Krishna’s Butter Ball & Thirumurthi Cave in Mahabalipuram, ECR, Chennai
Well, this is not exactly Krishna’s ‘butter ball’, but that’s how they call it. I remember visiting this monument when I was very young and someone said to me in Telugu, ‘Look at the Venna Muddha’, meaning almost the same, and I was fascinated. I asked them ‘Doesn’t that rock-ball fall down?’ They told me that the rock-ball has been standing like this for many centuries!!
As you can guess, this ‘Krishna’s butter ball’ has become a huge attraction in Mahabalipuram/Mamallapuram. People want to take photos sitting below it, trying to push it down **and show their bravery** :), and even holding it in their palm (from a distance) which gives an illusion as if they are carrying it. Of course, I didn’t want to take such photos! It seems, this rock is a natural formation, and that baffles a lot of people.
Once you enter the campus containing the Krishna’s butter ball, there are two more attractions –Ā One on the right side and one on the left side. I’ll show you what is there on the right side first – Thirumurthi Caves.
As you can see, this is a rock-cut ancient 7th Century Pallava temple of Mahabalipuram and as the name suggests, all the three main deities of Hindu religion – Shiva, Vishnu and Bhrama are located in the same temple (see three openings in the first photo). I have shown the close-up view of Shiva Linga and carved statues surrounding it, in the above photo.
On the left-side of the Krishna’s butter ball, you can see this cute little rock temple –
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Photos: Destination8Infinity. All photos published under this creative commons license.
Again a fascinating post. amazing rock ball and it is standing like this for god knows how many years…
As long as it is standing, it should be fine š
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The lawn created beneath the rock ball actually reduced the wonder look of the rock, by raising the land. My granny used to say that the pallavas tried to pull down the ball using horse and elephant troops but failed to do so. Iām uncertain about the story.
During my childhood, I love sliding from under the rock ball. Nice photos on the other monuments.
Exactly. I remember seeing it slightly higher when I was young. Well, if they had wanted to do it, I guess they could have done it. But that proves the authenticity of the rock ball that it has been standing for such a long time, since the Pallava period at least. That also suggests that it is a natural formation. Thank you for the info.
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too many amazing things to explore in Tamil Nadu itself š
Yes. I wonder how long it will take to sample the wonders offered by the whole country! š
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