ಕ್ಷಣಪ್ರಭಾ - Kshanaprabhaa

A visit to the 25th Hoysala Temple in my list happened as part of a long weekend trip to Jog, Agumbe and other parts of Chikkamagalur and Shivamogga districts. This Lakshmi Narasimha Temple at Bhadravathi town was constructed in 1224 AD by the Hoysala king Veera Narasimha. This is a Trikutachala Temple, with 3 main deities inside the sanctum, the main god being Lakshmi Narasimha, and the other two, Venugopala and Purushottama . The architecture stands testimony to the artistic peaks it reached during the reign of Veera Narasimha's  father, the great Ballala II and grand father, Vishnuvardhana. The town of Bhadravathi is mythologically described to have gotten formed when Lord Vishnu, taking the form of Varaha, rescued Bhudevi from under the sea, from the clutches of Hiranyaksha. When Varaha lifted the earth supported by his sharp tusks, the two trenches formed gave birth to the rivers Tunga and Bhadra. Also, the town of Bhadravathi was for long known as "Vankip...

About half a kilometer away from the Hoysaleshwara temple of Halebidu , and adjacent to the Jinalaya complex of Basadihalli , stands the little known Kedareshwara temple . This trikuta temple is no inferior to the other masterpieces in and around the region, but has somehow lost attention of the authorities and tourists alike. Known to be built in 1220 AD , this temple is always locked these days, but in the middle of the day, there is enough sunlight that allows the visitors to get a sneak peek into the temple's beauty, and the Kedareshwara linga in the main sanctum becomes clearly visible. Outer carvings are as majestic as the Hoysaleshwara temple, with many a stories from Ramayana, Mahabharata and Bhagavata coming alive through the friezes that run around the star shaped basement. Here is a look at the temple's beauty: Kedareshwara Temple, Halebidu from hmvprasanna on Vimeo .

After a longish break, its time to catch up on a few of my pending blog assignments, specially a few Hoysala expeditions I had carried out last November, which have not yet been written about. So here goes, back with possibly the most beautiful and the most historically important of all the Hoysala temples, The Hoysaleshwara and Shantaleshwara twin temples at Halebidu , at Hassan district of Karnataka. Halebidu, which is now a quiet, but well known town in southern Karnataka, was once the power center of southern India, serving as the capital of the mighty Hoysalas for most of their reign. Known as Dwarasamudra and Dwaravati during those days, the city of Halebidu was ruined towards the end of 14th century when the rulers of north stared expanding their reach across India. However, the Hoysaleshwara temple stands tall having withered multiple storms of cultural oppression, and is testimony to the pinnacle of artistry of the sculptors of those times. The temple itself is known to have b...

Basadihalli, which now appears as a separate village on the outskirts of Halebidu, was very much part of the capital city "Dwaravati" or "Dwarasamudra" of the Hoysala dynasty. Devout Jains right from the beginning, Hoysalas had constructed and nurtured hundreds of Jinalayas during their reign. Very few of them have stood the test of time. The three temples in the Basadihalli Jain temple complex date back to 12th Centiry AD, with the construction beginning during the reign of Vishnuvardhana. The Parshwanatha Basadi, also known as "Vijaya Parshwanatha Jinalaya" due to the fact that Vishnuvardhana's victory in Bankapura coincided with the inauguration of the temple, was constructed in the honour of the much respected Hoysala commander in chief Ganga Raja . His son Boppadeva was instrumental in getting this built. The statue of Parshwanatha, about 18 feet tall, looks stunning even today, with a seven headed serpent carved in such a way that it is pro...

Kondajji, a little village situated about 17 kms from Hassan, is home to a 14th century temple of Varadaraja Swamy , also called Allalanatha. Legend has it that this extraordinarily beautiful 11 feet tall image of Varadaraja, a form of Vishnu's Janardana aspect, was on its way to Belur, for it to be enshrined at the Channakeshava temple complex. But for some reason, it could not make it all the way, and was apparently running the risk of being deserted. An old lady (Ajji, which means grand mother in Kannada) decided to buy the statue and establish it in a temple at that place, and hence, it is believed that the village got the name "Kondajji" (Konda + Ajji). Although the story stated above is linked to the times of Hoysala king Vishnuvardhana and Shantala, the fact that it is a statue of 14th century would mean that this might have occurred during the reign of Ballala the Third. The statue itself is mesmarizingly beautiful, and the temple, as expected, does not hav...

One of the crowning glories of the Hoysala architecture is undoubtedly the world renowned Channakeshava Temple complex at Belur, Karnataka. The vast complex housing multiple temples has been built over centuries, beginning from the time of Hoysala king Vishnuvardhana's reign. The temple was inaugurated in 1117 AD , and king Vishnuvardhana appears to have taken special interest in getting it built. The complex is home to the extremely artistic Channakeshava temple, where daily prayers are offered even today, and two shrines for Keshava's ladies, Soumyanayaki and Ranganayaki, an additional Veera Narayana temple, and the legendary Kappe Channigaraya temple, where the idol for worship carved by Jakkanachari was found to be from a faulty stone and was rendered useless. The main deity is also known as Vijaya Narayana , as Hoysalas tasted success in a major war around the same time the temple got inaugurated. Also present in the complex are a beautiful Kalyani, the famous gra...

