25 April 2015
I came to know about this place when I visited Mallikarjuna Temple at Basaralu. The locals mentioned about a much bigger Temple at Nagamangala.
Nagamangala is a small town. The most visited Temple is SaumyaKeshava. It looks formidable from the front with dwajastamba stading at the front of the Temple. Unfortunately the religious people who maintain the Temple do not appreciate the architectural beauty. Parts of the Temple have been whitewashed giving it an ugly look.
This trikuta Temple was built in twelfth century A.D. during Hoysala period. It does has features of Hoysala, Vijayanagar and post Vijayanagar period. It is said that the entrance and tower were later constructed by Vijayanagar Kings.
While there are very good carvings inside the Temple, exterior of the Temple do not exhibit such carving. The six feet SaumyaKeshava statue is very impressive. Photography was not allowed inside the Temple. One of the priests explained about the Temple. The focus was not about architecture or historical events but on the mythological aspect of it. Visitors come from far of places to get rid of various issues in life.
Behind SaumyaKeshava Temple is another less significant Laskhmi Narasimhaswamy Temple. It was locked and we did not get information on who can open the Temple. There was a function in the town and many characters appeared in their costumes on the street. It was nice to watch them.
On the outskirts of Nagamangala town is Kote betta, a small hillock with a Temple on top. It is a nice place to visit in the evening.
Where is Nagamangala?
Nagamangala is about 120 km from Bengaluru. Take a deviation from Bengaluru-Mangaluru highway at Bellur cross to reach Nagamangala. The town is about 20 minutes from highway. The roads are good throughout the journey.
ರಾಜೇಶ್ ನಾಯ್ಕ
Nice shots of the temple. People love painting temples these days.
R Niranjan Das
Glad to know about this place.
Vineeta Yashswi
Outstanding pictures…
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