A Visit To The Hill-Top Temple

________________

From the wilds of Wayanad and the elephants of Tamil Nadu, we crossed into Karnataka.

Our first stop was at the Himavad Gopalswamy Betta Temple.

Built almost 700 years ago at the summit of a quiet and lonely hill, it is often hidden by mist. But we had arrived in brilliant sunshine.

Despite, or perhaps because of the presence of many devotees, there was a palpable sense of quiet and prayer.

Having received the blessing of the temple priest in the inner sanctum, we walked around the temple then made our way back down the steep and narrow track.

On this road, a pilgrim bus had jammed the rear corner of its chassis while taking a sharp hair-pin bend.
With minimal fuss, the passengers disembarked while the bus was re-manoeuvred into a drivable position, then quietly returned to their transport. There was neither shouting nor horn-tooting from drivers blocked by the stationary vehicle.
Something of a rarity in India.