Another Hoysala temple at Turuvekere that is contemporary to the Channakeshava temple is the Moole Shankara temple. This clearly brings out the religious harmony that existed during the Hoysala reign, with both the Vishnu and Shiva shrines built close to each other at pretty much the same period. "Moole" in Kannada means "corner", and the temple, as with many other Hoysala temples, is at a corner of the Turuvekere town. Here is the photo compilation of the temple: Moole Shankara Temple, Turuvekere from hmvprasanna on Vimeo .

I could resurrect my Hoysala expedition last weekend after a gap of almost 2 months, and this time, the town in focus was Turuvekere, a panchayat town in Tumkur district of Karnataka. The town has two temples clearly mapped to the Hoysala period, and one of them is the Channakeshava Temple that stands amongst the old Agrahara rows of houses at a corner of the fast developing town. Construction of the temple is known to have begun in 1258 AD, during the reign of the Hoysala king Narasimha the 3rd . His well known Commander in Chief Somanna (most likely the same famous commander who built the Somanathapura temple) has played an instrumental role in the temple getting built. This ekakuta temple hosts the statue of Channakeshava, which, although not as big as the ones found inside the sanctum sanctorums of Somanathapura, Belur or Kaidala, boasts of its own beauty and perfection. As usual, here is a video compilation of the photos I took at the temple: Channakeshava Temple, Tu...

Another temple of the Hoysala period standing adjacent to the Channakeshava temple at Kaidala is the Gangadhareshwara Temple . It looks as though this temple was never completed, and the grills and the doors have been installed afterwards, along with other enhancements. A possible recent land dispute has meant that the temple is closed for the visitors. From what is visible from outside, the temple has 4 beautifully carved pillars, and two inscriptions of great historical value, which are all gathering dust due to the neglect. Here is a little video of the snaps I took at the temple: Gangadhareshwara Temple, Kaidala from hmvprasanna on Vimeo . Similar stories of Hoysala Expedition

My quest of Hoysala temples took me to the district of Tumkur last weekend, to a village named Kaidala to be exact. The little temple of 1151 AD in this village is one of great heritage. Legendary sculptor of Hoysala period, Jakkanachari, is believed to have built this temple at a ripe old age of 86, with the help of his son Dankana. The beautiful statue of Channakeshava that is being worshiped even today, is supposedly his last work of art. The temple was built at his home town of Kreedapura, which is now known as Kaidala. The name Kaidala is due to the legend that says that Jakkana got back his hand ("Kai" in Kannada) that he had severed after a flaw had been found by his son Dankana in the Channakeshava statue he had sculpted at Belur. There is a little statue on the wall of the this temple of Kaidala, and it is believed to be depicting Jakkana and his son. As usual, here is a compilation of some pictures I took at the temple premises: Channakeshava Temple...

Last weekend marked a visit to Somanathapura, a village near Mysore, home to one of the most famous temples ever built under the reign of the Hoysalas. It is a prime example for the grandeur of the Hoysala style of architecture. The temple is known to have been built in 1268 AD , during the time of King Narasimha III , by his commander Soma. Mallithamma was the leading architect of the temple, which also had great contributions from Masanatamma, Bameya, Chameya, and other noted sculptors. This trikutachala temple is home to the deities of Keshava, Janardana and Venugopala, and the outer walls of the temple are adorned with tens of hundreds of neatly carved images. With me on this trip was Karthik, who has been equally fascinated by the historical and the architectural aspects of the Hoysala temples, and the best part was that we did not know how to reach Somanathapura until we got down there! Now that we have been there, if you are relying on the public transport, the best rou...

On the 3rd of this month, I had been on my second leg of the Hoysala Expedition, covering two places which are close to each other. One was Kikkeri, a town belonging to Krishnarajapete (K. R. Pet) Taluk of Mandya district. Although it is in Mandya district, it is easily accessible from Channarayapatna of Hassan district, for those who would be traveling from Bangalore. The second place was Govindanahalli, a village 5 kilometers away from Kikkeri. The focus here is on the temple in Kikkeri, a place that is famous as the birthplace of the Kannada poet Dr. K. S. Narasimhaswamy. The town is home to the 1171 AD Brahmeshwara Temple built with the Hoysala style of architecture. The temple houses idols of Brahmeshwara, Venugopala, Ganesha, Suryanarayana, and Kala Bhairava among others, apart from the intricate carvings showcasing Nandi, the vehicle of Shiva, and the ten incarnations of Vishnu, and the trimurtis, Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara. The clinching feature of this temple for me wa...