Udupi

Udupi (Kannada, Tulu : ಉಡುಪಿ Odipu ,Konkani-Udupi) is a town and the headquarters of the Udupi District in the Indian state of Karnataka. Udupi is famous for the Krishna temple located here. It also lends its name to the Udupi cuisine which is famous across the world.

It is widely believed that the name of Udupi was derived from its Tulu name Odipu. The Tulu name in turn is associated with a temple at Malpe, devoted to Vadabhandeshwara. Another story is that the name Udupi came from the combination of the Sanskrit words Udu and Pa, which mean "stars" and "lord." According to legend, the moon's light was once reduced due to a curse by King Daksha, whose 27 daughters (the 27 stars, according to Hindu astrology) were married to the moon. The moon prayed to Lord Shiva to get back its original shine. Lord Shiva was pleased with the moon's prayer and restored its shine. Legend says that the moon and his wives made their prayer at the Chandramouleeshwara temple at Udupi, creating a linga that can be seen even today. According to this story, therefore, Udupi means the land of the "lord of the stars," the moon.

Hampi

Hampi (Kannada: ಹಂಪೆ, Telugu: హంపి, Hampe) is a village in northern Karnataka state,India. The name is derived from Pampa, which is the old name of the Tungabhadra River on whose banks the city is built. Hampi is located within the ruins of Vijayanagara, the former capital of the Vijayanagara empire. Possibly predating the city of Vijayanagara, this village continues to be an important religious centre, housing the Virupaksha Temple. The village of Hampi contains several other monuments belonging to the old city. It extends into some of the old ceremonial streets of Vijayanagara. As the village is at the original centre of Vijayanagara, it is sometimes confused with this ruined city. The Vijayanagara ruins are listed as the Group of Monuments at Hampi as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The name "Hampi" is an anglicized version of the Kannada Hampe (derived from Pampa). Over the years, it has also been referred to as Vijayanagara and Virupakshapura (from Virupaksha, the patron deity of the Vijayanagara rulers).

Hampi is identified with the historical Kishkindha, the Vanara (monkey) kingdom which finds mention in the Ramayana. The first historical settlements in Hampi date back to 1 CE.
Hampi formed one of the cores of the capital of the Vijayanagara empire from 1336 to 1565. It was destroyed by Moslem sultans. Hampi was chosen because of its strategic location, bounded by the torrential Tungabhadra river on one side and surrounded by defensible hills on the other three sides.
The site is of great importance in terms of architecture and historical significance. The demography is abundant with large stones which have been utilized to make larger than life statues of god. One can see a structure of historic importance every quarter of a mile.
Sadly the city is in ruins as it was not able to defend itself against Islamic aggressions who treat Idol worship as blasphemy. Many statues have been destroyed or damaged and successive governments have not been able to keep the place free from treasure seekers who cause further damage.
Recently the Archaeological Survey of India has been conducting continuous excavations in the area to discover more artifacts and temples.

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON)

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), also known as 'the Hare Krishna' movement, is one of several Vaishnava groups. . It was founded in 1966 in New York City by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. While some classified it as a new religious movement, its core philosophy is based on scriptures such as the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam and the Bhagavad-gītā. both of which date back more than two millennia. The distinctive appearance of the movement and its culture come from the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition, which has had adherents in India ever since the late 1400s. Early converts to the movement were dated to early 1930s.Non-sectarian in its ideals, ISKCON was formed to spread the practice of bhakti yoga (devotion to God), in which aspirant devotees (bhaktas) dedicate their thoughts and actions towards pleasing the Supreme Lord, Krishna (seen as non-different from God.ISKCON today is a worldwide confederation of more than 400 centres, including 60 farm communities some aiming for self-sufficiency, 50 schools and 60 restaurants. In recent decades the movements most rapid expansions in terms of numbers of membership have been within Eastern Europe and India.

Maha Mantra:

The popular nickname of "Hare Krishnas" for devotees of this movement comes from the mantra that devotees sing aloud or chant quietly on rosary-like beads, called Japa mala. This mantra, known also as the Maha Mantra, contains the names of God Krishna and Rama. Devotees believe that the sound vibration created by repeating these names of God gradually revives a state of pure God-consciousness, or "Krishna consciousness.

The Maha Mantra:
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare

Nanjangud

Nanjangud (Kannada ನಂಜನಗೂಡು) is a town in Mysore district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is a temple town and is on the banks of the river Kapila (a.k.a Kabini). It is at a distance of 23 km from the city of Mysore. Nanjangud is also called as "Dakshina Kashi" (southern Kashi)

Origin of Name:

The main temple at Nanjangud is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, whose another name is Nanjundeshwara. Nanjundeshwara means the God who drank poison.[1]. Hindu mythology quotes an interesting legend in which the Gods and demons churned the ocean in search of the nectar of immortality. During this churning, there were lots of artefacts that emanated out of the ocean, including poison. To prevent the poison from spreading across the universe and destroying it, Shiva came to the rescue and drank the poison. His wife Parvati then held his throat tightly to prevent the poison from spreading to the rest of his body. Nanjanagud literally means the place where Nanjundeshwara resides.

