A trip to Dharmasthala

Name : Dhivya Laxmi S.

PGDM No : 11135

Section : C

Mysore , is the city of palaces . It’s the land where sun shines when rain showers . Our college SDM IMD is located at the foot of Chamundi hills . Our college has arranged for a trip to visit Dharmasthala. One of Karnataka's most renowned landmark of piety and devotion, Sri Manjunatheshwara Temple of Dharmasthala is thronged by thousands of pilgrims every day. This famed centre of charity and divine justice, where every devotee partakes of generous hospitality irrespective of caste or creed distinctions, has grown into legendary proportions because of its multifarious socio-economic programs. The temple town nestles amidst picturesque Western Ghats, beside River Nethravathi in Belthangady Taluk and is within easy accesibilty of Mangalore and Udupi. Sri Manjunatheshwara Temple is devoted to Shiva and houses a lingam of gold. The temple is unusual in that it is run by a Jain administration and poojas are conducted by Madhva priests.

It was a typical mysore weather on June 17th, 2011. Students were enthralled about our first tour from our college. Crowd was well packed in three KSRTC busses and a van . We left our college with all “hip-hip hurrahs”. We stopped at Hassan which is 118 km far from mysore , for our evening refreshments . Students had good time during the journey with lot of games and fun.

It was like a ride on roller coaster on the hairpin bend roads. Around 21:30 hours , our bus broke down due to puncture in tyre. We all were asked to get down the bus so as to ease them to fix it. People stood terrified by the stories of cheetah attacks . The clouds too were pouring heavily . Luckily after an hour, our bus was ready for the ride . It was 23:30 hrs when we reached a guest house with modern amenities which is run by SDM trust .

June 18, 2011, early morning we started to Dharmasthala temple .The temple is devoted to Shiva and the principal object of worship is the linga. The temple is unusual in that it is run by a Jain administration and poojas are conducted by Hindu priests of Madhva order. Lakshadeepa- the festival of lights is the annual festival of Dharmasthala comes off in November–December.[2] On an average the flow of pilgrims is about 10,000 people a day. A mechanised kitchen provides free food for all pilgrims . We had a delicious breakfast there.

Figure 1: Dharmasthala temple during dhasara festival

Figure 2: Lord Shri Manjunatheshwara

We then visited the man with visionary and high dignity Dr. D . Veerendra Heggade Dharmadhikari , a man who reigns this renowned SDM trust , one of the biggest trust in India . He is known for his honesty, philanthrophy and simplicity amidst his princely luxury .

Padmabhushana Dr. D. Veerendra Heggade Dharmadhikari,

Shree Kshethra Dharmasthala & President, SDM Educational Society (R), Ujire

Dr. D. Veerendra Heggade, Dharmadhikari of Shree Kshetra Dharmasthala, is a man of outstanding credentials. The head of a religious institution that draws millions of devotees from all over the country. However, his stature, doesn't confine to a single field of achievement. A titan in the fields of social service and education, Dr. Heggade has been quite instrumental in uplifting the educational standards throughout Karnataka. As the President of SDM Educational Society, he has been phenomenally successful in leading more than 40 institutions.

What motives Dr. Heggade is the rich tradition of our country in holding the spirit of enlightenment high. We have a reputation for providing the light of knowledge to the world for thousands of years. And that tradition, thankfully still guides us as we progress rapidly in various spheres of excellence in education. Quality with a spirit of service guides all educational endeavours of SDM Educational Society. The Society offers opportunities in the wide canvas encompassing primary to professional education. Institutions of SDM Educational Society cover a wide arena from Engineering, different streams of Medicine and Para-medicine, Management, Law, Commerce and general education. SDM Institutions are a role model to other institutes and Government Organizations with many having received recognitions from international institutions.

Our next destiny is to SDM yoga and nature cure hospital at Shanthivana, Dharmasthala which is run with the view of spreading the message to the common man that human body has the capacity to provide cure for its own

ailments through various drugless therapies. The management also runs other charitable hospitals, colleges, schools and provides free education for the deserving. The Naturopathic medicine is based on the concept of treating the body with Panchamahabhuthas that is Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Ether which forms the basic constituents of the body. These elements are used to revitalize and rejuvenate the body and strengthen the immune system against the disease causing agents present in and around him.

