Basadi Halli, Halebidu

Hoysala-period basadis beside the better-known Hindu temples of Halebidu, with the same lathe-turned pillars.

A cluster of Digambara basadis at the base of the hill at Shravanabelagola, distinct from the Bahubali statue on Vindhyagiri above — most visitors climb straight past Basadi Halli on their way up, though its temples are older than much of what stands on the hilltop.

The Chandragupta Basadi, the best known of the group, is traditionally connected to the Mauryan emperor Chandragupta, who is held in Jain tradition to have abdicated his throne, converted to Jainism under the teacher Bhadrabahu, and ended his life in fasting meditation at this same hill — a tradition historians treat with more caution than Jain sources do, since independent corroboration is thin, but one long and consistently held within the tradition itself.

Written for Jain Times. Corrections are welcome — see sources and licences.