SRAVANABELAGOLA KARNATAKA

The serenity that Sravanabelagola emanates derives from the simplicity of its ascetic inspiration and the grandeur of its scale. It is said to be the world's tallest monolithic statue. The hill is one mass of granite about 400 feet (122 m) high and probably had a mass or two standing at its summit - either a part of the subjacent or lying on it. This the Jains undertook to fashion into a statue 58 feet (17.7 m) tall, and have achieved it with marvelous success. Sravanabelagola is wedged between two rocky hills called Indragiri or Vindhyagiri and Chandragiri. The translation of Sravanabelagola is "the white pond of the ascetic". This most probably refers to a pond that once existed where the present temple tank now is, at the base of the Indragiri hill. The ascetic is Bhagwan Bahubali, also known as Tirthankar Sant Gomateshwara, whose huge statue dominates this little village. This is the holiest of all Jain places of pilgrimage.