Hampi, Where Lord Rama First Met Hanuman

A boat going down Tungabhadra River

The rocks of Hampi

The rock plateaus of the UNESCO World Heritage site at Hampi delicately balance centuries of stories. Hampi, a five hour drive from Bangalore, India, is a must visit destination. “You must go to Hampi,” urged Vice Admiral Satish Soni Rtd., a collector of stories and experiences. “Don’t miss it!”

Stone Chariot at Hampi, one of the three stone chariots in India. Picture source: Wikimedia Commons/ CC License

“These rocks are 3600 million years old. If they could talk they would tell you some tales”, said Viresh, the historian from Evolve Back Kamlapur Palace, at Hampi, Karnataka.

Rock formations at Hampi. Picture courtesy: Ritu Marwah

Ram reaches Kishkinda in search of Sita

In the epic story of Ramayana, Ravan, the King of Lanka, carried away Lord Ram’s wife, Sita from the forests of the Deccan. Jatayu, the bird, fought to save her but failed. As the abducted queen of Lord Ram of Ayodhya, was carried over Kishkinda, in present-day Hampi, the queen dropped her jewels on these rocks as breadcrumbs for her husband to follow. Sugreeva, a member of the royal family, found her jewels.

Ram-Sugreev Temple, Kishkinda. Picture by: Ritu Marwah

A temple memorializes the meeting between Lord Ram and King Sugreeva where a deal was sealed. Lord Ram would help Sugreeva wrest the throne of Kishkinda from his brother Bali, and in return, Hanuman the general of the monkey king Sugreeva would be deputed to help the two brothers find and get Sita back.

The rocks of Hampi echo with the battle of Sugreeva and Bali. In a duel fought between the brothers, Bali is slain by an arrow of Rama’s.

Stories from the Ramayana are scattered around the area. They are in Rishimukh Hills where Hanuman met Rama and Lakshmana, the cave where Sugreeva hid the fallen jewels, the Malyavanta Hill where Ram took refuge from the monsoon for six months, Matunga Hill named after the sage Matunga who cursed Bali, and the spot where Sharbari fed Lord Ram berries after tasting each one of them.

The lord of the Anjanadri hills in Hampi, set against the magical sunset over the horizon. Anjanadri, known as the birthplace of Lord Hanuman, the monkey god in Hindu mythology and is famous for its sunsets. Photo by: Santhosh Source: Wikimedia Commons (CC license)

Hanuman’s birthplace 

It is also the birthplace of Hanuman whose invaluable help won the battle against Lanka. It is said that in these very same mountains, on the Anjanadri Hills, baby Hanuman was born to mother Anjana and father Kesari. With the power, speed, and strength of the Wind, pawan putra Hanuman spent his childhood here. It was from these rocks that baby Hanuman leaped to eat the Sun, thinking it was a fruit and it was from here that the young Hanuman led Lord Ram’s charge into Lanka to find Queen Sita.

A temple sits atop the hill. Trekkers, devotees, and tourists climb barefoot about 700 steps to reach where Lord Hanuman resides. Monkeys prance around them as they make it to the top. The breathtaking view is well worth the 20-minute walk, says Viresh, the historian. A view of the graceful Tungabhadra river flowing beside Vijaynagar’s glorious ruins awaits the devotees.

Down the river, sailing past these sites tourists spin in cane boats carried by the waters of the Tungabhadra.

Virupaksha Temple, Hampi. Source: Wikimedia Commons/ CC License.

A sound and light show for Shiva-Parvati’s marriage

A short walk from the spinning boats is Hampi’s only practicing temple, the Virupaksha Temple built by Lokamahadevi, the senior queen of Vikramaditya II. It is devoted to Lord Shiva and his Queen Pampa or Parvati. She captured a tale not thousands of years old but one that belongs to another yug, another age.

“According to the Sthala Purana, Parvati (Pampa) married ascetic Shiva on the banks of Tungabhadra river,” said our guide. “Pampapati or Pampa’s husband is Shiva. Pampa became Hampa and Hampa became Hampi. Lord Shiva came to these mountains and met the lady, Pampa, who would become his bride,” he grinned, having lifted his entire spiel from the script of the new sound and light show, Hampi by Night.

Hampi by Night was created especially for the meeting of the G20 sherpas that took place in 2023 at the Evolve Back resort.

The Vijaya Vittala temple at Hampi just before sunset. Source: Wikimedia Commons/ CC License

A musical temple

Four hundred years ago, the dancing girls of Deccan’s richest and largest empire, Vijayanagara, danced amidst the fluted pillars of the Vittala Temple. An architectural marvel, the Ranga Mantapa of the Vittala Temple with its 56 musical pillars, is akin to a musical instrument and emits the notes of the SARGAM when tapped gently by a wooden stick. It is an experience that makes the mind twirl into the rhythm of tapping feet and jingling anklets of the dancers of yesteryears.

Lotus Mahal Temple at Hampi. Photo by Rajesh. Source: Wikipedia.org. CC License.

Diamonds, baths, and the elephants of Vijayanagara

Nearby the Lotus Mahal of the Vijayanagara queens stands alone in the zenana compound, a testimony to the grandeur of their living quarters. The tinkling of the water as it streams in on romanesque clay pipes and the strumming of the music beneath the multi-layered roof takes one back to the cool fragrant afternoons spent by indolent queens whose kings owned the diamond mines which gave the world some of its most spectacular diamonds.

As early as 500 B.C, diamonds were discovered in the Deccan plateau, in the basin of Tungabhadra and Krishna rivers. The famous Kohinoor diamond was mined here in Golconda and the Vijayanagara kings owned the rights to all diamonds above 34 carats.

In 1565, the Vijayanagara king lost the Battle of Talikota, to the combined armies of the Deccan sultanates. News of the defeat and death of Rama Raya, the de facto ruler of the Vijayanagara Empire reached the kingdom.

The queens escaped with the wealth before the enemy could reach their palace in Hampi.  500 elephants were needed to carry the wealth out of the kingdom.

The disappointed Deccan invaders took to destroying the buildings. The huge granite temples and monuments faced their wrath. The nine-tiered gateways of the temples of Hampi were ripped off their metal lightning devices, the sandalwood structures were torched after the splendor of the empire left on the back of 500 elephants.

Birthplace of Hanuman

The government of Karnataka has earmarked a hundred crores for the development of the Hanuman Temple, as part of the Ayodhya circuit. A ropeway will soon take the devoted straight up, eliminating the need to walk the 700 steps. “When the Ram Janmabhoomi Trust was formed on February 5, 2020, following a Supreme Court direction, the same day Karnataka Hanuman Janmabhoomi Teerthakshetra Trust too was constituted for the overall development of Kishkinda Pampakshetra at Hampi,” reported the New Indian Express.

Ritu Marwah wrote this series under the Chalo India Global Diaspora Campaign for travelers to explore the rich bounty of tourist destinations in India.