Manjayya Heggade
Encyclopedia
Dharmasthala Manjayya Heggade was an India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

n philanthropist
Philanthropist
A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...

, educationist and legislator
Legislator
A legislator is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are usually politicians and are often elected by the people...

 who is best known for being the hereditary administrator(Dharmadhikari) of the Dharmasthala Manjunatha Temple
Dharmasthala Manjunatha Temple
Dharmasthala Manjunatha Temple is an 800-year-old Hindu temple located in the temple town of Dharmasthala situated in the Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka, India. The primary deity of the temple is Shiva who is referred to as Manjunatha...

 from 1918 to 1955.

Early life

Born in 1889 in a Jain Bunt family called the Pergade.The pergades were the hereditary trustees of the Dharmasthala Manjunatha Temple and the feudal lords of the temple town of Dharmasthala
Dharmasthala
Dharmasthala is a temple village on the banks of the Nethravathi River in the Belthangadi taluk of the Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka....

.Manjayya completed his education in Mangalore
Mangalore
Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...

 and after the death of his uncle Chandayya Heggade,succeeded to the post of Dharma Adhikari of the manjunatha temple at the age of 29 in 1918.

Career

On becoming the dharmadhikari,the first major task manjayya undertook was the eradication of Malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...

,that had caused havoc in the temple town of Dharmasthala
Dharmasthala
Dharmasthala is a temple village on the banks of the Nethravathi River in the Belthangadi taluk of the Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka....

.Heggade also started a Sarva Dharma Sammelan
Sarva Dharma Sammelan
Sarva Dharma Sammelan is an assembly organized in several places in India. It is generally organized by the Jain community, since it confirms with the anekanta principle of Jainism....

 in 1932 in Dharmasthala
Dharmasthala
Dharmasthala is a temple village on the banks of the Nethravathi River in the Belthangadi taluk of the Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka....

 for inter faith dialogue.It has become an annual feature since then.Heggade's philantrophic activities also extended to the field of education.he started the first high school in the Belthangady
Belthangady
Belthangady is the headquarters of Belthangady taluk of the Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka state in India. Belthangady taluk is mostly covered by forests. Western ghats provide scenic beauty, especially during the monsoon season that usually lasts from the month of June to September...

 taluk in 1918 and donated vast lands and money for this purpose. He wanted that the education imparted here should be based upon moral and spiritual heritage and hence he found in 1940 an institution called Siddavana Gurukula. The institution imparted education on the model of ancient Gurukul
Gurukul
A gurukul is a type of school in India, residential in nature, with shishyas living in proximity to the guru, often within the same house...

 system involving spiritual education with moral background.Heggade also served as a legislator
Legislator
A legislator is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are usually politicians and are often elected by the people...

 in the Madras Legislative Council
Madras Legislative Council
Tamil Nadu Legislative Council is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It began its existence as Madras Legislative Council, the first provincial legislature for Madras Presidency. It was initially created as an advisory body in 1861, by the British...

 and was known for his oratory skills.Heggade died on 31 August 1955.

External links

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