Hassan: While the gigantic monolithic statue of Bahubali remains the main attraction at Shravanabelagola, the famed Jain pilgrim centre, a huge copper “Janamangala Kalasa,” a giant pot of much religious significance, installed nearby, also receives due reverence by pilgrims.
With the Mahamastakabhisheka of Bahubali due in February, the Janamangala Kalasa (or a pot for people’s welfare), considered auspicious for the ritual, will once again find itself the cynosure of all eyes. It was during the 1981 Mahamastakabhisheka, that the huge copper kalasa, several metres in height, was flown from New Delhi to Shravanabelagola.
A representative of the Shravanabelagola Jain Mutt, Ashok Kumar, recalls that the kalasa was flagged off by late prime minister Indira Gandhi and arrived at the pilgrimage centre in Karnataka after passing through several states.
Enroute, Rs 20 lakh in donations were raised for conducting people’s welfare programmes such as running of schools, organising health camps, planting saplings and so on in and around Shravanabelagola.
The donations were deposited in a bank and have been used by the Shravanabelagola Jain Mutt for its activities over the last 35 years. On arriving at Shravanabelagola, the kalasa was placed on a structure resembling a lotus pedestal, where it has remained a source of much reverence to devotees arriving from around the state and country to the pilgrimage centre.
