May 27, 2009

The Curse of Talakadu, Mysore.

The curse is as follows:

Let Thalakaadu become a land of sand,

Let the river at Maalangi turn into a whirlpool,

Let there be no sires to the Mysore kings।
Alemelamma before her death uttered this curse - Kannada version : “Talakadu managali, Malangi madwagali, Mysooru arasarige makkalu aagadirali”. Above is the translation and is very spooky in the video with link given below.
I do not know the intricate details about what happened. Though I will admit that it was the whirlpool that drew me to this ancient civilization buried in sand. This curse is one fascinating one and looks very real for all the reasons archaeologists hav not been able to explain convincingly.
For the time being it is the curse of the Govt of Karnataka by way of their upkeep of the state/district highways. Though Karnataka has a rich and ancient history the present government or previous governments seem like they do not have any stake in the tourism potential of the state. This is evident with the apathy by way of roads, amenities and information facilities to tourists.
Here is the Chola ring carved out of a single stone and in the past all four sides to the temple had it but due to constant hangin around and swinging on it they broke and only one is left. There is also a board that says do not touch the rings. :-)
There are no proper roads to talakadu and it is very close to Somanathapura (Hoysala architecture - grand 3rd temple)। Miah mow I was impressed with the sand that covers 10 sq km and buries around 30 odd temples. You can maybe solve the mystery of the curse and to start with - read all about the >scientific explanation .
Watch this video about talakaadu. It is on archaeology channel. If you were wondering why no one was bothering about the contract for sand mining - check this news out -- > Two lorries which were involved in sand mining were seized about a couple of days ago in Talakadu. It was found that a huge pipeline laid under water is used in extracting the sand. Voluntarily, we will going to High court after preparing the report, said Hegde.
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