Chandramouleshwara Temple at Unkal, Hubballi

I was returning back from my Dandeli trip and had some time in Hubballi before boarding the train. The Chandramouleshwara Temple on the outskirts of Hubballi was in my wish list for some time and I decided to utilize the opportunity.

Reaching the temple

The Hubballi Dharwad BRTS looked like an oasis in the dusty city. I decided to try the newly built bus rapid transit system to reach the temple. I was pleasantly surprised that the system worked pretty well. Buses were clean and air conditioned and the stations were nicely managed. The frequency was also of buses was good, and I saw many people using it.

I got down at Unkal station and the temple was a kilometer away from the main road. The path to the temple went though some of the narrow lanes crammed with small houses. If you are bringing your car, it is better to park somewhere on the main road and walk the remaining distance. Some people may find it difficult to walk in such areas but there is no other way to reach this temple. The labyrinth of small roads would have confused me but thanks to the google maps, I was able to reach the temple without much difficulty.

Chamdramouleshwara Temple

Considering the concentration of houses, I expected the temple to be struggling to get some decent space and I was not surprised. The 900-year-old Badami Chalukyan temple was surrounded by houses in almost all directions. I generally try to check with the caretaker of the temple to guide or provide information. But here the caretaker of the temple was fully engrossed on his mobile and was in the same state for the complete duration of my visit. His focus and dedication to consume the content was amazing. Probably a victim of boredom and cheap data plan.

The temple is said to be unfinished, but it did not lack anything with respect to artwork. The temple has two Shiva lingas – the main deity Lord Chandramouleshwara and a smaller Chaturmukha Linga, the four faced Shiva linga. The unique aspect of the temple is that the garbhagruha having doors in all the four directions which is a not common in a Shiva temple. The walls and pillars are rich in sculptures with dancing Ganesha and Jalandhara look very beautiful.

Unkal lake

After seeing the temple, I visited the Unkal lake on the other side of Hubballi Dharwad road. The garden was well maintained but the lake looked filthy. I was disappointed to see the weeds covering the large parts of the lake. There are some viewpoints constructed to view the lake and the place looked like a picnic spot for the locals.

Note: You would have noticed that my photo collection of this look incomplete. While writing this post, I realized that I had accidently deleted all the photos in my DSLR. Few photos that I took on my mobile for record shot have survived!!