MYSURU: Courting yet another controversy, progressive thinker Prof K S Bhagwan on Wednesday stressed for installing the statue of demon king Mahishasura atop Chamundi Hill in a reformed look of a Buddhist monk. The existing statue that is believed to be installed during the princely rule should be razed and replaced with the new structure, he said.
Speaking to media persons here, Bhagwan said priests during the reign of Jayachamaraja Wadiyar in 1950 may have misled the latter and made him believe that Mahishasura was a demon king. “If one thinks in a pragmatic manner, there can be no possibilities in deriving the name of Mysuru from the demon king. In reality, he had strove for the welfare of all irrespective of caste and creed and also was a follower of Bhagwan Buddha. In this wake, it is suspected to be the role of vested interests who misled the then maharaja in this regard,” he said.
Not just that, the existing lessons in history being taught at schools and colleges are replete with unfounded facts, he said adding “if measures are taken to translate the available history on Mahisha, Buddha and also Emperor Ashoka from pali script, more light could be shed on their lives”.
Jnanaprakash Swami of Urilingi Peddhi Mutt said to create awareness on the demon king, it has been decided to organise a series of events near the statue at the hill on October 7. It will begin with ‘Mahabuddha Bikku Mahisha’ procession from the statue of Dr B R Ambedkar at Town Hall to the hill. Former minister Satish Jarkiholi will flag off the procession. It will be followed by a seminar on ‘Mahisha Mandalada Mahadore’ at the make-shift ‘B Basavalingappa Stage’.