Hampi

After an all day drive through rural Karnatika, we arrived in Hospet, a typical Indian town that is a common base point to see the ruins of Hampi. There was a group of American student from Delaware doing one of their tri-mesters in India. They were a fun group of people, and it was a nice break to talk to people my age that were fluent in English. I think they were a little surprised when I first spoke, not expecting the American accent. It was interesting to hear their perception of India, which was mostly positive; they all seemed to be having a great time (except one girl who hey said went home because she missed her boyfriend, ahhh hahaha, what a loser).

We started what would be the best day I have had in India so far, bright and early. Hampi is a fascinating place lost in time. The driver told us Hampi meant something close to "disappeared", as it was last known as the huge, wealthy capital of the Vijayanagar Kingdom, one of the, if the not THE greatest, Hindu Kingdoms of the last few thousand years, stretching from Bengal in the East to the coast in the West, all the way down to the southern-most tip of India. It served as the Capital from the mid 1300's to the mid-late 1500's, when it was ransacked and looted by armies and conquerors from the Deccan, and later ruled by the ever changing Sultans, Moguls, and Kings that mosaiced India in the last 500 years. Since much of Indian tradition is passed down from generation to generation orally, the best documentation of the city is by Arabic and Western historians and travellers. Many of the Europeans that traveled to the city at the height of its power claim it was larger than Rome and so wealthy that the basic measurement to trade and sell precious stones such as diamonds and rubies was by the liter.

Hampi is also an excellent place to see first-hand how "history" is often perceived in Indian society. The 700 year old buildings are not thought to be the settlements here. In fact for thousands of years pilgrims have been coming to this site, for it is one of the holiest places in Southern India. This is the supposed area that is home to many stories of Shiva and Parvati. It is also very significant in the Ramayan, for this is where Hunumanji is said to be born. This area is thought to be the ancient Kishkinda, the Kingdom of Sugriv and Hunuman. Physical structure is not what Indians count when dating places (in fact "dating places" in Hinduism is a foreign concept, since time is cyclical and multi-dimensional). So when you ask, for instance, how old the Vishnu Temple is, local Hindus say over 10,000 years old at least, medieval historians claim it 500 years old, archaeologists claim some of the stones used in the temple must have been cut from the earth around 1,000 years ago, and still others would claim that it grew from the ground near the beginning of time. I have always been very interested in history, but when in India, you learn quickly that the exact date of some monument is misleading and often irrelevant. Layer upon layer of civilization has inhabited the same places, no one truly knows how long people have been living at many of these places. I wonder what a cross-section of the earth would like right here on this spot, if you could just make a huge crack in the ground for hundreds of meters, what would we find? In a most recent excavation of some drained rice patties, and entire temple was found buried under 20-30 feet of dirt, not a mound but under the current, normal ground level. History is covered in India not only by subsequent layers of human civilization, but by the yearly monsoon that chips away at ruins and then covers them with soot from the rain and flooding of holy rivers, and finally buries them with the cycle of new and decaying jungle vegetation.

The ruins themselves are scattered all around the very unique landscape of palm trees and boulders. Again, it was almost eerie looking around at the ancient looking landscape that I really didn't believe existed outside of artists depictions recounting the stories of Ramayana. We started with a hilltop view of the Virupaksha Temple Complex, on of the few buildings that was unharmed during the raids of Muslim armies, and is still an active, living temple today. Right next to the temple complex is one of the numerous bazaars of the old city. This one is unique though, for it has been re-inhabited by merchants and shopkeepers, selling everything from food and refreshments, to coins hundreds of years old, Hindu handicrafts and textiles, and postcards for tourists. In true Indian fashion, a bazaar once thriving over five hundred years ago, selling precious stones and metals, is now the center of town. This is the center of the Sacred Center, the area of non-royals, and houses the Krishna temple complex, a monolithic Narsimah (reincarnation of Vishnu as half man and half lion), among other things.

The Royal Center of the ruins refers to the area that housed and entertained the royal family and their court along with many military structures. The Royal enclosure was only recently excavated and includes a large royal audience hall with a huge, intricately carve viewing platform (most likely for the King and his court), along with underground chambers for military meetings, a stepped water tank, and long table like structure thought to be an outdoor mess hall for soldiers that stretched over a kilometer long. Pictured on the left is the King's private bath, good thing it is not obscenely too big. Here you can also see the great aqueduct and canal system that supplied the city with water and flushed away sewage. Pictured on the right is a toilet from over 500 years ago where you can see the sewage canal (makes me think how now, in the "modern" world, people right down the street are pooing in the street).

The underground Vishnu temple is also in the area, and an awesome, intricate Rama temple (the King's own private place of worship) is also housed here. Of course it is not fully intact, but it is said that when it was, its carvings depicted the Ramayan in its entirety (24,000 shlokas). On of the most
impressive areas of the Royal Center is the "Zenana Enclosure" that houses a hang-out for women in the "Lotus-Mahal", and leads to the giant Elephant stables and housing for guards, a treasury, and even a Medieval version of a Gymnasium. The beautiful Lotus Mahal and its courtyard and shrines is enclosed by a high stone gate and an octagonal watchtower and includes Jain architecture. Not uncommon in Indian history, the city not only had hundreds of Hindu temples, but included Jain temples, Buddhist temples, and an entire Islamic quarter and mosque (many of which were commissioned by the Hindu Kings).

Our Final stop was near the Tungabhadra River, the lifeline of the city. On its banks the most famous, well preserved, and intricate of temple complexes, the Vitthala Temple. This was the last stop. after we visited the Hunuman Temple (which will be a blog post in itself), and it was a great way to end the day. As the sun began to set, the entire temple complex began to glow an earthy gold, and the boulder hills in the background a slight orange. I tried to imagine what this place looked like when it was fully painted, draped in Silk, and full of Pilgrims and dancing women showing their devotion to Vishnu through the ancient and sacred art of Bharatnatym. In front of the main murti in each temple is a circular, smooth platform where devotees would tell stories and show their devotion through dance. Thinner pillars encircle the main ones, and when struck a certain way (almost like playing a tabla), different notes resonate throughout the temple-the temple itself was used as a musical instrument. In the center of the courtyard, a large stone chariot (a depiction of Vishnu's eagle) is the most recognizable monument of Hampi.

I could have probably spent the full ten day trip in the south in Hampi, and still not seen everything there was to see. There are countless sites, some newly discovered, others living sites of worship for thousands and thousands of years. There are also temples perched on every hilltop in the surrounding area, one of which we took 2-3 hours out of our jam-packed day to visit. (The day has to be split up into two entries, because this is already getting long). It was a surreal experience, we could barely speak. So next is the best site, on the best day, in the best place during my trip to India so far, Hunuman Temple on Anjenadri Hill: The Mythical Birthplace of Hunuman. (Below: in south India, there were many occasions where they spelled English words how they sounded, this was my favorite. Als, the slideshow on top is only 50 pictures long, eventhough i have like 200, so check it out)