On January 12, 1925 Mahatma
Gandhi came to Gulbarga seeking an audience and blessings
of Poojya Doddappa Appa. Appaji believed, that service to
nation is service to God and generously contributed to the
Tilak Fund, which was being collected by Gandhi.
Poojya Doddappa Appa believed that spiritual attainment
is the basis of independence. Therefore, he never failed
to perform the ‘Trikala Istalinga Pooja’ and
the ‘Guru Jangama Dasoha’, even during the most
difficult times. When the Razakars attacked, many people
in order to save their lives fled from Gulbarga to Sholapur
and other safer places. During one of the hard times, Poojya
Doddappa Appa was living with his family at Sholapur but
he wanted the traditional Pooja to be continued at the Mahadasoha
Peetha. So, he sent his fourteen-year eldest son Sharanabasawappa
Appa along with Reverent Sri. Siddalinga Swamy to Gulbarga.
Unmindful of the dangers lying ahead, Sharanabasawappa Appa
dedicated himself totally to the worship of Shiva. Thus,
he maintained the continuity of the pious tradition of performing
the pooja. Then itself, Poojya Doddappa Appa, identified
the future Peethadhipathi in his eldest son.
Poojya Doddappa Appa along with others successfully freed
the region from the clutches of the Nizam of Hyderabad in
September 1948. Subsequently at the time of reorganization
of States in 1956, he played a prominent role and held two
national Kannada meets at his Samsthan in Gulbarga.
Poojya Doddappa Appa’s uniqueness lies in strong sense
of swadeshi consciousness. Gandhiji discarded foreign clothes
and used only swadeshi clothes and thus awakened in the
whole of the nation, the spirit of patriotism and national
independence. Similarly Poojya Doddappa Appa discarded the
weekly holiday on Sunday, which was given to the government
servants by the British and also Friday, which was given
by the Nizam. He declared Monday as a weekly holiday for
all the educational institutions because Monday was regarded
as the auspicious day and the real Indian folks’ holiday,
for the farmers constitute 80% of the population. Even this
irked the Nizam. But, through such resolve, Poojya Doddappa
Appa inculcated patriotism and the importance of independence
in the people.
Thank
you for choosing our college. Welcome on a journey of
learning.
All the very best and God bless you all.
Dodappa
Appa BED college Basavakalyana, Bidar
Poojya Doddappa
Appaji
Founder.
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