A Bombay and Bengaluru-based media man recounts his recent trip to Tumkur University in Tumkur, Karnataka….

A CLOSE friend once told me an interesting anecdote. He visited an acquaintance in a one-horse town. Pleasantries over, he confessed there was only boredom. His acquaintance had a katha (catechu) factory, a key ingredient in “paan” — a healthy Indian dessert!
My recent trip to Tumkur was intellectually stimulating, religiously, culturally, and gastronomically revealing. Thankfully, Tumkur was far ahead of the nondescript town that my poor friend visited.
Ananth Panth, with a Doctorate from JNU, informed me of a 10-day ICSSR Research Methodology Course being conducted by the Department of Studies & Research in Economics, Tumkur, in March. A serious student of Sociology, I was keen to be selected among the 30 scholars by the prestigious university. So, I applied pronto.
When Dr Jayaseela, senior professor in the department, informed me that I was among the selected candidates, I was in seventh heaven. But first, some facts about myself. I am 70 years old, completed my Masters in Sociology in 1985 securing 1st rank in Bombay University. Unfortunately, I could not translate this academic success into a teaching job, as I already had a position as a PRO in Tatas, who graciously permitted me to further educate myself while working.

CORPORATE WORLD
THE allure of a good career and salary in the corporate world was too attractive to let go of. My wife Girija, whom I met while doing my Masters, supported me in this decision. Anirudh was already born and Janhavi was on her way. Filthy lucre was an important consideration in the scheme of things then.
Till the age of 70 I did well, setting myself up as an independent communications media relations consultant, running my own boutique firm, Paradigm Shift, A Division Of Ulyssys Promotions Pvt Ltd. After moving to Mysore en famille, I was bitten again by the academic bug. While working from home, servicing select PR clients, I started the process of acquiring a PhD in Sociology from Mysore University.
That is how a nice guy like me landed in good old Tumkur.
FOR me the trip was the best of times. From the word go, our creative juices started to flow thanks to the superlative faculty from different corners of the south including Pondicherry, Andhra Pradesh and other universities. Research scholars travelled all the way from faraway Jharkhand, Lucknow — there were some from Tumkur and quite a few southern locations.
Every minute of our workday, we were taught gems of wisdom by the faculty, the message was “it is difficult to be simple, but simple to be difficult.” The value in research of clarity of thought, willingness to learn with humility and genuineness, were qualities instilled into us research scholars.
Interesting nuggets of information were shared with us. For example, there was a Sunday Church which was not being attended by enough faithful and hence a theological enquiry began. The priest applied his thinking cap and, lo and behold, he had a brainwave. The Church then relocated to a mall. The footfalls increased geometrically. The reason? Sunday shoppers after filling a trolley full of goodies for self and family, felt a twinge of guilt and this guilt led the holy to the pulpit for a much-needed sermon! As a subset in this line of reasoning, even before entering the Church, male shoppers, after choosing a costly iPhone for themselves, went through the reparative process of selecting a box of candy for their daughters.

RESEARCH `GYAAN’
MORE research gyaan came our way. Did we know an important result that could follow a divorce? The number of households doubles and electricity consumption increases as the separated individuals need to find new homes and hearths. These are universal, unspoken, and deeply personal aspects of family relationships and dynamics that a research scholar could study.
Yours truly also chipped in with a research topic that was liked by the professor and peers. The idea I propagated was the differing effects on child rearing by maternal and paternal grandparents. I elaborated that infrequent rearing by the mother’s parents might end up pampering the grandchildren, while constant proximity to the grandchildren might result in a more disciplined upbringing by the paternal grandparents.
One early evening we students had spare time, so I asked my peers to accompany me to Tumkur’s famed Siddaganga Matha. However, some wanted to rest and others trooped off with excitement and enthusiasm to catch the latest blockbuster.
This sprawling temple also known as Siddaganga Kshetra is a Lingayata monastery with an attached educational institution. This shrine was established by Sri Haradanahalli Gosala Siddeshwara Swamigalu in the 15th century. Shivakumara Swami, a spiritual leader and supercentenarian, joined the temple and became its head seer in 1941. Siddaganag Education Society was also founded by this Swami. The coveted Padma Bhushan was awarded to him by the government of India in 2015.
We were then assigned a field report as part of our research assignment. The objective was to study the Anna Dasoha Program at Sri Siddalingeshwara Swami Temple Yedeyuru, a key pilgrimage site in Karnataka. The temple houses the Gaddige (tomb) of Tontada Siddhalinga Swami, a 15th-century Virashaiva saint known for his spiritual teachings and the composition Shathsthala Jnana Saramrutha.
The temple features impressive Dravidian architecture with inscriptions, a grand gopura, and a shrine for Veerabhadra Swamy. Several miracles are attributed to Siddalingeshwara Swami including the formation of the Siddaganga Kshetra and the legend of Kaggere, where he meditated inside an anthill for 12 years.
Anna Dasoha, the offering of free food, is a religious practice at this shrine, reflecting selfless service to humanity. No one goes hungry … regardless of caste, creed or social status.

INTERESTING FACTS
OUR study threw up interesting facts. The devout visited monthly, every six months or even annually. For the quality and quantity of food, satisfaction levels of 5 (the highest) were reported. On the subject of hygiene, respondents indicated room for improvement. Most devotees expressed a strong willingness to volunteer their services for Anna Dasoha.
At the ground level, devotees were required to return drinking water glasses even before the completion of their meals. Instead they wanted to retain their drinking water glasses till the end of the meal. The turnaround time after one hall of diners was fed, some present said, needed to be shortened for convenience of those waiting.
Overall, this was viewed as a positive experience both spiritually and gastronomically.
At the end of the Research Methodology Program we were each given a certificate signed by Prof M Venkateshwarlu, vice chancellor, Nahida Zam Zam, registar, Dr Jayaseela, professor and course director and Dr Muniraju M, co-director.
When I boarded 16535 Golgumbaz Express from Mysore to Tumkur, for most part of the 208 kilometre stretch, I was full of questions, doubts, anxiety as to what lay in store for a seeker of truth and travel experience like me.
When I sat in the 17325 Vishwamanava Express, which halted for only a brief three minutes on Platform 2 with the help of the friendly catering staff just before it zipped away, I was reminded of lines “From a Railway Carriage” by Robert Louis Stevenson. But I have taken the liberty of rewriting it to suit my Tumkur experience with due apologies to the Scottish novelist, poet and travel writer.
“Faster than fairies, faster than witches,
The Vishwamanava crosses hedges and ditches,
Here is a scholar who first clambers and scrambles,
Gathering knowledge as he ambles,
Which turns to wisdom … some call it gyan,
Pleased as punch is Mohan our scholarly man!”