Chennakeshava Temple, Belur

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Keywords: Hoysala Temples, Chennakeshava Temple, Belur

After a lot of research on current day surviving hoysala temples, I decided to visit as many temples as possible which I could at least locate on google maps and get some information. Thanks to internet, I could locate as many as 60 temples. The temples are spread all across present day Karnataka but majority of them are located in Mysore-Hassan-Tumkur belt. I covered about 10 temples in the first trip.

I was accompanied by my close friend Sandarsh on this first ever trip. We left Bangalore around 6:00 A.M. We had breakfast at Adyar Anand Bhavan at Chennarayapatna and then headed to Belur. The roads were pretty good and hence we reached Belur at around 9:30. Belur temple is best to visit early in the morning. Temple opens at 9:00 A. M. Lot of visitors come here everyday and thus makes life difficult for photographers. Hence reaching there as early is the best option.


Hoysala Temples in Karnataka

 Chennakeshava Temple, Belur

The Chennakeshava Temple, was built on the banks of the Yagachi River in Belur, by the Hoysala King Vishnuvardhana. These temple complexes have been proposed to be listed under UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Location: Chennakeshava Temple, Belur

The temple was commissioned by King Vishnuvardhana in 1117 AD. The military successes of Vishnuvardhana is considered a probable reason. Another theory points to Vishnuvardhana's conversion from Jainism to Vaishnavism (a sect of Hinduism) after coming under the influence of saint Ramanujacharya, considering this is a predominantly Vaishnava temple in sculptural iconography.

Some of the most interesting things to be observed at the Chennakeshava Temple Complex at Belur:

Gopuram at the Temple Entrance


It is found from the inscriptions that the gopuram was added to the temple complex during the reign of the Vijayanagara empire.

Temple Complex


For security of the temple, a high wall was constructed around the temple, a wood-and-brick gateway and doors added by Somayya Danayaka during the rule of Veera Ballala III (1292–1343), as well as the open mandapa was covered with perforated stone screens.

Pushkarni inside the Temple Complex


A stepped water tank, called kalyani or Vasudeva-sarovara in inscriptions, is found in the northeast corner with two stone elephants on its side.

Entrance to Chennakeshava Temple


The temple is a ekakuta vimana design (single shrine) of 10.5 m by 10.5 m size. It combines elements of North Indian Nagara and South Indian Karnata style architecture. The temple stands on an open and wide platform designed to be a circumambulatory path around the sanctum. The main deity is Chennakeshava - a form of Hindu god Vishnu meaning "Handsome Vishnu" in the local Kannada language.

Hoysala Emblem at the Entrance door


It is debated that the emblem depicts Vishnuvardhana's victory against the Chola dynasty of Tamil country in the battle of Talakad (1116 AD), which resulted in the annexation of Gangavadi (modern southern Karnataka) by the Hoysalas. This emblem is present at all the surviving Hoysala temples across karnataka.

Stunning Pillars & Sculptures 



The navaranga hall has forty eight pillars. All except the central four are carved in a unique way. The central four are later additions, added in 1381 CE during the Vijayanagara Empire era, to support the internal structure of a damaged temple. The pillars are of three sizes. A notable pillar is the Narasimha pillar which is carved with miniature figures from top to bottom, such as a tiny bull (kadale basava).




Miniature Shrines



A number of intricately carved miniature shrines are located at the entrance of the Chennakeshava temple.

Kappe Chennigeraya Temple


To the south of the Kesava temple is the Kappe Chennigaraya temple measuring 124 feet by 105 feet. It has two sanctums inside, one dedicated to Venugopala and the other to Chennigaraya (local popular name of Chennakeshava, Vishnu). The temple is called Kappe Chennigaraya because, according to a local legend, a Kappe (frog) was once found near its navel. This smaller temple was built by the queen concurrently with the main temple, and is believed to be similar smaller version.

Temple Exterior



The temple exterior walls are highly ornate and contains images of Hindu Gods and narratives from epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata. The level of detailing on the exterior walls are really stunning. The bottom of the walls contains layered friezes.

















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