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However, the present statue is at Shravana Belagola,
and the credit for its creation and consecration there is given to Chamundrai,
general-in-chief and chief minister of a king named Rachmall during the 10th century.
Chamundrai's mother, Kallal Devi, was a very religious woman who wished to see
the golden likeness of Bahubali at Podanpura. So Chamundrai, his mother and their
guru set out on a pilgrimage to Podanpura. They reached Shravana Belagola at dusk
and decided to halt there for the night.
While asleep, a goddess appeared in their dreams. She told them that the golden
statue at Podanpura had disappeared but a true image of Bahubali lay buried under
the stones on Vidyagiri Hill in Shravana Belagola. To uncover it, they would have
to purify themselves, stand on top of the smaller hill, Chandragiri, and shoot
a golden arrow to the south. Early the next morning, Chamundrai went to the peak
of the Chandragiri Hill and shot his golden arrow at the pinnacle of Vidyagiri.
Immediately, as prophesied, the likeness was revealed. Kallal Devi desired a definite
shape to be given to the statue. Chamundrai entrusted Arishtanemi, a highly skilled
sculptor, with the task. In payment, he agreed to equal the weight of the stone
dust that fell during chiseling with gold. |
When Arishtanemi took the first load of gold to
gift it to his mother, he found that he was unable to give it because the precious
metal had got stuck to his hand. Despite his best effort, he could not detach
it. Seeing his agony, his mother consulted a sage for a solution, and at his advice,
she counseled her son to cast away his greed and pride. She chastised him for
trying to bargain over the price of sculpting the likeness of a great person like
Bahubali. And it was this greed that was clinging to his soul in the form of the
gold.
As tears of repentance started trickling down Arishtanemi's cheeks, his hands
were freed from the gold. He then chiseled the statue of Bahubali from a single
rock on the pinnacle of Vidyagiri, starting from the top and working down, to
fulfill Kallal Devi's wish. |
On the completion of the statue, Chamundrai set
out with great pomp and show on March 13, 981 AD toper form the grand head anointing
ceremony of the statue. Filled with great pride at his achievement, he decided
to bathe the statue with milk and collected an amount worthy of a great warrior.
But to the amazement of all those present at the occasion, the enormous quantity
of milk could barely wet the body beyond the chest. A poor, simple woman called
Gullikayaji then expressed her desire to pour her humble offering on the image.
It is said that her thimble of milk drenched the entire statue and flooded the
basin below. This miracle humbled the mighty Chamundrai and as a mark of respect
for Gullikayaji, he had her statue carved and installed.
Chamundrai was called Gomat in his childhood, so Bahubali is also known as god
or eshwar of Gomat, Gomateshwara, as well. He is considered to be the originator
of the concept of a hinsa or non-violence by the Jains, the basic tenet of their
religion. |
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A number of welfare projects are initiated during
the Mahamastak Abhishek. Most of them are expected to confer permanent benefits
to the local people.
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