The Amruteshvara temple also spelt "Amrutesvara" or "Amruteshwara", is located in the village of Amruthapura, 67 km north of

Chikmagalur Chikmagalur, known officially as Chikkamagaluru, is a city and the headquarters of Chikmagalur district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Located on the foothills of the Mullayanagiri peak of the Western Ghats, the city attracts tourists from ...

town in the

Chikkamagaluru district Chikmagalur, officially Chikkamagaluru is an administrative district in the Malnad subregion of Karnataka, India. Coffee was first cultivated in India in Chikmagalur. The hills of Chikmagalur are parts of the Western Ghauts and the source of ...

of the

Karnataka state Karnataka (; ISO 15919, ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reor ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. Located 110 km from Hassan and 50 km from

Shimoga Shimoga, officially known as Shivamogga, is a city and the district headquarters of Shimoga district in the central part of the state of Karnataka, India. The city lies on the banks of the Tunga River. Being the gateway for the hilly region of ...

on NH 206, Amruthapura is known for the Amruteshvara temple . The temple was built in 1196 C.E. by Amrutheshwara ''Dandanayaka'' (''lit'', "commander") under

Hoysala The Hoysala Empire was a Kannadiga power originating from the Indian subcontinent that ruled most of what is now Karnataka between the 10th and the 14th centuries. The capital of the Hoysalas was initially located at Belur, but was later moved ...

King

Veera Ballala II Veera Ballala II ( kn, ವೀರ ಬಲ್ಲಾಳ 2) (r. 1173–1220 CE) was the most notable monarch of the Hoysala Empire. His successes against the Yadavas of Devagiri, the Southern Kalachuris, the Pandyas of Madurai and the wani ...

Amrutesvara temple

The temple is a built according to

Hoysala architecture Hoysala architecture is the building style in Hindu temple architecture developed under the rule of the Hoysala Empire between the 11th and 14th centuries, in the region known today as Karnataka, a state of India. Hoysala influence was at its pe ...

with a wide open ''mantapa'' (hall).Foekema (1996), p37 The temple has an original outer wall with unique equally spaced circular carvings. The temple has one ''

vimana Vimāna are mythological flying palaces or chariots described in Hindu texts and Sanskrit epics. The "Pushpaka Vimana" of Ravana (who took it from Kubera; Rama returned it to Kubera) is the most quoted example of a vimana. Vimanas are also men ...

'' (shrine and tower) and therefore is a ''ekakuta'' design,Quote:"Depending on the number of towers, temples are classified as ''ekakuta'' (one), ''dvikuta'' (two), ''trikuta'' (three), ''chatushkuta'' (four) and ''panchakuta'' (five). The last two types are rare. Sometimes a ''trikuta'' temple is literally not ''trikuta'' as only the central of three shrines may have a superstructure", Foekema (1996), p25 and has a closed ''mantapa'' (hall) that connects the sanctum to the large open ''

mantapa A mandapa or mantapa () is a pillared hall or pavilion for public rituals in Indian architecture, especially featured in Hindu temple architecture. Mandapas are described as "open" or "closed" depending on whether they have walls. In temples, ...

''. It is medium-sized Hoysala temple with certain vastu features similar to the

Veera Narayana Temple, Belavadi The Veera Narayana temple, also referred to as the Viranarayana temple of Belavadi, is a triple Hindu temple with a complex Hoysala architecture completed around 1200 CE. Close to Halebidu, this is a better preserved large Hoysala monument found ...

in ''mantapa'' structure and size. The open ''mantapa'' has twenty nine bays,Quote:"A bay is a square or rectangular compartment in the hall", Foekema (1996) p36, p93 and the closed ''mantapa'' has nine bays with a side porch that leads to a separate shrine on the south side. The shrine is square in shape has the original superstructure (''

shikhara ''Shikhara'' ( IAST: '), a Sanskrit word translating literally to "mountain peak", refers to the rising tower in the Hindu temple architecture of North India, and also often used in Jain temples. A ''shikhara'' over the ''garbhagriha'' chambe ...

'') which is adorned with sculptures of ''

Kirtimukha Kirtimukha (Sanskrit: कीर्तिमुख ,', also ', a bahuvrihi compound translating to "glorious face") is the name of a swallowing fierce monster face with huge fangs, and gaping mouth, very common in the iconography of Hindu temple a ...

s'' (demon faces), miniature decorative towers (

aedicule In ancient Roman religion, an ''aedicula'' (plural ''aediculae'') is a small shrine, and in classical architecture refers to a niche covered by a pediment or entablature supported by a pair of columns and typically framing a statue,"aedicula, n." ...

