Ninety-seven kilometres from Belur, in Channarayapatna taluk of the same district, there is a bare granite hill with a figure standing on top of it. The Gommateshwara statue is a monolith — carved out of a single block of granite, not assembled — and it has been there since about 983 CE, which makes it two centuries older than the Hoysala temples most visitors come to Hassan district for.
Who it is
The figure is Bahubali, and the story matters to how it looks. In Jain tradition Bahubali was the son of the first Tirthankara, Rishabhanatha, and he fought his brother Bharata for their father’s kingdom, won, and then renounced everything and stood in meditation for so long that creepers grew up his legs. The statue shows exactly that: standing, arms at the sides, vines climbing him. It is dedicated to peace, non-violence, the renunciation of worldly affairs and simple living, and it is one of the holiest sites in Jainism.
It was commissioned by Chavundaraya, a minister and commander of the Western Ganga dynasty, and it stands on Vindhyagiri, also called Indragiri. Until 2016 it was reckoned the tallest Jain statue in the world, and it remains one of the largest free-standing statues anywhere. In 2007 a nationwide poll voted it the first of the Seven Wonders of India.
The other hill
Shravanabelagola has two hills and the second one, Chandragiri, is older. It carries several ancient Jain centres and is associated in tradition with Chandragupta Maurya, who is said to have come south and ended his life here as a Jain ascetic. Between the two hills lies the town and the tank — belagola, the white pond, which is where the name comes from.
Mahamastakabhisheka
Once every twelve years the statue is ritually bathed — the Mahamastakabhisheka — in milk, saffron, ghee, sugarcane juice and more, from scaffolding built up the front of it, in front of very large crowds. The last one was in 2018 and the next is in 2030. The German Indologist Heinrich Zimmer put the statue’s remarkable freshness down to exactly this: eleven hundred years of being washed.
Going up
There is no vehicle road to the top. You climb the rock barefoot, up steps cut into the granite, and it is a real climb rather than a stroll — go early, before the stone heats, and take water. Palanquin-bearers work the hill for anyone who cannot manage the steps. Shravanabelagola is 97.4 km from Belur and about 150 km from Bengaluru, so it works best as the last stop on a Hoysala day heading back east rather than as a detour out and back.
Frequently asked questions
How old is the Gommateshwara statue?
It was carved around 983 CE, during the Western Ganga dynasty, commissioned by the minister and commander Chavundaraya. That makes it about 130 years older than the Chennakeshava temple at Belur.
When is the next Mahamastakabhisheka?
2030. The ceremony is held once every twelve years, when the statue is ritually bathed in milk, saffron, ghee and sugarcane juice; the last one was in 2018.
How far is Shravanabelagola from Belur?
97.4 km, about an hour and a half by road. It sits naturally at the end of a Belur–Halebidu day if you are driving back towards Bengaluru, which is about 150 km further on.
Is the climb hard?
It is a genuine climb up steps cut into bare granite, done barefoot, with no shade. Go early in the day, carry water, and use the palanquin service if the steps are beyond you.