Continuing the description of my visit to the Hoysala temples in my initial blog, this is a follow-up post on the Chennakeshava Temple, Arakere.
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The next temple we visited was another exquisite one, though smaller than most others. It was another Chennakeshava Temple at Arakere. Much plainer compared to most other Hoysala temples, this small shrine is nonetheless beautiful. This is a trikuta Vishnu temple built in the 13th century as per the ASI website.
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The temple is located in Hassan, one of the largest districts in Karnataka and famous for its ancient monuments, especially temples, and other religious sites. The district is named after Goddess Hasanamba, who is the presiding deity of the region.
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This temple was built in the later Hoysala period, in granite with a Kadamba Nagara shikhara and dated to 13th century AD on stylistic grounds. This trikuta temple, on plan has three garbhagrihas, opening into a common sabhamandapa and a mukhamandapa.
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The three sanctums house representations of Vishnu as Kesava in west, Venugopal in south and Lakshmi-Narasimha in north. In elevation, the temple has an adhisthana with conventional mouldings over which rises the wall.
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The antarala of the western shrine is marked with sukanasa projection. This is the single shikhara of the temple.
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The exterior of the temple wall has crude representations of various aspects of Vishnu in addition to secular sculptures. The sculptures do not have the workmanship compared to others constructed under Mallitamma, the sculptor. The carvings, however, have their own beauty which differentiates the temple from other Hoysala temples.
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In between the sculptural depictions on the external walls are inserted slender tall pilasters and single pilaster turrets to break the monotony.
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The main deities are exquisite and the statue of Channakeshava surpasses any other in its ethereal beauty. After all, Channakeshava means “Beautiful Vishnu”!
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To the left of the entrance is a large stone tablet which contains a inscription in ancient Kannada giving details of the construction of the temple.
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The temple is active and is currently maintained by the ASI. There are multiple villages called Arakere in Karnataka. There are some villages called Arakere which also have a Chennakeshava Temple. Visitors should ensure that they reach the correct temple when planning a trip.
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Photography inside the temple is prohibited; however, it may be photographed from the outside. The keys to the temple are available with the villagers in case it is found to be locked since the pujari is not always in attendance.
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Arakere is about 25 km north of Halibedu on the highway to Banavara on NH 73.
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A smaller temple than it’s more famous Hoysala temples in the area, this temple nevertheless has its own charm. Though it receives a lesser number of visitors being off the popular itineraries, it is definitely worth a visit.
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My blogs on the other Hoysala temples I visited can be seen at:
- Chandramouleswara Temple, Arasikere
- Amrutheshwara Temple, Amruthapura
- Lakshmi Devi Temple, Doddagaddavalli
- Sri Veera Narayana Swamy Temple, Belavadi
- Hoysaleshwar Temple, Halebidu
- Kedareshwara Temple, Halebidu
- Parshvanatha Jain Temple, Halebidu
- Chennakeshava Temple, Belur
- Sri Lakshmi Narsimha Temple, Javagal
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