Sirsi is the heart of Uttara Kannada nested in the lush green Western Ghats. Almost every road from here takes you to a scenic place. This time while visiting Siddapura for my best friend’s wedding (manasa) we decided to take a few small trips from around the town. And we chose Sahasralinga.
Story
A small board there tells the story of the place.
It was told that the swadi king “Akasappa Nayaka” was without children. He was worried and therefore suggestions from his Royal Priest that king need to carve of one thousand “Shiva linga” on the banks of the river and need to worship them. As a result he got one child.
About 17 km from Sirsi, near the village of Sonda, quietly flows the river Shalmala. Surrounded by forests a part of this river hides an incredible heritage and a piece of history. Each Linga also has an individual bull (Nandi) carved facing towards them. But now only few hundred Lingas can be seen as continuous running water of the river has destroyed many.
Best time to see these Shivalingas is from October to March when there is less water in the River Shalmala. During the monsoon, most of these are submerged in the monsoon-fed river. Public transport does not take you to the spot. So we hired a cab to visit the place. The surroundings are lush green. One can enjoy walking around.
One more attraction of the Sahasra Linga is a long hanging bridge/cable bridge constructed across the Shalmala river. From the bridge view of the nature and the river looks serene and beautiful.
I really liked the place because it is quite unique, interesting and beautiful in the middle of the nature.
♥️
Divya
mytinyatlas 