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              BADAMI TRAVEL GUIDE

Badami formerly known as Vatapi, is a panchayat town in the Bagalkot District of
Karnataka, India. It was the regal capital of the Badami Chalukyas from 540 to 757
AD. It is famous for rock cut and other structural temples. It is located in a ravine at
the foot of a rugged, red sandstone outcrop that surrounds Agastya lake.

The name Vatapi has origin in a legend. There were two demon siblings Vatapi and
Ilvala. They used to kill all mendicants by tricking them in a queer way.The elder
Ilvala would turn Vatapi into a ram and would offer its flesh to the guest.As soon as
the person ate the flesh , Ilvala would call out the name of Vatapi, as he had a boon
that whomsoever Ilvala calls would return from even the netherland, and Vatapi
would emerge ripping through the body of the person, thus killing him.. Their tricks
worked until Sage Agastya counter tricked them by digesting Vatapi before Ilvala
could call for him and thus ended the life of Vatapi in the hands of Ilvala. Two of the
hills in Badami represent the demons Vatapi and Ilvala.

Badami was the capital of the Early Chalukyas, who ruled much of Karnataka and
Andhra Pradesh between the 6th and 8th centuries. It was founded in 540 A.D. by
Pulakesi I(535-566 AD), an early ruler of the Chalukyas. His sons Kirthivarman
(567-598 AD) and his brother Mangalesha I(598-610 AD) constructed the cave
temples. The greatest among them was Pulakeshi II (610-642 AD) who defeated
many kings including Pallava king Mahendra Verman I and extended the kingdom.

The Pallavas under the king Narasimhavarman I (also called Mamalla Pallava)
seized it in 642 A.D. Vikramaditya I of Chalukyas drove back Pallavas in 654 A.D. and
led a successful attack on Kanchipuram, the capital of Pallavas. The Rashtrakutas
absorbed karnataka including Badami around 757 AD and the town lost its
importance. The later Chalukyas of Kalyani defeated them and were able to keep
region from 973 A.D. to 1189 A.D., when it was occupied by the Hoysalas.


GENERAL INFORMATION

Time zone         IST (UTC+5:30)
Area                   10.9 kmē (4 sq mi)
Elevation           586 m (1,923 ft)
District(s)          Bagalkot
Population        25,851 (2001)
Density              2,372/kmē (6,143/sq mi)


PLACE TO VISIT

The Badami Cave Temples -  an example of Indian rock-cut architecture,
are at Badami, a town in the Bagalkot District in the north part of Karnataka, India.
Badami, the capital of the Early Chalukyas, who ruled much of Karnataka in the 6th to
8th centuries, lies at the mouth of a ravine with rocky hills on either side and a town
tank in which water from the ravine flows. The town is known for its ancient cave
temples carved out of the sandstone hills above.

Aihole - It was the first capital of the early Chalukyas. Here they built over 125
temples in various styles and is said to be a laboratory of experiments in rock cut
architecture. Aihole is to the west of Badami, along the Malaprabha River, while
Pattadakal is to the east. Pulakesi I, one of the greatest rulers of this dynasty, moved
the capital to Badami nearby. Badami was then known as Vatapi. It is from these
temples that the Chalukyas gained their experience and went on to build the great
temples of Pattadakal.

Pattadakal - is 22 km from Badami, the capital of the Chalukya dynasty of
Southern India, who built the temples in the seventh and eighth centuries. There are
ten temples including a Jain sanctuary sourrounded by numerous small shrines
and plinths. Four temples were built in Dravidian style, four in nagara style of
Northern India and the Papanatha temple in mixed style.

Durga temple - or fortress temple is the best known of the Aihole temples and
is very photogenic. It is apsidal in plan, along the lines of a Buddhist chaitya, a high
moulded adisthana and a tower - curvilinear shikhara. A pillared corridor runs
around the temple, enveloping the shrine, the mukhamandapa and the
sabhamandapa. All through the temple, there are beautiful carvings. The temple
appears to be of the late 7th or early 8th century.

Meguti Jain temple - stands on a hillock. It is the only dated monument built
in 634. The temple sits on a raised platform, and a flight of steps leads one to the
mukhamandapa. The pillared mukhamandapa is a large one. A flight of stairs leads
to another shrine on the roof, directly above the main shrine. From the roof, one can
have a panoramic view of the plain with a hundred temples or so.