> The 9 Jeeva Samadhis at Navabrindavanam

> The town Anegundi is on the opposite bank of the Tungabhadra has faced even the evolution of mankind! It
has the oldest plateaus on the planet, say about 3000 million years old according to Wikipedia. This is the
home of Bhudevi, the goddess of Earth! Anegundi has their imprints in the form of cave paintings relating to
Neolithic stone age which lie among the rocks. During Ramayana days, it was the Kishkinda and monbkeys
here helped Lord Rama.
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> Anegundi town
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> The 9 Jeeva Samadhis at Navabrindavanam
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> Being a small island on the Tungabhadra, Navabrindavanam has the Samadhis (tombs) of nine saints,
followers of Madhvacharya, and predecessors of Sri Raghavendra. The oldest jeeva samathi is that
of Padmanabha Tirtha, the prime disciple of Madhvacharya,( 1324AD), of Sri Suseendhra Tirtha, the guru of
Sri Raghavendra, Samadhi in 1623. Sri Vyasaraja (1539) the Raja Guru (literally, the kings preceptor) of
Krishnadevaraya. It is interesting to see that for over 300 years, this was the site chosen by nine saints to attain
Samadhi.This place is sacred by association with Prahalada, the greatest devotee of Lord Vishnu. Prahalada
performed penance to atone for the sins he had incurred for the killing of his father, the demon
Hiranyakashipu. Incidentally, both, Sri Vyasaraja and Sri Raghavendra are considered incarnations of
Prahalada. The nine jeeva samadhis - clustered around, in a circle, with a yellow line drawn around them has
a board warning us to keep outside the painted line, since we are not allowed to get too close and disturb the
saints at peace in their Samadhi.
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> Sri Vyasaraja's Samadhi
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> Avataratraya Anjaneya
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> There is a small shrine of Hanuman , called the Avatharatraya Hanuman installed by Sri Vyasaraja,The idol of
Hanuman (see above ) depicts Hanuman, Bheema and Madhvacharya all in one. the face and figure is that
of Hanuman, the shoulders and build resemble that of Bheema, and the manuscript in the hand symbolizes
Madhvacharya. You know Hanuman, Bheema and Madhvacharya are all incarnations of Vayu, the God of
Wind. If you look close, you can see something carved on the rock behind the idol. It is believed to be an
image of Narasimha. Any further information about this?
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> There are two other shrines here one of Lord Ranganatha, and another Hanuman temple, as well as a cave
where Prahalada is believed to have worshipped. It is customary to light ghee lamps at these shrines before
going on to circumambulate and pray at the Navabrindavanam. Since no puja materials are available here, it is
advisable to carry whatever one needs.
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> From left to right: the Hanuman shrine, the cave and the shrine of Ranganatha.
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> Since it is located on an island, the only approach to Navabrindavanam is by boat a coracle from the

outskirts of Hampi, or a motor boat from the town of Anegundi. The river is exceptionally clean and the water
invites us to have a dip, which speaks volumes about the place! (Of course, that might have been due to the
fact that we visited just after the rains and the river was in full flow... I dont know what the situation will be in
peak summer!) During monsoons, the island is practically inaccessible, since the river is usually full and rages
on, not allowing boats or any other means of access.