ISBN : 81-7508-213-5 

Vol. No : 683 

Bahubali was the son of Rishabhadeva, the first of the 24 Tirthankaras revered by the Jains. In his hour of triumph, Bahubali gave away his kingdom to the very brother he had defeated in single combat.Centuries later, Chavundaraya, the commander-in-chief of a king of the Ganga dynasty, was inspired to have a 57-foot-high image of Bahubali carved out of a huge rock at Shravana Belagola in Karnataka. Since Chavundaraya was also known as Gommata, the image came to be known as Gommateshwara.Shravana Belagola is now an important pilgrim centre. Millions of people flock to it to witness the Maha Mastaka Abhisheka when the gigantic image is given a ceremonial bath and anointed once every 12 years.The material for this Amar Chitra Katha has been drawn from Pampa’s Adipurana – the first ever work of poetry in Kannada (9th century AD) and the Bhujabali Charita of Panchabana (17th century AD).