SRI
VADIRAJA VIRACHITA “TEERTHA PRABANDHA” – STEP 11
ಶ್ರೀ ವಾದಿರಾಜ ವಿರಚಿತ “ತೀರ್ಥ ಪ್ರಬಂಧ”.
CANTO ONE – SRI PARASHURAM
KSHETRA (THE WESTERN SIDE)
ಕರ್ಣೇಪದನ್ಯಸ್ತರುಚೀರಿರಂಸುಃ
ವಾರಾಶಿವಸ್ತ್ರಂ ಜಘನಾದ್ಧಿ ಯಸ್ಯಾಃ
ಅಮೂಮುಚದ್ಬಾಣಕರೇಣ ಭೂಮೇಃ
ಶ್ರೀ ಭಾರ್ಗವಸ್ತಾಜಯತಿ ಕ್ಷಿತಿರ್ನಃ||6||
KarNEpadanyastarucheeriramsuhu
VArAshivastram JaGhanAdDhi yasyAha|
AmUmuchadbANakarENa BhUmEhe
Shree BhArgavastAjayati kShitirnaha||6||
SUMMARY: Our native place is very much wonderful as, earlier, most radiant
Parashurama, who, after putting his feet on this land called Gokarna, which is
the ears of Mother Earth, first removed the loin cloth that covered the back of
Mother Earth and was in the form of the sea, by hurling an arrow by his hand,
to secure some space for himself to live on.
SUBSTANTIATION:
Earlier, Sri Parashurama, who is also known as Sri Bhargava and is an
incarnation of Lord Vishnu, confiscated the kingdoms of several Kshatriya rulers
by killing them in the battlefield and gave away the entire land he had earned
as charity to Brahmins. It may be recalled that the atrocities committed by a
renowned Kshatriya king called Kartaveeryarjuna had enraged Sri Parashurama. In
the fit of that rage, Sri Parashurama took an oath to eradicate all the
Kshatriyas from this earth. He circumambulated the earth for twenty-one times
and killed all Kshatriya kings. Later, he returned to his native land. However,
he had donated every bit of land he had confiscated after defeating the king of
every single kingdom to Brahmins. On returning to Gokarna, he thought that he
should not live in the land he had already donated to Brahmins. He needed some
place to reside. Therefore, he fired an arrow in to the sea. The sea retreated
up to the point where the arrow fired by Sri Parashurama had reached and that
entire portion transformed itself into a fertile land. Since this land was
created by Sri Parashurama, it is known as Sri Parashurama Kshetra even to this
day. It comprises of the entire undivided Dakshina Kannada district. The arrow
is said to have reached Kanyakumari.
By setting his feet on Gokarna, he made the land sparkle. As he wanted to
roam about, he thought of removing the cloth that had covered the back of
Mother Earth. That cloth was nothing but the Sea. He pushed that cloth with his
hand-like arrow. Thus, the Western Ghats of Sahyadri hill range is the most favorite
land for Sri Parashurama. It is also popular as Tulu Nadu.
The word “Gokarna” is made up of “Go” and “Karna”, where Gow is cow and
Karna is ear and hence the name Gokarna. There are many natural beaches in
Gokarna and one of them is shaped like “Om”. Apart from being a tourist
attraction, Gokarna is known for Sri Mahabaleshwara temple. It is believed that
the “Atma Linga” of Lord Shiva was intentionally dropped by Lord Ganesha in
this place to prevent Ravana from carrying it to Lanka.
Gokarna is one of the seven most important pilgrim centres of India. Many
temples were destroyed by the Portuguese in 1714, according to historical
evidences.
Sonda, where Sri Vadiraja Mutt is situated, is very close to Gokarna.
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