Visit to Gundbala

I had been to my native village Hudgod during first week of June . During this vacation I paid a visit to Gundbala. People who hail from Uttara Kannada district are familiar with the pilgrim importance of the place. A small village located in midst of the Western Ghats Gundbala is synonymous with Yakshagana, a famous folk art of Karnataka. Lord Lakshmi Venkatesh and Aanjaneya(Hanuman) are the presiding deities of temple and every night there is a performance of Yakshagana for the Lord. The Yakshagana performance is carried out during non-rainy months, the performance starts during the month of December and ends by May last week before the monsoon begins. The interesting fact is that all the performances are for the Lord. The performances are part of harake(sacred vow) that is pledged by a devotee for a return of favour. Here are some snaps:

The temple gate which faces the Yakshagana ground. The temple is located among the coconut and arecanut plantations.

The entrance of the temple.

The deity of Gundbala.

The Yakshagana ground with the stage, during the day. The stage faces the deity.

The Yakshagana ground during night. The play starts at night after the arati to the deity and continues till early morning(snap taken by my brother).

A Yakshagana artist performing in a play(snap taken by my brother).

Another picture of the artist(snap taken by my brother).

We visit Gundbala every year. This year I could not attend the Yakshagana plays at night but paid a visit to the temple during the day. My family had reached the place 2 days earlier to attend a thread ceremony and they attended the night pooja and the play.