Ayyappan Temple

Ayyappan, (Malayalam: അയ്യപ്പന്‍) is a Hindu deity. The worship of this deity is largely confined to South India. Lord Ayyappan is worshipped in a number of shrines across India: at Kulathupuzha, in Kerala, he is worshipped as a child; at Achenkovil in conjunction with his consorts, Pushkala and Poorna; and at Sabarimala as an ascetic - a celibate meditating in solitude for the benefit of all mankind. The name "Ayyappan" is used as a respectful form of address in Malayalam, and the famous mantra Swamiye Sharanam Ayyappa can be directly translated as Give me shelter, Lord Ayyappa!
The most famous Ayyappa shrine in India is the one at Sabarimala with over 50 million devotees visiting it every year.

Various names of Ayyappan:

Dharmasasta, Hariharasutan, Manikandan, Sathanar, Sastan, Cattan (from Sanskrit Sasta), Ayyanar, Natrayan, Nattarasan, and Bhutanathan.

The asura princess Mahishi was burning up with anger at the dirty trick the gods had pulled on her brother, the asura king Mahishasura. As Mahishasura was blessed with invulnerability to all men, the gods had sent goddess Durga, to fight and kill him. Thus, Mahishi began performing a fearsome set of austerities, and pleased the creator god Brahma. He granted her the boon of ruling the universe and being invulnerable except to a being that had the combined strength of both Shiva and Vishnu. Since such a person did not exist, she thought she was safe and began conquered and plundered the world.
The gods implored Shiva and Vishnu to save them from this catastrophe. Vishnu found a possible solution to the problem. When Vishnu had taken on the Kurma Avatar, he also had to manifest himself as Mohini, the enchantress, to save the nectar of immortality from the demons who were not willing to share it with the gods. If he became Mohini again, then the female Mohini and the male Shiva could have the divine child who would combine their powers and beat Mahishi.

Dharmasthala

Dharmasthala (Kannada :ಧರ್ಮಸ್ಥಳ ) is perhaps the most highly revered and best known temple town in Karnataka. Located amidst the picturesque Western Ghats on the banks of the Nethravathi River, it is about 100 km from Udupi and about 70km from Mangalore.
This holy place is the home of the Sri Manjunatheshwara Temple, where devotees of all castes and creeds visit. The temple is devoted to Shiva and houses a linga of gold. The temple is unusual in that it is run by a Jain administration and poojas are conducted by Madhva priests. Everyone enjoys the generous hospitality without any distinction of caste, creed or class whatsoever. On an average the flow of pilgrims is about 10,000 people a day. A mechanised and clean kitchen provides free food for all pilgrims. There are guest houses with modern amenities.The temple is unique example of unity in diversity.

It has been told in Dharmasthala that the Shiva Linga in Dharmasthala was brought to Dharmasthala by a man named Annappa. Legend is that he used to work for the Heggade family. Once when the Heggade he was serving wanted to worship Lord Shiva, Annappa had assured him to get one linga and vanished from the sight. Surprisingly next day morning, by the time all woke up, he had already established the linga in Dharmasthala, a few metres away from Heggade's house.
Later it was known that the Linga was from Kadri near Mangalore, from the Kadri temple. By then, Annappa had vanished and he was never again sighted in the vicinity. Now people in Dharmasthala worship Annappa as Annappa Panjurli, a local god deva and a hero.

Tirumala-Tirupati

Tirupati (Telugu: తిరుపతి) is the richest piligrimage city (of any religious faith) in the world, located in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India.

Tirupati is located at the foothills of Tirumala. The city owes its existence to the sacred temple situated on the Tirumala Hills. Tirumala is the abode of Lord Venkateshwara, one of the Avatars of Lord Vishnu, located atop Seshachala hills often called as "Yaedu Kondalu" (seven hills). The temple of Lord Venkateshwara was build by the Tamil king Thondaimaan, and reform preiodically by Cholas and later Telugu Kings. It is the richest and most visited temple (of any faith) in the world.[1]
Tirupati has been a city for many years though recognised as a major municipal Corporation (MCT) only recently. It is the fourth largest city (5 lakh population and 56 km² area) in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Although the district headquarters is 60 km from the city, major government establishments and operations take place in Tirupati alone. The Tirupati Urban Development Authority further expanded its horizon to about 400 km² with a total population of about 8 lakhs. Tirupati is a very fast growing city with IT, BPO and Health industries coming. It is a major boom for real estate. Tirupati is also emerging into a major educational, entertainment, tourism and a commercial city