). Below the superstructure, the usually seen panel of

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

deities is absent. The base of the wall has five mouldings which according to art critic Foekema is an "older Hoysala style".Quote:"In a typical "older style" that was popular throughout most of the 12th century Hoysala temples, there is one set of

eaves The eaves are the edges of the roof which overhang the face of a wall and, normally, project beyond the side of a building. The eaves form an overhang to throw water clear of the walls and may be highly decorated as part of an architectural styl ...

where the tower meets the wall of the shrine. The eaves runs all around the temple. Eaves is a projecting roof overhanging the temple wall. Below the eaves are decorated miniature towers on pilasters. Below these towers are the wall panels of Hindu Gods, Goddesses and their attendants. Below these panels are the five mouldings", Foekema (1996), p28 The ''

sukanasi In Hindu temple architecture a sukanasa ( sa, शुकनास, IAST: śukanāsa) or sukanasi is an external ornamented feature over the entrance to the garbhagriha or inner shrine. It sits on the face of the sikhara tower (in South India, the v ...

'', the tower on top of the

vestibule Vestibule or Vestibulum can have the following meanings, each primarily based upon a common origin, from early 17th century French, derived from Latin ''vestibulum, -i n.'' "entrance court". Anatomy In general, vestibule is a small space or cavity ...

that connects the sanctum to the closed ''mantapa'' (the ''Sukanasi'' appears like the nose of the superstructure),Foekema(1996), p22 has the original Hoysala emblem of "Sala" fighting the lion.Foekema (1996), p22According to Kamath, Sala fights a tiger. According to historians such as C. Hayavadhana Rao, J. D. M. Derrett and B. R Joshi, "Sala" was the mythical founder of the empire, Kamath (2001), p123 The rows of shining lathe turned pillars that support the ceiling of the ''mantapa'' is a Hoysala-Chalukya decorative idiom.Quote:"a common feature of Western Chalukya-Hoysala temples", Kamath (2001), p117 The ''mantapa'' has many deeply domed inner ceiling structures adorned with floral designs. The outer parapet wall of the open ''mantapa'' has a total of hundred and forty panel sculptures with depictions from the Hindu epics. Unlike many Hoysala temples where the panels are small and carvings in miniature, these panels are comparatively larger. The

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages ...

is sculpted on the south side wall on seventy panels, with the story proceeding quite unusually, in anti-clockwise direction. On the north side wall, all depictions are clockwise, a norm in Hoysala architectural articulation. Twenty five panels depict the life of the Hindu god

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is on ...

and the remaining forty five panels depict scenes from the epic

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the K ...

. Ruvari Mallitamma, the well known sculptor and architect is known to have started his career here working on the domed ceilings in the main ''mantapa''.''Architectural marvel'' by P.B.Premkumar, ''Spectrum'', Tuesday, 20 January 2004 The large stone inscription near the porch contains poems composed by medieval Kannada poet Janna who had the honorific ''Kavichakravarti'' (''lit'', "emperor among poets").

Gallery

File:Profile of shrine in Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura.JPG, Profile of shrine outer wall with ''Shikara'' (tower) at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Mantapa outer wall articulation in Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura.JPG, Close up of mantapa wall with miniature decorative towers, swirls and flourish in relief at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Shrine wall relief at Amruteshvara temple in Amruthapura, Chikkamagaluru district.JPG, Mantapa wall with miniature decorative towers (

) in relief at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Outer wall relief at Amruteshvara temple in Amruthapura, Chikkamagaluru district.JPG, Wall relief at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Wall decoration in relief in Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura.JPG, Wall relief at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Close up of outer wall relief at Amruteshvara temple in Amruthapura, Chikkamagaluru district.JPG, Close up of wall relief at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura Image:Wall Carving at Amrutesvara Temple in Chikkamagaluru district.jpg, Wall relief sculpture of the Amrutesvara temple Image:Battle scene in relief in Amruthesvara Temple at Amruthapura in Chikkamagaluru district.jpg, Wall relief sculpture at the Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Mythological scene from the Hindu legend in relief in the Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura.JPG, Wall relief sculpture at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Scene from the Hindu legend in relief in the Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura.JPG, Wall relief sculpture at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Perforated window art at mantapa entrance in Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura.JPG, Perforated window art at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Hindu deity sculpture in the Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura 1.JPG, Hindu deity sculpture at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Domical ceiling art in Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura.JPG, Domical ceiling art at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Domical ceiling art in Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura 1.JPG, Domical ceiling art at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura File:Domical ceiling art in Amrutesvara temple at Amruthapura 6.JPG, Domical ceiling art at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura Image:Wall Sculpture at Amrutesvara Temple in Chikkamagaluru district.jpg, Wall relief sculpture, Amrutesvara temple File:Decorative swirls on mantapa wall at Amruteshvara temple in Amruthapura, Chikkamagaluru district.JPG, Decorative swirls in bas-relief on mantapa outer wall at Amrutesvara temple, Amruthapura

Notes

References

* Gerard Foekema, A Complete Guide to Hoysala Temples, Abhinav, 1996 * Suryanath U. Kamath, A Concise history of Karnataka from pre-historic times to the present, Jupiter books, 2001, MCC, Bangalore (Reprinted 2002) , .

External links

Architectural marvel
{{Hindu temples in Karnataka 12th-century Hindu temples Hindu temples in Chikkamagaluru district

Amrutesvara temple

Gallery

Notes

See also

References

External links