Mysore District

Mysore city was the capital of the old royal Mysore province. The word Mysore expands to "Mahishasurana Ooru" which means the town of Mahishasura. The story goes that the demon Mahishasura was killed by godess Chamundeshwari atop the Chamundi hill near Mysore, and hence the name. Ever since, the Mysore royal family have worshipped Chamundeshwari as the palace deity. Hills dedicated to her stand at the eastern end of Mysore town today.

To the people of India the word Mysore is synonimous with Sandalwood, silk and fine inlay-work using ivory and the sweet "Mysore Pak". It is the home of incense sticks (agarbathi) dipped in sandalwood oil perfume base and the home of many well regarded musicians and artists. Nearby are several places of interest to visitors, some of these are Brindavan Gardens, Srirangapattana, Rangana Tittu bird sanctuary, Chamundi Hills, Nanjanagudu, Bandipur forest reserve, Shivanasamudra falls, and Talakaadu.

The glory of Mysore is the incredible amazing beautiful Mysore Palace in the heart of the City.

The Mysore Palace was completed in 1911 on the foundations of the old Palace that was destroyed by fire in 1897.

It was designed by the well-known architect Henry Irwin. Built in Indo-Saracenic style, the magnificent building has a series of domes and arches with a gold-plated dome at the centre.

Inside, the palace has exquisitely carved doors and stunningly luxurious rooms. The Durbar Hall is richly decorated with ornate ceilings, intricately carved doors, gleaming floors, and frescoes depicting scenes from the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata. The palace even has its own marriage pavilion - the Kalyana Mantapa. A fabulous art gallery has paintings depicting scenes of the city's famous Dassera processions led by the erstwhile Maharaja.

Today the palace continues to be the residence of the scion of the Mysore royal family, Srikanta Datta Narasimharaja Wodeyar, who is a Member of Parliament.

The rear of the palace houses a private museum. The palace building also houses the office of the State Archeological Department and some temples, some of which are good examples of Dravidian architecture.

The palace is illuminated at 7 p.m. every Sunday and on public holidays, and it makes for a magnificent sight.

The Chamundi Hill is unique in that it can be seen from any part of Mysore. Standing majestically at 1000 ft. to the eastern edge, it can approached by foot (stairs made of granite were laid centuries ago) and by automobile. Mid-way on the climb up the Chamundi hills is a gigantic statue of NANDI (Bull) in sitting posture. It is also connected by road. Generally, it is a practice to visit the Nandi once on the trip to Chamundi Hill. Built of black granite, the Nandi is carved out of a single stone. In Hindu mythology Nandi is the VAHANA (vehicle) of Lord SHIVA. At the top of the hill are the temple for the palace deity Chamundeshwari, a statue of Mahishasura the demon who used to trouble the people of Mysore. There is a smaller palace known as Rajendra Mahal Vilas which is also a hotel today. Further west of the hills is the Mysore airport which has regular flights from Bangalore. During October/November is the 10 day festival of Dasara when Mysore lights up to celebrate the Navarathri festival. The festival culminates with the famous Dasara procession on the 10th day. Traditionally on the 10th day, the King would ride on an elephant to the Banni (pepul) tree and vow to remain loyal to his people. The procession continues even today but instead of the king the godess of India rides on the elephant.