Dharmasthala Crimes: ‘Black magic highly prevalent in the temple town’

“Head of an opulent family in the village allegedly has a full-time sorcerer to perform black magic against enemies and for other unknown purposes.”

Dharmasthala

In a remote corner tucked away from the bustling media frenzy of Dharmasthala village, a grey-haired man sipping tea from a steel glass said “the temple town is not unfamiliar with black magic. It is—or was—highly prevalent. But many methods are still a secret.”

The temple town is now heavily guarded by police to protect sites marked by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to exhume skeletal remains. The State Government formed the SIT after a former sanitation worker of the Dharmasthala Temple Administration filed a complaint on July 3, 2025, alleging that he was forced to bury dead bodies. In the complaint, he also claimed that many bodies of women were allegedly subjected to sexual abuse. He also buried the bodies of vulnerable men. Media from many parts of the world are keeping a watch on the developments.

A blrpost.com reporter anonymously spoke to several people, including those with strong sources inside the richest family in the village. This family has dominant control over the administration of a Shiva temple that has devotees across India.

To ward off enemies, settle disputes, find stolen gold, valuables, and other issues, the administration reportedly resorts to alleged supernatural methods (which rationalists call unscientific).

The grey-haired man, placing the steel glass on the table, said, “while he knows this is very common in the region, these are secretively performed and many methods are unknown to the villagers.”

Resembles, yet different

While Hoylu is commonly practiced in the temple, and many claim it is not black magic, a minor research paper submitted to Karnataka State Law University (KSLU) in 2021 observed that Hoylu resembles malefic magic. However, this ritual adopts a slightly different kind of approach.  Interestingly, this research was done with the consent of the head of the richest family. The research paper is titled Nayadana System.

The general understanding about Hoylu is that, for instance, when two persons have a land dispute, one person visits the temple and, in front of a person overseeing Hoylu, urges the god to solve the problem. In many cases, when the problem is not solved, he would surrender the land to the temple. There are various specific rituals for many such problems.

Live experiences

Ramappa N (name changed), who has been at the forefront of the fight against the family, claims he was subjected to black magic. He said that one day, he learnt from credible sources that black magic had been performed against him. Then, using a certain method (prashne), he found out that it was indeed true. He later performed a ritual to nullify it. He said “the family head has a full-time sorcerer to perform sophisticated black rituals. This news website does not endorse such practices and considers this a myth.

A source who has links to this opulent family said sorcerers performed black magic against Mahesh Shetty Timarody, as he is their enemy. The rituals were reportedly performed not once but multiple times. Timarody is leading the fight for justice for Sowjanya, who was killed on October 9, 2012. The source said, “A person who was accused of killing by Sowjanya’s mother admitted to him about this ritual, which, in Kannada, is known as Mata Mantra.”

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