Last edited: Jan 2025
Mattur or Matturu is a tiny little village, located on the banks of River Tunga in Karnataka. It is one of the few villages in India, where the residents still converse in ‘Sanskrit’, the ancient Indian language and most people still lead a Vedic lifestyle, keeping alive the dying art form of ‘Gamaka’.
This is one place where the Hindu Brahmins can enrol themselves and learn Hindu rituals. The community teaches them Sanskrit as their first language, reads the Devanagari Script and practices the ancient Hindu Vedic traditions. With time though, the 5000-year-old language too has adapted and been modified. You will now be greeted with “Bhavatha Naam Kim? (What is your name?) or asked your preference with“Coffee va Chaayam kim ichchhathi bhavan? (What will you have, coffee or tea?). “Hari Om” instead of ‘hello’ will also sound so unique. Even the graffiti on the walls is written in Sanskrit!
Children attend the paathshala till they turn 10 and learn the Veda, traditional rituals and other art forms.
Although for higher education, the village children need to attend school/college by travelling to Shimoga, Mangalore or Bangalore; surprisingly every home also has a proud IT professional working in India or elsewhere. But no matter where they are, these people are making both the village and India proud being close to their traditional roots and attending the yearly festivities and rituals without fail.
For a traveler, the Vedic chants that resonate in the air and the beautiful temples located on the river bank are attractions. Many villagers now offer classes online (Skype) as well as welcome guests from all across the world to learn the Sanskrit language.
Mattur’s twin village, Hosahalli, shares almost all the qualities of Mattur and is located on the other side of the River Tunga.
Both the villages transport travelers back to the times of ‘Malgudi’. Most speak in Sanketi – a dialect form of Sanskrit that has adapted a mix of Kannada and Malayalam language to it and the villagers still perform age-old rituals that seem to have almost vanished from other parts of India.
What to Expect/Places to See at Mattur
Mattur is a scenic place and a day here is sure to refresh you. The entire village is flanked by tall trees, coconut grove and lush green paddy fields.
The village temple complex is located by the River Tunga and is about 800 metres away from the main village square. It has the Someshwara Temple, Rama Mandira and Lakshmikeshava Temple, all situated amidst a beautifully laid out garden.
The Shiva Temple has a flowing freshwater stream nearby, that is an ideal picnic spot for the locals and tourists. Someshwara temple and Lakshmikeshava temple are both located along the River Tunga and the drive takes you through tall Arica Nut trees.
Visit the ‘Big Rock’ located in the middle of the Tunga River at Village Hosahalli.
Mattur is today gaining popularity for being the only village in India that talks in Sanskrit. Exclusive to Karnataka, the ‘Gamaka’ or Kaavya Vaachana – a singing and storytelling art, where the main language is Sanskrit is also kept alive here.
(As legend goes, ‘Gamaka’ existed since the times of Ramayana and was narrated by Valmiki when he wrote about Lord Ram’s twin sons Lava and Kusha singing in his court and singing the story. They were often invited to sing at temples, weddings and village gatherings thus popularising it among the people. This form of storytelling slowly faded away until it was revived during the 1900’s by eminent Kannada-literature personalities) As mentioned in Google.com
As legends go, the land was donated to the Brahmin Community some 7oo years ago as ‘charity’ by King Krishnadevraya. This attracted the Brahmins from other parts of India, who now call it their home.
Shimoga is known for its attractive Jog Falls, lanscapes, green forests and beautiful river valleys. So you must plan a trip to Shimoga and visit Mattur too. Shimago is also globally known as the home to the Nilakanteshwara Natyaseva Samgha, a world famous culture institute better known as Ninasam.
Discover more about the town of Shimago at https://www.karnataka.com/shimoga/about-shimoga/
Another place where the Sanskrit Language is prevalent and significantly used is at Jhiri, Madhya Pradesh. Jhiri is 150 km from Indore and 45 km away from Rajgarh district. Here the religious hymns and Vedic ceremonies are still conducted the same way they were done centuries ago. Verses have also been seen written in Sanskrit on the walls of the houses of the village.
Recommended places to study Sanskrit in India
Other Traditional Learning Villages/Centers
Universities offering Sanskrit
- Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha (Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh)
- Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri National Sanskrit University (New Delhi)
- Karnataka Samskrit University (Bangalore)
- Sampurnanand Sanskrit University (Varanasi)
- Banaras Hindu University (Varanasi): has a faculty of Sanskrit Vidya Dharma Vijnan and offers all levels of courses
- University of Mumbai: has a Department of Sanskrit and Certificate to PhD programs
- Deccan College (Pune): offers post-graduate research institute and advanced Sanskrit studies
- Jawaharlal Nehru University (New Delhi): has a modern research approach along with special centre for Sanskrit studies
Distance Chart for Mattur
Regular state buses, private cabs and shared taxis are available for Mattur from Shimoga or nearby towns.
- From Bangalore: 304 Kms via Bangalore – Shimoga Rd
- From Shimoga: 8 Kms via NH206 and Mattur Rd
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Beautiful pictures
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How to study online?
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Hi Melody,
Ideally you should spend a week there for a crash course and then opt for an online session as per your convenience. Please remeber, only a handful of teachers offer online courses. You could check out sanskrit learning options online at Learnsanskrit , Openculture and at learnsanskrit
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Hello Ashima, are you sure they teach courses there to people new to the language? I’m looking for inforrmation online but can’t find anything. Do you have any experience or know of anyone that has such of studying sanskrit there?
