Indian Columbus

Those who go to Mysuru never miss visiting Mysore Palace. But hardly anyone of them visits or even knows Jaganmohana Palace. It was destined to become the abode of the Mysore Royal family. But destiny had different plans, and now it serves as a treasure trove of dramatic paintings. The interesting heritage building has its own history, which is more intriguing.  The Mysore royal family was forced to leave Mysore in 1831 CE by the East India Company. Maharaja Krishnaraja Wadiyar III filed a lawsuit. Years passed by; the British Government took over the administration of India from the East India Company. In 1861, the royal family was allowed to return to Mysore but not to the palace. Hence, there was a need for a new palace, and Jaganmohana Palace was thus born.  By 1881, the ruling in favor of the royal family allowed it to reoccupy Amba Vilas (Mysore Palace). Jaganmohana Palace was used for music and dance. However, the wooden palace was destroyed during a royal wedding cerem...

Mysore Palace is one of India's most spectacular and prominent sites. Besides the main palace, the complex has several other structures and twelve temples. Among them, Sri Lakshmi Ramana Temple is the oldest and a prominent one. It is located toward the west of the main palace.  During the Chola period, the deity of the temple was called Nambi Narayana. However, the current image can be attributed to the later Hoysala period.  The father of Krishnadevaraya, the great Vijayanagara Emperor, Narasa Nayaka patronized the temple by making grants to ensure regular maintenance. We learn this from an inscription dating 1499 CE. The stunning five-tiered tower at the entrance was originally constructed by Raja Wodeyar I in the early 1600s.  His statue is seen in a sub-shrine in the corridor around the sanctum. As per an inscription found on a beam on the temple tower, a chieftain named Dalavayi Nanjarajayya bribed the priest Srinivasaiah to poison the king. However, the king h...

Mysore Palace is one of India's most spectacular and prominent sites. Besides the main palace, the complex has several other structures and twelve temples. Among them, Sri Kille Venkataramana Temple is one. It is located toward the west of the main palace.  Unlike other temples of the complex, this is a small and simple temple having just one shrine. The four-armed Venkataramana is in the standing posture. His iconography is similar to that of typical Vishnu icons.  When Mysore was under the rule of Tipu Sultan, the Mysore royal family was in Srirangapatna. Queen Lakshmi Ammani Devi, the spouse of King Krishnaraja Wadiyar II, was deeply concerned about her family's future. It is believed that Lord Venkatararamana appeared in her dream and suggested she bring his icon from a place called Balamuri. The queen managed to secretly get the image to Mysore and consecrated the same. After the demise of Tipu, her family flourished again. Her adopted grandson Krishnaraja Wadiyar III bui...

Mysore Palace is one of India's most spectacular and prominent sites. Besides the main palace, the complex has several other structures and twelve temples. Among them, Sri Prasanna Krishnaswamy Temple is a prominent one. It is located near the current exit gate of the main palace. Hence, it is the first destination after one finishes visiting the palace, and hardly any visitor misses visiting this temple. The presiding deity is Krishna. It may not sound unique, as there are millions of Krishna temples across the country. But, this icon is rare - it is Bala Krishna, the infant Krishna, found in a crawling posture. He is called Ambegalu Krishna. The image is made of a special kind of rock called chlorite schist. And it is incredibly and incomparably beautiful.  There is an interesting legend about this deity. It states that the Mysore king Krishnaraja Wodeyar III was fascinated by the crawling Krishna icon in a temple in a place called Mallur. He wanted to shift the same to his palac...

People call Mysuru as the cultural capital of Karnataka state of India. And I would call Mysore Palace as the cultural capital of Mysuru. It is the pride of Mysuru - no! the pride of Karnataka - no, no! the pride of the entire India.  Mysuru, known to outsiders by its angelized name Mysore, was the adobe of royals in the past and the delight of heritage lovers in the present. It never ceases to excite travelers. With breathtaking hills, an internationally acclaimed zoological park, state-of-the-art temples, historical monuments, and heritage richness at every nook and corner - Mysuru - it's a true paradise on earth. Then, Mysore Palace? It's a paradise located on a paradise. Once you visit this palace, you will fall in love with this site, and your mind will refuse to accept any other palace on the earth as a palace.    Those who get a chance to view the silhouette of the palace illuminated with about one lakh bulbs against the background of the dark night would never wan...

As you might know, Madurai is called the "Temple City". Meenakshi Sundaresa Temple, one of the largest temples in the country, is located here. Beyond that, there are hundreds of smaller temples at every nook and corner. However, Madurai's second most tourist attraction is not a temple but a palace.  Tirumalai Nayakkar Mahal Palace  is the most visited place after Meenakshi Temple. In Tamil Nadu, thousands of ancient temples were built by different dynasties during different periods. But, we hardly get a chance to find palaces or other non-religious structures built in ancient times. In the entire state, there are at most ten palaces. All of them were built in the last 3-4 centuries. We do not find anything much older. Tirumalai Nayakkar Mahal can be considered the best among all those palaces. Before I delve into the Palace's details, let me briefly introduce Nayakkars and Tirumalai Nayakkar. Who are Nayakas? Madurai was the capital city of the  Pandya Empi...