This is a sacred grove near a small hamlet on the Sirsi-Kumta Road, in the Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka. The patch is untouched, with thick forest litter underfoot, beneath a dense canopy of trees. There is a small clearing at the heart of this forest, where one can find a small statue of the local deity, and a few other idols made of mud. There is no direct path leading to this area, so it is easy to get lost navigating one’s way through the thick shrubbery.Photograph: Ashwini Kumar Bhat

Sacred Groves

by Team Nature inFocus

This is a sacred grove near a small hamlet on the Sirsi-Kumta Road, in the Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka. The patch is untouched, with thick forest litter underfoot, beneath a dense canopy of trees. There is a small clearing at the heart of this forest, where one can find a small statue of the local deity, and a few other idols made of mud. There is no direct path leading to this area, so it is easy to get lost navigating one’s way through the thick shrubbery.

Photograph: Ashwini Kumar Bhat