Famous Temples in India

Religious Significance

Legend : Kumaravyasa yearned to write the Mahabharatha in Kannada. He was searching for a guru to guide him through the process. One day he went to a place where there were thousands of people having food. He also sat down to have food, children who were sitting beside him started to fight. An elderly person nearby scolded the children by saying “Why are you fighting like Dhuryodhana?” Hearing this outburst a Brahmin who was sitting nearby had tears in his eyes and the Brahmin left the place without eating food. Immediately Narayanappa followed the Brahmin and greeted him and asked him who he was and also asked him why he was pained to hear Dhuryodhana’s name being attached to a fight. Narayanappa also told the Brahmin that he intended/desired to write the Mahabharatha in Kannada. Narayanappa was overwhelmed when the Brahmin tells him that he is none other than Ashwaththama himself. Ashwaththama told Kumaravyasa that he witnessed the Mahabharatha till the death of Duryodhana and he does not know what has happened after he left the battle field. He narrated the whole story of Mahabharatha to Kumaravyasa. This is the reason why only 10 parvas / sections were written by Kumaravyasa. Kumaravyasa used to dip in the holy tank of the temple and in wet clothes would stand leaning on the pillar in the Veeranaryana temple and narrate the Mahabharatha until his clothes dried. The confidence and clarity in which he narrated the Mahabharatha, it seemed that like Kumaravyasa was possessed by Lord Narayana himself. On the feet of the idol of Veeranarayana you can see a ball. It seems that Lord Narayana playing with a ball came down to this place from Badrinath. The ball stopped at Gadag and refused to move from that place. The lord stood there as an idol and he is known as Veeranarayana.