Buddhist Temple, Aihole, Karnataka

Buddhist Temple, Aihole, Karnataka

Buddhist Temple is an ancient Buddhist monument, located on the banks of the Malaprabha river in Aihole, an historical town, in Bagalkot District in Karnataka, India. This Temple is considered as the only Buddhist Monument in Aihole. This Buddhist Temple (Chaitya and Vihara) is situated on the slope of the Meguti Hill just below the hilltop and Meguti Hill Jain Temple. Meguti hill is situated to the south east of the Aihole Town. The views of the whole Malaprabha valley as far as Pattadakal can be seen from the hill top.

History

The Temple is believed to be built in 6^th century CE by Badami Chalukyas. This temple is protected as monuments of national importance by the central Archaeological Survey of India.

The Temple

This Buddhist Temple (Chaitya and Vihara) is situated on the slope of the Meguti Hill. It is partly rock-cut two-storey structure. It is partly excavated into the surrounding rock and the porch is structural. The porches at the two levels are open and consists of four-square shaped pillars and two pilasters on two side walls.

The porch is followed by a chamber carved into the cliff face. The doorway to the lower level chamber is intricately carved. The central bay on the upper level has a Buddha relief showing him seated under a parasol. His right hand shows vitarka mudra and the left hand shows dhyana mudra. He is seated on a lotus, with a prabha behind his head. The chambers are empty now.

There is a 3-foot-tall headless statue of Buddha in front of the temple. It might have been housed in the chamber in ancient time. There is an inscription on the pillar of the lower storey that mentions about one Bhikshu Mahendra, a disciple of Ananda Stavira (Ananda Thera) belonging to the Pindavadi school of Buddhism. There is a small cave near the temple having  inscriptions in Kannada.

Connectivity

The Temple is located at about 600 meters from Aihole Bus Stand. The Temple can be accessed through flight of steps from a lane running besides the Mallikarjuna Temple Complex. Aihole is located at about 13 Kms from Pattadakal, 30 Kms from Badami Railway Station, 33 Kms from Bagalkot Junction Railway Station, 34 Kms from Badami, 38 Kms from Bagalkot, 88 Kms from Gadag, 136 Kms from Hubballi Airport, 164 Kms from Belgaum Airport, 277 Kms from Goa and 446 Kms from Bengaluru. Aihole is situated on Pattadakal to Amingad route.

Location