We were taken around the hospital to see the different kind of treatments they are availing .

The treatments available are like :

Jalachikithsa (Hydrotherapy)

Pruthvi Chikithsa (Mud theraphy)

Akasha Chikisthsa (Detoxification Therapy)

Vayu Chikithsa (Air Therapy) Surya / Agni Chikithsa (Heliotherapy) Mardana Chikithsa (Rejuvenation Therapy)

Dietherapy

Acupuncture Therapy

Magnetotherapy

Yoga Therapy

Pranayama Dhyana (Meditation) Physiotherapy & Exercise Therapy

Reikipranic Healing Swimming Therapy

The ailments treated here are :

Bronchial Asthama, Nasal Allergy, Chronic Bronchitis. Diabetes, Thyrotoxicosis, Obesity. High and low blood Pressure and Ischemic heart diseases. Migrane, Tension, Headache. Anxiety Neurosis, Depressive Neurosis. Low back pain Rheumatism, Arthritis. Gastritis and Peptic Ulcer, Chronic Diarrheas and Dysentery. Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Psoriasis, Allergic Dermatitis etc

Special Package Programmes and out door activity

1. Stress Management programmes2. Health rejuvenation Scheme3. Cardiac Counseling4. Diet Counseling 5. Yoga and Nature Cure camps for public 6. Public health awareness camps7. Special package programme for old age, Asthma, Diabetes Mellitus,

Obesity8. Promotion of Positive health for all age groups9. Seminars, workshops and lectures10.Research Activity11.Psychological Counseling

Our next visit was to Rathnamanasa – Pioneer in Giving Life Education .

Figure 3 Rathnamanasa

Education is often included in the basic necessities of life since it plays an important role in each one’s life.  But a glance at today’s society tells that mere education would not be of great benefit either to the individual or to the society. The need of the hour is value-based education, a holistic system wherein students get to know not only about history, physics, chemistry etc but also about life-skills, moral and other related values etc.  Education has to be a combo-package which offers tips not only to succeed but also to cope up with life when met with failures.

Here is a place where you can see the different aspects of the process of molding a student, how one is made expert in one’s studies as well as in one’s life. Every student of this institution has sufficient knowledge as how to deal with life and how to face challenges. Rathnamanasa is situated in Ujire in Dakshina Kannada district. It is the dream child of Dr D. Veerandra Heggade of Dharmasthala. The institution aims at providing the students with 'Education for life' under the project 'Jeevana Shikshana'. Hence the students can be experts in handling the different situations in life. There are 115 students in the institution from different parts of the state who are bound by means of brotherhood.  This institution stands unique by its different characteristics; here the students manage everything. They handle each and every chore of the hostel from cooking to savings. The students also undertake the process of working in field. They are given practical training in cultivation, dairy farming,

horticulture, mixed farming, energy conservation, marketing, dealing with co-operatives and banks etc. This helps the students to be self-employed later on in their lives.

Agriculture and allied activities are integrated with the school education. Yoga, games, sports and various types of craft activities are carried out for the students. Additional inputs are given to weak students to make them measure up to the expected level. Dairy farming and agriculture are the main sources of income to this hostel - it may be noted that these are managed by the students.   The children who stay and study here are the high school students. Each student comes here with the dream of being educated but few get the chance to be a part of this institution. The entrance exam is not an easy task. The selection of the students is also of a peculiar kind. Before the admission the aspirants are made to stay in the hostel for three days and they are exposed to the systems of the hostel including the work that they must carry in the coming days. Later, based on their adjustment skills and talents the students are selected for the hostel and are given training for their bright future.

The environment of the hostel awakens a feeling of brotherhood among the students. In the beginning each senior student is given a junior as his brother for the entire year. Throughout the year the senior student must take care of his junior. Students are also trained in activities such as hair cutting, cooking, idol making etc. Every day each student is made to read books related to great personalities which would motivate them and write a review on it.    The students are also taken for study tours to obtain more information about their work. Guest lecturers are also arranged on agriculture, sericulture, business, personality development, banking etc. A diary is maintained for every student where his parents can get informed about all his activities.

