Chokkanathaswamy temple, at
Domlur
Domlur is a small township located in the eastern part of Bangalore city in India. Domlur was included in the erstwhile Bangalore Civil and Military Station under the British Madras Presidency till it was transferred to the Mysore State in 19 ...
in the Indian city of
Bangalore
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
,
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, is dedicated to the deity known as Chokkanathaswamy or Chokka
Perumal (the
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 ...
god
Vishnu
Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism.
Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...
). It is one of the oldest temples in the city . The temple has numerous
Kannada
Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
and
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
inscriptions that have been documented in the
Epigraphia Carnatica Vol 9, Bangalore District (1905ed). Based on these inscriptions the temple is at least as old as 1200CE.
History
This Chokkanathaswamy temple is considered is amongst the older temples in Bangalore.
There are several notable sculptures and decorative features in the complex and the temple faces east. One Tamil inscription dated 1270 A.D. on a door frame states that the doors were donated by one Alagiyar and another inscription says of donation by one Talaikattu and one more inscription dated 1290 A.D. states that Poysala Vira Ramanada made donations to the temple.
[ Vijayanagara style Navaranga and pillars are later editions.
File:Domlur chola stone art 10th century,bangalore.jpg, Chola stone art 10th century - Hindu god Vishnu in Chokkanathaswamy Temple
File:Domlur Chola Temple.jpg, Tamil inscription, 10th century Chola temple, Domlur, Bangalore
]
Tamil inscriptions
The Chokkanathaswamy Temple is considered at least as old as 1200CE based on inscriptions in the temple and documented in the Epigraphia Carnatica Vol 9, located in Domlur. There are a number of Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
inscriptions in the temple. Domlur is called as Tombalur or Desimanikkapattanam in these inscriptions. Chakravarthi Posalaviraramanatha Deva has left inscriptions with directions to temple authorities of his kingdom. Further some inscriptions record the tributes, taxes and tolls made to the temple by Devaraya II of Vijayanagar Empire
The Vijayanagara Empire, also called the Karnata Kingdom, was a Hinduism, Hindu empire based in the region of South India, which consisted the modern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and some parts of Telangana an ...
, which state the houses, wells, land around Tombalur were offered to the deity Sokkapperumal. Another Tamil inscription dated 1270 talks about 2 door posts being donated by Alagiyar. Yet another inscription in Tamil details Talaikkattu and his wife donating lands from Jalapalli village and Vinnamangalam tank to the deity. A 1290 AD inscription talks about donation of ten pens from the revenue of Tommalur by Poysala vira Ramananda.
Present
The temple has been extensively renovated several times and only the sanctum sanctorum and two ardhamantapas exhibit antiquity.[
The images of Vishnu, Sridevi and ]Bhudevi
Bhumi ( sa, भूमि, Bhūmi), also known as Bhudevi and Vasundhara, is a Hindu goddess who is the personification of the Earth. She is a consort of the god Vishnu. According to Vaishnava tradition, she is the second aspect of Vishnu's consor ...
established in Garbhagraha
A ''garbhagriha'' or ''sannidhanam'' is the ''sanctum sanctorum'', the innermost sanctuary of a Hindu and Jain temples where resides the ''murti'' (idol or icon) of the primary deity of the temple. In Jainism, the main deity is known as the '' ...
are carved out of Shaligrama
A shaligrama shila ( deva, शालिग्राम शिला, Śāligrāma-śilā), also rendered as shaligram, is a particular variety of stone collected from riverbed or banks of the Kali Gandaki, a tributary of the Gandaki River in N ...
stone brought from Gandaki river, in Nepal.[
]
Temple timings
Daily: Morning: 6:00 am – 11:00 am, Evening: 5:45 pm – 8:30 pm
Wednesday: Morning: 6:00 am – 11:30 am, Evening: 5:45 pm – 8:30 pm
Saturday: Morning: 6:00 am – 12:30 pm, Evening: 5:45 pm – 9:00 pm
References
{{coord missing, Karnataka
Vaishnavism
Hindu temples in Bangalore
Chola architecture
Dravidian architecture