The Golden Howdah,'ಚಿನ್ನದ ಅಂಬಾರಿ'(elephant seat or Chinnada Ambari in

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

) is a

howdah A howdah or houdah (, derived from the Arabic which means 'bed carried by a camel') also known as hathi howdah ( ), is a carriage which is positioned on the back of an elephant, or occasionally some other animal, such as a camel, used most ...

, the carrier mounted on the leading elephant during the

Jamboo Savari Mysore Dasara is the state festival in the state of Karnataka in India. It is a 10-day festival, starting with nine nights called Navaratri and the last day being Vijayadashami. The festival is observed on the tenth day in the Hindu calendar m ...

(Elephant Procession) of the famous

Mysore Dasara Mysore Dasara is the state festival in the state of Karnataka in India. It is a 10-day festival, starting with nine nights called Navaratri and the last day being Vijayadashami. The festival is observed on the tenth day in the Hindu calendar m ...

. Since 2020, it has been carried by

Abhimanyu Abhimanyu (, ) is a character in the ancient Hindu epic ''Mahābhārata''. He was a young and valiant warrior of the Kuru lineage, born to Arjuna—the third Pandava brother—and Subhadra—a Yadava princess. He was also one of the few indivi ...

The Golden Howdah

The exact date of its making is not known. The car-sized 750-kg howdah, used in the

(elephant procession) on the Vijayadashami day, has two rows of wide seats. The Rajas of

Mysore Mysore ( ), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the ...

used this howdah in the famous Dasara procession, which traversed through the thoroughfares of the princely city during the festival every year. Since the abolition of royalty the statue of Chamundeshwari is carried in the howdah. The core structure is wood and it was covered in filigreed gold sheets weighing 85 kilograms by "Swarnakala Nipuna" Singannacharya. It has three carved pillars on each of the four sides. It is covered with a canopy resembling a crown. There are five sacred "Kalashas" on top of it. The seat itself is made of silver embellished with designs.

The Procession

The Golden Howdah is mounted on the lead elephant with the idol of (''Nadadevathe'')

Chamundeshwari Chamunda (, ), also known as Chamundeshwari, Chamundi or Charchika, is a fearsome form of Chandi, the Hindu mother goddess, Mahadevi and is one of the seven Matrikas.Wangu p.72 She is also one of the chief Yoginis, a group of sixty-four or ei ...

placed in it. The procession passes through the

city, beginning at

Mysore Palace Mysore Palace, also known as Amba Vilas Palace, is a historical palace and a royal residence. It is located in Mysore, Karnataka, India. It used to be the official residence of the Wadiyar dynasty and the seat of the Kingdom of Mysore. The pala ...

and terminating at Bannimantapa. The elephant carrying the howdah is trained and groomed to do the job years before it actually does it. The elephant

Balarama Balarama (, ) is a Hindu god, and the elder brother of Krishna. He is particularly significant in the Jagannath tradition, as one of the triad deities. He is also known as Haladhara, Halayudha, Baladeva, Balabhadra, and Sankarshana. The fir ...

participated in the procession 19 times and carried the howdah on thirteen occasions between 1999 and 2011. In 2012, the elephant

Arjuna Arjuna (, , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, �ɾd͡ʒun̪ə is one of the central characters of the ancient Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. He is the third of the five Pandava brothers, and is widely regarded as the most important and renowned among them. ...

took over the task of carrying the howdah in processions.

References

{{reflist Culture of Mysore