When we reached Rathnamansa , few students of that school volunteered to take us around their hostel (Rathnamansa) to give us vivid picture of their life style. Though being young , they were able to manage everything by themselves . Those guys were with great dreams .

One of the student told us that he wants to become an engineer . When he was asked the reason behind opting to study in this institution, he said, ‘The training in this institution helps me in building my confidence and as I am trained in different aspects of leading life I stand unique among the normal children.” These words of that boy reveal how the institution is actively taking part in building a strong, energetic society. The only drawback of that school is that they were not taught English as first language . Few managed to speak in English to some extent but many were not able to. They are bringing up good human beings to this world, but to compete this world and to survive in corporate world they will require good fluency in English , which I feel that they are lagging .

Rathnamanasa has already made a difference in the lives of innumerable students, the society needs to have many more such institutions in our vicinity. This would help the individuals in particular and the society in general. A healthy society and a progressive world, is in need of many more Rathnamanasas.

We left Rathnamansa with good memories of the students and their life style . We were next taken to see the spectacular architecture of Bahubali at Dharmasthala. Under the aegies of Shri Ratnavarma Heggade, the famed sculptor Shri Renjala Gopal Shenoy began work on the statue of Lord Bahubali in 1967. The 39 foot high statue, carved from a single rock, with a pedestal of 13 feet was completed in 1970 at Karkala. Late in the evening , we were taken out for a museum visit . We reached vintage car museum .The car museum at Dharmasthala has a rare collection of vintage cars.

VINTAGE CAR COLLECTIONS OF Dr. VEERENDRA HEGGADE

Collection of vintage value items is one of the model hobbies of present Dharmadhikari- Sri Veerendra Heggade. Since many years they added old horse chariots, invaluable rare vintage cars etc, into the collection. We may call this as the study place for history of transportation. Each and every car has been kept in extreme care and good running condition .

The other museum we were taken to was Manjusha Museum . Manjusha museum has a unique collection of heritage objects as well as the artefacts, which were in use till recently in the coastal area.

Figure 4 : Manjusha Museum

His love for preserving Indian cultural heritage has yielded a vast collection of Indian stone and metal sculpture, paintings, items of jewellery, objects of worship and utilitarian objects created by the craftsmen of the coastal area. Manjusha Museum is dearer to his heart and this collection is outcome of 35 years of his dedicated effort. His collection does not just stop at the heritage

objects but also brings the objects that were part of the scientific development of the country. His keen interest in photography enabled him to acquire the smallest to the largest size of the cameras. Another passionate interest of Dr. Heggade is the Vintage Collection, which draws the attention of people of many countries. This part of the collection provides source material for those who want to conduct research on the various aspects of our civilization.

The Manjusha collection not only gladdens the hearts of the visitors, but also educates them to a great extent. The sight of objects like domestic vessels, ritual objects, toys and games and even manuscripts which are very familiar to them arouse a new awareness amongst the visitors from neighboring places. They get motivated and make up their minds either to donate the antique objects in their possession to Manjusha Museum or to preserve them with care. The entire collection until now has remained carefully protected and is accessible to the pilgrims and scholars alike. Manjusha Museum at Dharmasthala is a veritable treasure house of lovingly preserved pieces of history.

It may be mentioned here with humility and sincerity that the cardinal purpose of bringing together the Indian heritage objects in the collection of Manjusha Museum is to provide divine experience and aesthetic delight to the viewers.

June 19, 2011 , we started to mysore from Dharmasthala . On the way it was wonderful sight seein at the mist covered mountains .

Figure 5 : Mountain wrapped by mist

We had nutritious lunch at SDM college of Ayurveda at Hassan .

Figure 6 : SDM college of Ayurveda at Hassan .

Sri Dharmasthala Manjunatheshwara College of Ayurveda and Hospital, Hassan was established in the year 1992 by Renowned Educationist and Social reformer Dr. D. Veerendra Heggade, Dharmadhikari of Sri kshetra Dharmasthala. This international fame institute of Ayurveda is managed by

SDM Educational Society, Ujire. It is a private college and joined with Rajeev Gandhi University of Health Sciences, Bangalore.

By Sunday evening , we reached our college , a home away from home . The good memories of our trip still with us that made me to give a report on it .