Vidurashwatha

Vidurashwatha, near Gauribidanur in Karnataka's Chikkaballapur district, is an interesting place for two completely different reasons.

For devotees, it is a sacred site associated with Santhana Nagendra Swamy, naga worship and the ancient tradition of the Ashwatha tree.

For anyone interested in India's freedom struggle, the same village carries a much more painful memory. In 1938, police opened fire on people who had gathered here as part of the Flag Satyagraha. The incident was so significant that Vidurashwatha later came to be called the "Jallianwala Bagh of the South."

A temple and a freedom memorial standing within the same village make Vidurashwatha quite different from a conventional pilgrimage destination.

Explore both sides of Vidurashwatha:

Santhana Nagendra Swamy Temple

Vidurashwatha is an important centre for naga worship. One of the first things that catches the eye is the large number of naga stones installed within the temple premises by generations of devotees.

The place is also associated in local tradition with Vidura of the Mahabharata and the sacred Ashwatha tree. This association is believed to have given the village its name, Vidurashwatha.

The temple continues to attract devotees particularly for worship connected with Santhana Nagendra Swamy.

 The Jallianwala Bagh of the South

On 25 April 1938, a large gathering assembled at Vidurashwatha during the freedom movement and attempted to hoist the Congress flag despite prohibitory orders.

Police opened fire on the gathering.

The exact number of people killed varies between historical accounts, but the incident became one of the important episodes of the freedom struggle in the erstwhile Mysore State. A memorial at Vidurashwatha remembers those who lost their lives.

It is strange to think that this quiet pilgrimage centre was once the scene of such violence.

That is the other story of Vidurashwatha.