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Hampi 
The approach to the Virupaksha temple at dusk It is not just the very obvious fact upon arrival that Hampi is an almost obligatory stop for long term travellers in India that reminds you of Kathmandu. Here is a mediaeval village amidst numerous shrines and temples that is still an active place of worship. Pilgrims gather outside the long tunnel like entrance to the Virupaksha temple complex, built to honour Shiva, in the very heart of Hampi Bazaar. They sleep under thin sheets waiting for the day to come and are already stirring at 6am as the first wisps of lightness appear in the night sky.
The light breaks over the Tungbhadra River flowing between huge boulders worn smooth over aeons of time. It is like an oasis in the parched lands of the Deccan Plateau of Karnataka state.
Within this luxuriant oasis are banana plantations, coconut groves, monkeys clambering high above in giant palms. The placid clear water of the river gently flows and mutters through the rock strewn
hills, rounded and crazily shaped, as the huge boulders pile up on one another above the small
circuitous road on the far bank that wends its way to a hill summit where a small white temple resides. There are temples and entrances formed out of the huge rocks everywhere. Further along the river is the world heritage site Vithala Temple. But it is the Virupaksha Temple in the middle of Hampi Bazaar that commands most respect. It hovers above the hills and trees, the boulders and the mirror like rock pools calling you back to the 700 metre long avenue that leads up to its entrance lined by the saddhus. There are quieter places on the way back past the ghats where you can bathe in the Tungabhadra. Above the ghats is a rock temple, further along the path in a tunnel through the huge rocks a solitary sadhhu sits bolt upright in deep contemplation, he wishes you Namaste in a most melodious of voices though he scarcely moves.
The 6.7 metre Lakshmi Narsimha. The avenue leads back past abandoned colonnades that were the approaches to the king's palace, now they are inhabited by pilgrims just waking up from their night's sleep. They seek the riches of other worlds as the globe waits for the great dispensation of wisdom and knowledge that is soon to come. Mists surround the temple climbing up above the long avenue while in the back streets to the right of the temple the roof restaurants cater to the tastes of the travellers above narrow lanes. The crowded buildings hint at the centuries old heritage of the village, for it is some 450 years since Hampi's grandeur came to an end as the centre of the Vijayanagar Empire. The present day village preserves the ancient order while its inhabitants reap the benefits of being a living example of old peaceful ways. Monkeys clamber noisily over rooftops, sacred cows wander the lanes, the food is expertly prepared to cater for western tastes using the local ingredients. Pineapple, pappaya and banana lassi to order, the frothed curd makes a marvellously refreshing drink. The lanes are swept clear of dust by solicitous hotel owners' wives and daughters, this is a cleaner altogether more restful version of the south Indian lifestyle prepared for the Europeans on their grand tour, sampling the culture and customs of a still exotic way of life. It is rather like Kathmandu was some 20 years ago before thousands of trekkers arrived. No wonder Hampi continues to grow in popularity.
 The Vitala Temple with its stone chariot in the foreground. Link to Benares, the hindu holy city.
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Saddhus sit along the long tunnel entranceway to the interior courtyard, within the temple precincts
is a large open square and beyond lies an inner sanctum where as dawn breaks the light discovers
among the intricate pillars and shrines tiny pools of darkness to dispel. The mystery of
life itself and its veneration holds a well established presence here and you are touched by the subtle, unseen but ever present forces illuminating existence. Matter of fact priests prepare to
receive the pilgrims of the day as they go about their morning ablutions and any doubting moderns
will have to confront their certitude that nothing exists beyond what they can immediately see
and measure.
