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M. Ananth

M. Ananth travels along the Cauvery to find himself in a pretty hamlet run over by sand dunes — Talakad, close to Mysore.

A feature of the landscape in this area is the huge mounds of sand amid the greenery, almost as though the desert has crept right up into the verdant landscape. The shifting sands of Talakad, in fact, conceal below them three subterranean temples. Paathaleswara — which lies 10-15 ft below the sand dunes — is the scene of a major temple festival held once every 12 years. The Kirthi Narayana Temple, the second of the temples buried in the sand dunes, is in the process of being excavated. The third, called the Maruleswara Temple, is also 10 ft below the surface.

The main temple in Talakad is the Vaidyanatheswara Temple, which throngs with tourists during the weekends. While the architecture of these temples suggest that they were built during the later Chola period, the Chowdeswari Temple is a more recent addition to Talakad's holy sites. According to legend, Talakad was swept over by sand dunes after it was cursed by Alamelu Amma, the beautiful widow of Sri Sriranga Naik, a local chieftain. According to local belief, Alamelu felt frustrated that her prayers could not save her husband. Also, coveted by the then Maharaja of Mysore, she cursed Talakad with sand dunes, before jumping into the Cauvery to avoid arrest by the Royal guards.

It is said that it rained sand for three days on the cursed Talakad. Perhaps, the only reason for the appearance of sand dunes in an otherwise verdant area, nestled in the lap of the Cauvery. Further up from Mysore and 85 km to its East is Shivasamudram, where the Cauvery cascades down in two picturesque waterfalls, falling from a height of 75 metre into a deep rocky gorge. Harnessing the natural fall and speed of the waters, Asia's first hydro-electric project was set up here at the behest of Sir M. Visvesvaraya in 1902. What is noteworthy is that one is able to see and enjoy the beauty of the waterfalls as the power station is located downstream, away from the falls. A laudable case for man's co-existence with nature.

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