Yana Caves | one of the wettest villages in the world | Bangalore Kollur Gokarna Part 5 | Sep 2021

Описание: Yana Caves: 11 Sep 2021. Day 2 Destination 2. Started at 11:45 am and drive for 1 hour and reached Yana at 12:45 pm 47 kms. Situated around 443 kms from Bangalore, 105 kms from Mududeswar and 169 km from Kollur. Spend around 2 hour and 45 minutes and continued to next destination Gokarna.
Yana is a village located in forests of the Sirsi and Kumta in Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka, which is known for the unusual karst rock formations. It is located in the Sahyadri mountain range of the Western Ghats, about 60 kilometers from Karwar port, 39 kilometers from Sirsi, and 31 kilometers from Kumta. Yana is one of the wettest villages in the world and it is cleanest village in Karnataka and second cleanest village in India. The two unique rock outcrops near the village are a tourist attraction and easily approachable by a small trek through 0.5 kilometres of thick forests from the nearest road head.
Yana is famous for these two massive rock outcrops known as the Bhairaveshwara Shikhara and the Mohini Shikhara ("Shikhara" means "hill"). The huge rocks are composed of solid black, crystalline karst limestone. Bhairaveshwara Shikhara is 120 metres (390 ft) in height, while the Mohini Shikhara, which is smaller, is 90 metres (300 ft) in height. Yana is also well known as a pilgrimage center because of the cave temple below the Bhairaveshwara Shikhara where a Swayambhu ("self manifested", or "that which is created by its own accord") linga has been formed. Water drips from the roof over the linga, adding to the sanctity of the place.
Yana village; Bhairaveshwara shikhara, Yana; Mohini Shikhara, Yana; Yana Rocks, Yana; Yana caves; Yana Parking lot and Vibhooti Falls, on Mattighatta Rd, Achave are all located in close vicinity. However, there is no short road connecting all these places - google map planner by car pulls out a 70 km loop]
There is a Kannada saying “Sokku iddare Yana, Rokka iddare Gokarna”- If you have lots of money to spend, go to Rona (Gokarna), if you are feeling over enthusiastic, visit Yana. This saying was due to extreme difficulty one had to face in the past to reach Yana. Now well paved roads take you till the bottom of the rocks.
Mythology:
The names of the majestic rocks at Yana are linked to an interesting section in Hindu mythology. A demon named Bhasmasura manages to get a unique gift that anything on which he keeps his palm burns into ashes (bhasma). With this unique skill Bhasmasura wrecks havoc and attempts to try his skill on the very person who granted the gift- Lord Shiva. Fearing his life, Lord Shiva seeks help from Lord Vishnu, who takes the shape of a beautiful woman named Mohini and appears in front of Bhasmasura. Trying to win over Mohini, Bhasmasura accepts her challenge to dance with her and perform the same steps as she does. As the dance progresses, Mohini keeps her hand over her head. Bhasmasura performs the same act and burns into ashes.