Venuru Bahubali and other attractions

Venur or Venuru is a small town between Mangaluru and Dharmasthala. Venuru is popular because of its Bahubali statue.

As I was driving towards Sakaleshpura, Venur was about 13 kms diversion one way. So I decided to divert and check it out. Roads were largely nice, with few kms work in progress. When I arrived at Venur at about 9 AM, it took some effort to find out exact spot- I missed a small turn and went a few kms ahead. Sun was falling back of the Bahubali so didn't get very good photo. Below is what I have about the Gomateshwara statue at Venur.

1. Bahubali (Gomateshwara) statue at Venur.

When fully cleaned, statue looks white. The black colour is because of pollution and oil put on the statue. The 38 feet Bahubali was set up in early 17th century. Other Gomateshwara statues in Karnataka are located in Shravanabelagola, Karkala, Dharmasthala and Gomatagiri (near Mysuru). Venur is thus a key jain pilgrimage centre.

Next Mahamasthakabhisheka at Venur will be done in year 2024

2. Kallu Basadi

Kallu basadi is another pilgrimage point in Venuru, located on a small hill.

3. Mahalingeshwara temple

This is the main temple in Venur, was undergoing renovation. Paid a short visit

There are probably another half a dozen temples in Venur. Due to shortage of time didn't visit all. River Phalguni passes through Venur- had little water in March.

Thus my short tour of Venuru ended in about 90 mins. I proceeded to Dharmasthala from there. Do stop at Venur when you are in the region. Private and Govt buses are available to reach Venur from nearby big cities.