Mandargiri The Holy Place Of Chandranatha Thirthankara

    Mandargiri is also popularly called Basadi Betta. It is a Jain pilgrimage center in Dobaspet which is located in Tumkur district of Karnataka and has a marble stone engraved statue of Shri Chandranatha Thirthankara. It is about 75-odd kilometers from Bangalore. The trek to the temple can be easily completed by climbing 460 steps that took me about ten to fifteen minutes. The hillock is a photographer's paradise as it is covered with large rocks of many shapes and sizes and looks quite imposing.     I started from Indira Nagar at about 08:00 AM and located Mandargiri on Google Maps. I could see it after the second toll plaza on the Tumkur highway. It was hardly a fifteen minutes drive from the plaza when I noticed a large arch on my right that was the leading road to the hillock temple.    From the main road, it hardly takes 15 to 20 minutes to reach the base of the hillock. Once you reach the base, there are two ways to climb atop it. First, there is a muddy path for vehicles to drive all the way up. Secondly, there are well laid-out steps for people to climb on the hillock. Hence, I took the second option.     Do not miss out on the following attractions while you are at Mandargiri.   Guru Mandir - There is a Pinchi shaped Guru Mandir on the top that is about 81 feet high. It is the first of its kind in Jainism and is built in a very attractive way resembling peacock feathers on the roof. It is dedicated to the Digambara Jain ascetic Sri Shantinsagarji Maharaj and the grandeur of this temple is worth looking at.    A tall statue - Just beside the Pinchi in the temple premises, there is a tall statue of Chandranatha Thirthankara that looks quite imposing and majestic. It was installed at the Mantapa in 2011 and lends it a very gorgeous look and the backdrop of the hill Mandargiri makes it no lesser than a paradise.