Thanks!
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Most villagers are interested to teach a few of those who are really serious and interested to learn this language. The professionals often invite a few as one needs to spend a few days to get acquainted and then can take lessons online.
I’ll suggest you get in touch with someone from Sanskritha Bhavan -http://www.sanskritbhavan.com and take guidance on the right contact at Mattur or connect with the Department of Karnataka Tourism for more information.
Additionally, you may also wish to learn the language online at http://learnsanskritonline.com or other similar platforms.
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what is the fees structure for learning sanskrit there? or staying
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I won’t be able o comment on the fee structure. You may check the Links provided earlier in the comments chain and see if it helps.
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hey ashima
my name is devarshi joshi
i m from ahmedabad
i m so much to go mattur and learn sanskrit
but i dont have any contact details
how i go and learn ??
if u have some information of mattur sanskrit school please mail me
my mail id is devarshijoshi5863@gmail.com
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We as family of three would like to visit the village for 5 days in January coming year because my son 19, is very interested in learning Samskrit as his career option. He has finished school in Manchester in the UK last year and is doing graduation in Manchester university. Can anyone from the village help us?
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Good Morning Dr Arora, we can certainly help you with your visit to Mattur. We are a holiday company based in Mumbai. We promote Indian destinations across the globe. One of our holiday highlight is rural tourism. Mattur is an unique village that is a perfect destination for the lovers of indian culture. I am glad to see that your son is interested in learning Sanskrit. We can design your itinerary as per your requirements. Please visit our website http://www.holidayyatri.com or contact us at contact@holidayyatri.com with your expectations and we shall take complete responsibility of your tour. All the best!
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Thanks Vinita fro the help.. much appreciated!
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Hi, Apologies for the delayed reply. Mattur Village has Sanskrit classes for those who are part of it as a course. I don’t have any contact details as such but can recommend that you connect with the http://www.cteindia.org and ask for details.
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Hi , Ashima mam…. i am student i want to learn sankrit through online base pls do help me . I want to clearify my doudts
pl give the update on my gmail account – tanishajena418@gmail.com
thanking you in anticipation !
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I eagerly want to learn Sanskrit. If I want learn Sanskrit from living in this village? Can it be possible to do and also what are the accommodation cost and other required things, if it is possible. Please let me inform.
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Consider staying at the many hotel and stay options at Shivamogga as at Mattur there are no hotels. Another interesting place is River View Farm Stay that offers friendly farm stay experience. You may also learn Sanskrit online at http://www.learnsanskrit.org or attend Samskrita Bharati classes located in your city.
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I want to go there and learn Sanskrit from living in this village. How can I contact and how I can go there??? Can it be possible? If it possible Please notify me how many days, have to stay there? other required things?
Please let me inform. How many days an
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All the information I had has already been shared on the blog and few additional options can be read in the comments. I am trying to get more information on the contact person based at Mattur, but I still have not received any so far. Please be posted for more info soon.
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Hi , me and my friends are all wanted to come to mattur and stay their for 10 days to learn Sanskrit ,and a month back I just heard about this village in TV channel in “HISTORY TV 18” ,the show named “OMG YEH MERA INDIA” in this they have described that we can learn Sanskrit in 10 days since the teachers who are staying their they will help us to learn………so we are just planning to come their……….. please reply are call me ….!!!!!
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how to reach Mattur the easiest way, any nearest airport? I would like to visit the place and since I would be travelling alone, it has to be safe mode for a woman 60+ and also if I could stay as PG with one of the local families. Thanks for the help
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Bangalore is the nearest Airport (300 kms from Mattur). Alternatively, you may opt to stay at Shimoga, a popular town which has some interesting tourist spots too! For learning Sanskrit online there are few good options including https://www.chinfo.org/index.php/easy-sanskrit-course
River View Farm Stay offers friendly farm stay experience
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Hari Om
i am a keyur joshi and i am 36 years old living in nadiad, gujarat. i interested to learn sanskrit so will you offer online course
thanks and regards
keyur joshi
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hey ashima
my name is devarshi joshi
i m from ahmedabad
i m so much exited to go mattur and learn sanskrit
but i dont have any contact details
how i go and learn ??
if u have some information of mattur sanskrit school please mail me
my mail id is devarshijoshi5863@gmail.com
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I want to go there and learn sanskrit… please help with local stay and course details. any contact person in village???
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Hi guys,
I noticed that in the following lines Sanskrit is said to be a 500 year old language, I would like you guys to please fix that by adding another zero at the end or any other way you see fit.
“The community teaches them Sanskrit as their first language, reads the Devanagari Script and practice the ancient Hindu Vedic traditions. With times though, the 500 year old language too has adapted and has been modified.”
Reagrds
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Hi Srijan, thanks for pointing it out. Yes you are right. The Sanskrit language is more than 5000 years old and is one of the oldest attested human language. I also learnt that the oldest form of Sanskrit is Vedic Sanskrit dates back to the 2nd millennium BCE.
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i want to come to mattur and learn sanskrit there only, i thought summer is the best option
please
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Hi Ashima,
I am from Surat, GJ, IN. What according to you is the best way to reach Mattur from Surat?
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Best way is to choose a direct train from Ahmedabad. It will be long trip taking approx. 1.5 day but will be a comfortable one on a train.
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I asked on January 30, 2023 at 4:11 pm. Anyways, thanks a ton!
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