BENGALURU: A few years ago, this magnificent temple stood forlorn and forsaken. But behind this temple is a story — of the people who strove relentlessly to give this piece of history back to the citizens. They knew it would be a tough fight and even took legal recourse. That is because they were determined in saving the temple complex from land grabbers, restoring the greenery in the area and bringing back the structure of the Shivaji era to its glory in a city that is fast losing its heritage and green spaces.
Nestled amid the concrete jungle of Bengaluru is this historic, verdant oasis — the Kadu Malleswara temple with its mantapa and kalyani (tank) situated on 2.5 acres of hilly land near Malleswaram Circle. Thanks to a local resident group, the temple complex today stands pristine amid the pure waters of the Nandi Theertha which may be the birthplace of the Vrishbhavathy River.In 2002, the local residents wondered and pondered and took up the challenge of not only saving the lost temple heritage but also the greenery on the busy roads of Malleswaram which once boasted of sampige, margosa and coconuts.
Gearing up for a long fight to save the temple and revive its forest status, the Kadu Malleshwara Geleyara Balaga with its 300 members, and led by retired ACP B K Shivaram, 67, has adopted different methods to protect the land around the temple.Not only did they add a Raja Gopura to the existing temple but also turned the barren precincts of the temple into a sacred grove housing many rare tree species including the Rudraksha.
For Shivaram, Balaga president, it has been a long struggle and involved painstaking work to find documents that established the temple’s heritage status in the High Court. Otherwise, fraudulent claimants would have grabbed this expensive piece of land long back.Recalling the saga of his fight, Shivaram says, “We found the documents in the library of Mysore Palace establishing the proof of the existence of the Vasant Mantapa on the eastern side of the temple.
The kalyani which was dumped with tons of silt and garbage was restored while a Linga was discovered here. It has not been an easy task as the temple earlier did not have the Muzrai tag as its existence was not found in any gazette while the government looked the other way with people ready to grab the prime property for development.”Many unauthorized occupants were removed from the temple complex and they were helped to take up alternative shelters.
Under the aegis of the temple trust and cooperation of the Balaga members with 60 women volunteers, the temple’s heritage was protected while greening efforts and restoration of the kalyani were taken up. It took nearly six months for the removal of a 12-foot deep sediment. The cleaning resulted in the restoration of a natural stream of water that flows from upstream Sankey tank. In the olden days, the natural catchment areas near the Sankey tank provided water to the city as the natural gradient allowed water to flow from Upper to Lower Palace Orchards. In fact, a perfect hydrological system existed during Shivaji’s era.
Shivaram says, “We have done no additional construction on the premises except the Raja Gopura and a new wooden chariot as the old one was completely damaged. Five varieties of wood have been used which was provided free by a Muslim from Mysuru to build the chariot. On top of this, Stephen, a Christian, stepped in to do the painting, lacquer work and polishing at the lowest quotation when he came to know it was for this temple.”
Over the years, many festivals, rituals and events like the Hunnime Habba, Deepotsava and Vana Bhojan have been taken up to give a sense of participation and involvement to people.Old-time residents say that streets and roads in Malleswaram that were once named after a particular tree species is slowly being revived though convincing people or getting space for planting trees on Sampige Road or Margosa Road has been tough for the Balaga members.
Every road in Malleswaram was named after a tree species but Sampige Road had no Sampige, so the Balaga took up the difficult task of planting 305 trees by convincing the traders, retired officials and residents around. The trees are watered, treated and maintained till they become mature. Till date, about 5,000 trees of flowering and fruit species have been planted in and around the bustling commercial area.
Balaga Secretary Rakshith says, “Except for four-five trees, the land here was completely barren and dry. We had to change the soil and add compost to make it fertile.
Our efforts have paid fruit as the sacred grove has hundreds of trees with species like Rudraksha, Sita Ashoka, Sampige, Nagalinga Pushpa, anjur, jackfruit, fish tail palm, sandalwood, bamboo, bilava, honge and a host of other species. Every year, three drums of Rudraksha fruits are collected and distributed to devotees during Shivaratri.”
Since people were uncooperative, the plantation programme was given a spiritual significance. Rakshith adds, “The sapling was carried in a palaki with a shloka dedicated to it. Then it is planted amid hymns and chanting of mantras.”In the last decade, the Balaga has played the role of a watchdog for protection of historical monuments in this area as also reviving its green cover, concludes Shivram and signs off, “If Gavi Gangadhareshwara Temple is handed over to us, we are prepared to restore its to its glory as it is in a bad status.”
BACK IN TIME
Historical records show that the temple was built by Chatrapati Shivaji’s stepbrother Venkojirao Bhonsle, who came upon a Shivalinga in 1669 and consecrated the temple around it. The temple complex has five major and minor temples dedicated to Shiva and other deities. It was built when Bengaluru was just a Jagir under Bijapur sultan Adil Shahi who had handed over the reins of Bengaluru to Shaji (Shivaji’s father).
OFFICIAL TAG AT LAST
Both the temple complex and the kalyani were found in a highly dilapidated status. So bad was the status of the temple that a 1951 pamphlet that was found appealed for donations from people in cash or kind. Although an ASI temple, there was no gazette entry of its existence and it was only in 2016 that the temple was taken over by the Muzrai department.
GREAT EFFORTS
In the last decade, the Kadu Malleshwara Gelayare Balaga had organised 125 programmes which included musical events involving who’s who from the music world, interactions with experts, night food distribution, etc. Their motto is Vichara, Vihara and Aachara, they say.
GROUNDNUT FAIR
Apart from the Bull Temple Kadalekayi Parishe, the groundnut fair is now being held at the Kadu Malleswara Temple since 2017. It attracts more than 300 farmers from the neighboring villages of Bengaluru. This year, it saw a footfall of 2.5 lakh people who were treated to Sufi songs during
the event.
THE KALYANI
The kalyani at this temple was discovered in 1997 during construction work. After excavations by ASI, a perfectly preserved central pool of water surrounded by stone steps/pillared mantaps was revealed. It is home to many turtles and fishes and some of them are exotic. The priest says many devotees have been releasing these species in the waters. There are nearly 150 turtles as they breed fast and crawl to the nearby 35-foot deep well.
SITTING PRETTY
An interesting anecdote pertaining to an old granny who used to sit in a particular place in the temple. The place where this granny used to sit and pass her time has retained a depression at that spot.
This group led by a retired cop has strived for 18 years without a break to bring back the green cover in Malleswaram and retain the soul of Bengaluru as a garden city. I hope other residents in the city come together and take up green initiatives in their localities and replicate this success story in the face of heavy development activities
— Vijay Nishanth, Tree Committee Member
The Nandi Theertha which was once drowned in silt and muck is today a source of clear and sweet waters. The water quality was tested here and found to be of the best quality and many devotees are amazed at its sweetness
— Ravi Shankar Bhatt, Temple priest
Till water flows in Sankey, there will be natural flow of water in Nandi Theertha. The positive effect of this has been rise in the water table especially in the Lower Malleswaram area while the nearby Dhobi Ghat has been drawing water without using power
— C K Swamy, Old-time resident