Kalleshvara Temple, Bagali, Karnataka

Kalleshvara Temple, Bagali, Karnataka

Kalleshvara Temple is a Hindu Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva located at Bagali Town near to Harpanahalli town in Davanagere District in Karnataka State, India. Bagali is referred to as Baguli and was one of the capitals during the rule of Hoysala King Ballala II. Kalleshvara Temple is unique in its style and appearance, it is popularly regarded as Karnataka's Khajuraho. The Temple is protected as a monument of national importance by the Archaeological Survey of India.

History

The construction of the temple spans the rule of two Kannada dynasties: the Rashtrakuta Dynasty during the mid-10^th century and the Western Chalukya Empire, during the reign of founding King Tailapa II (also called Ahava Malla) around 987 AD. (the dynasty is also called Later or Kalyani Chalukya). The temple premises have thirty-six old Kannada inscriptions (describing donations) from the 10^th and 11^th centuries.

The Temple

The temple comprises of a main shrine for the Hindu god Shiva with a sanctum (garbhagriha) facing east, a vestibule (antechamber or antarala), a main closed hall (Mahamandapam) with an entrance in the south and east. These structures are attributed to the 10^th century Rashtrakuta rule. The closed hall is preceded by a large, open gathering hall (sabhamantapa) with fifty highly ornate lathe turned pillars that support a decorative ceiling.

Also provided are a shrine for the Sun god Surya with a hall (mukha Mandapam) facing the east-west orientation, and a small shrine for the deity Narasimha (a form of the Hindu god Vishnu) in the north of the gathering hall. These constructions are ascribed to the Western Chalukya rule. In all, there are eight small shrines built around the main shrine. Of the fifty pillars, twenty-four pillars are located over the platform (jagati) provided with a balcony seating (kakshasana).

The doorways (doorjamb and lintel) of the eastern doorway that faces the Nandi (bull, a companion of the Hindu god Shiva), and the southern doorway that forms an entry into the close hall are intricately decorated. A few independent sculptures from the late Chalukyan period are found in the closed hall. These include Shiva, Umamahesvara (Shiva with his consort Parvati), Ganesha, Kartikeya, Surya, Anantasayana (the god Vishnu seated on a snake), Sarasvati and Mahishasura Mardhini (a form of the goddess Durga).

There are very few temples in India where the goddess and god of love (Rathi and Manmatha) are carved as Dwarapalakas. Here one can see the beautifully carved images of them guarding the temple. The temple was built in the vimana style of architecture. There are 36 old inscriptions in Kannada dialect that dates back to 10th and 11th centuries.

While major portion of the temple exteriors remain simple, the upper portion is adorned with reliefs of erotica. Though the erotic carvings beat that of Khajuraho in number (in depicting the various postures), they are far from being as perfect. With 62 carvings, it stands proudly as one housing the largest collection of erotica images. The prototypes of these images were taken to Paris for further examination as a part of study and are now a part of the Paris Museum. These erotic carvings on the temple walls were dated to late Rashtrakuta.

Connectivity

The Temple is located at about 10 Kms from Harpanahalli, 10 Kms from Harpanahalli Railway Station, 10 Kms from Harpanahalli Bus Stand, 23 Kms from Hoovina Hadagali, 33 Kms from Kotturu, 51 Kms from Davanagere, 149 Kms from Hubballi Airport, 307 Kms from Bengaluru and 325 Kms from Bengaluru Airport.

Location | Photos