| Gommatagiri | |
| — village — | |
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| Coordinates | |
| Country | India |
| State | Karnataka |
| District(s) | Mysore District |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+05:30) |
Gommatagiri is about 20 km from Mysore.[1] Gommatagiri is situated in Bilikere hobli of Hunsur taluk in Mysore district in Karnataka state, India.
Gommatagiri is an acclaimed Jain centre. The 700-year-old statue of Gomateshwara (Bhagawan Bahubali) is erected atop a 50 meter tall hillock called 'Shravana Gudda'. The statue of Gomateshwara at Gommatagiri is an early Vijayanagara creation in granite. It has serene facial expressions and curly hairs. This Jain centre attracts many pilgrims during the annual "Maha masthakabhisekha" in September.
The statue at Gommatagiri has striking similarities to its famous counterpart in Shravanabelagola except that it is dwarfed in size in comparison. While historians attribute the statue to an early Vijayanagar period, the local Jains have a strong belief that the entire region was a bastion of Jainism at least since the 2nd Century BC.
However, the statue at Gommatagiri is in danger of being irretrievably damaged due to quarrying, and the explosions triggered off in the region have resulted in cracks at the base of the statue.[2] The joints supporting the hillock have widened because of the blasts and the hillock needs to be strengthened by providing "abetment" from the western side. Situated on a diversion road from Bilikere and about 12 km. from Yelwal, the statue at Gommatagiri is atop a 50-metre hillock.