerities. He continued in the standing posture for years on stretch in deep contemplation; molehills grew over his legs, snakes made their dwelling therein, creepers spread over his arms; he was lost in profound meditation. Ultimately he attained complete liberation of spirit and became a 'Kevali' (an emancipated saint). Bharata later caused a gigantic golden statue of his brother to be created at Paudanapura.
JAIN JOURNAL
It is this incident that is in the background of the colossus of Gommata in Sravana Belgola. Gommata is the local name for Bahubali. The term first appears in a work written by the teacher of the person responsible for the installation of the colossus, Gommaṭasara by Nemicandra Siddhanta-Cakravarti. The word according to M. Govinda Pai is a corrupt form of 'Manmatha' (Cupid); Professor T. N. Srikantiah suggests that 'Gommata' was first an appellation of Camundaraya who caused the colossus to be erected, and that he got that appellation on account of the benefaction of the spirit 'Gummadi' (corrupt 'Kusmandi') whose devotee he was. R. Narasimhacharya translated the word 'Gommata' as 'excellent'.
There are three celebrated images of this Bahubali, all called 'Gommatesvara', in Karnataka: one the 56 feet tall colossus at Sravana Belgola in Hassan District, Mysore; another 41 feet image at Karkala, and still another (35 feet) at Venur, both in South Kanara. The first one is the oldest, being consecrated on March 13, 983 A.D. at the instance of premier Camundaraya of the Ganga King, Rajamalla. The image at Karkala was consecrated on the 13th of February, 1432, at the instance of Virapandya, a vassal of the Vijayanagar ruler. The Venur image was consecrated on the first of March, 1604, at the instance of Timmaraja of Punjalike.
Of these the one in Sravana Belgola is supreme as a perfect work of art. This town is 31 miles away from Hassan, a district headquarter in Mysore State; it is about 100 miles from Bangalore. There are two celebrated hillocks in close vicinity, known as Vindhyagiri (or Indragiri) and Candragiri. The Gommata colossus stands on the former and is visible from all around within a radius of 15 miles. There are in all about 33 temples here, the oldest dating 3rd century B.C., associated with the Mauryan emperor Candragupta of Ujjain. Tradition has it that this emperor came down South in the entourage of the celebrated