Karkala, Jan 21: The 42 foot high gigantic monolith statue of Lord Bahubali atop Gommata Betta came alive donning various hues on Wednesday marking the grand start of the 10-day grand ritual of Mahamasthakabhisheka here.
More than a thousand devotees sitting in the main venue and another equal number outside raised their eyes skywards to have a look at the head anointing ceremony of the monolith, erected in 1432 AD to commemorate Lord Bahubali's supreme sacrifice of renouncing the throne in pursuit of eternal bliss and liberation.
As the sounds of 'chende' and 'kombu' reached a crescendo, the "pratham Kalasha" first of the 108 kalasha of water, drenched the top portion of Lord Bahubali.
The imposing monument, installed at Gommata Betta, by King Veera Pandya Bairarasa at the behest of guru Lalithakeerthi, a pontiff of Karkala Jain math, in 1432 AD. This is the millennium's second mahamasthakabhisheka for Karkala Bahubali.
The visual splendor began at 8.20 pm when the 583-year-old state's second tallest monolith statue was anointed first with 108 kalasha's of water by four families.
What followed after the 40 minute 'Jalabhisheka' was indeed riveting sight to behold. From white to brown to yellow to golden, the colour of the monolith statue changed by the minute, to the awe of devotees gathered atop the Gommata Betta. But the penultimate tribute to the statue was the anointment with varieties of flowers, which was followed by grand aarathi, which swung across the Bahubali from the bottom and went steadily to the top completing the first day's ritual which ended with a Maha Shathi Mantra - Kshemam Sarvarprajanam.
As 500 litres of milk, kilograms of turmeric and sandal paste slid down the gigantic statue for full two hours, the sight reminded that the 13 year wait was indeed a worthy one. It was indeed a sight to watch as the monolith assumed different colours as the pastes and fluids of different ingredients such as tender coconut water, milk, kaksha churna (a concoction of medicinal plants), sugarcane juice, turmeric paste among others were poured one after the other.
The mahamasthakabhisheka ceremonies in this part of the state are held only at night so due to the humidity and the heat prevalent here.
The premises was dotted with huge containers carrying milk, turmeric paste, rice flour, sugarcane juice, kashaya (a herbal concoction) and ashtagandha (eight varieties of sandalwood paste), to be used during the ritual.
Throughout the ceremony, there was a steady stream of devotees, who made their way enthusiastically to occupy every vantage point, from where they could have a bird`s eye view of the ceremony.
The ceremony, which takes place once in 12 years to signify the attainment of Kaivalyajnana by Bahubali after 12 months in meditation.
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