The Lakshminarayana Temple is a 13th-century Hindu temple with

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 ...

in Hosaholalu,

Mandya district Mandya District is an administrative district of Karnataka, India. The district is bordered on the south by Mysore district, Mysore and Chamarajanagar district, Chamarajangar districts, on the west by Hassan District, on the north by Tumkur Di ...

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 ...

. Dedicated to Vishnu, this three-shrine monument is notable for its finely carved plinth (''adhisthana'') with panels of the ''Ramayana'', the ''Mahabharata'' and the ''Bhagavata Purana''. It has one of the most beautifully embellished Hoysala tower projection (''sukanasa'') that integrates the Dravida motifs with asta-bhadra Bhumija motifs from central India. Also notable are polish and jewelry-like carvings inside the temple's ''mandapa''.

Location and date

The town of Hosaholalu is about southeast of

Hassan Hassan, Hasan, Hassane, Haasana, Hassaan, Asan, Hassun, Hasun, Hassen, Hasson or Hasani may refer to: People *Hassan (given name), Arabic given name and a list of people with that given name *Hassan (surname), Arabic, Jewish, Irish, and Scottis ...

and northwest of the heritage city of

Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...

, the cultural capital of Karnataka state.Foekema (1996), pp. 71-72 The temple was built by King

Vira Someshwara Vira Someshwara ( kn, ವೀರ ಸೋಮೇಶ್ವರ) (1234–1263) was a king of the Hoysala Empire. The preoccupation of Vira Narasimha II in the affairs of Tamil country resulted in neglect of northern territories and he had to face Seun ...

of the

Hoysala Empire The Hoysala Empire was a Kannada people, Kannadiga power originating from the Indian subcontinent that ruled most of what is now Karnataka, India, Karnataka between the 10th and the 14th centuries. The capital of the Hoysalas was initially loca ...

in 1250 C.E. It lacks a foundation inscription. The dating of the temple is based on the style of the sculptures and architecture that compares closely with the contemporary Hoysala monuments at

Javagal Javagal is a village in the southern state of Karnataka, India.Village code= 2496100 Javagal, Tiptur, Karnataka It is located in the Arsikere taluk of Hassan district in Karnataka. The Lakshminarasimha temple, built in 1250 A.D., is an imp ...

Nuggehalli The Lakshminarasimha temple at Nuggehalli is a 13th-century Hindu temple with Hoysala architecture in Nuggehalli village, Hassan district, Karnataka, India. This three shrine Vaishnava complex is dedicated to Keshava, Lakshminarayana and Venugop ...

and

Somanathapura Somanathapura, also spelled Somanathpur, Somnathpur, or Somanathpura, is a town and Grama Panchayat in Tirumakudalu Narasipura, Mysore district in the state of Karnataka in India.

Architecture

Floor plan of Lakshminarayana Temple, Hosaholalu Karnataka

The Vishnu temple illustrates a later stage Hoysala architecture with a square plan and four-storey Vesara vimana, one that strongly resembles the Harnahalli temples. It was built using

Soapstone Soapstone (also known as steatite or soaprock) is a talc-schist, which is a type of metamorphic rock. It is composed largely of the magnesium rich mineral talc. It is produced by dynamothermal metamorphism and metasomatism, which occur in the zo ...

(chloritic schist).Kamath (2001), p136 The temple is a ''trikuta''

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 mentio ...

(three shrined) temple where only the central shrine has a tower (superstructure or ''

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'' chamber ...

'') on top.Quote:"Depending on the number of towers, the temples are classified as ekakuta (one shrine and tower), dvikuta (two), trikuta (three), chatushkuta (four) and panchakuta (five). Most Hoysala temples are ekakuta, dvikuta or trikuta", Foekema (1996), p25 The two lateral shrines merge into the ''ranga-mandapa'' towards the east. The main shrine is for Narayana, the southern shrine is dedicated to Venugopala, and the northern one to Lakshmi Narasimha. The temple is built on a '' jagati'' (platform) with decorative elephants at corners. This elevates the temple by . It extends well beyond the temple on all sides, thus providing an integrated ''pradakshinapatha'' (circumambulation passage).Quote:"The Jagati serves the purpose of a ''pradakshinapatha'' (circumambulation) as the shrine has no such arrangement", Kamath (2001), p135 The lateral shrines are square in construction with five projections and no special features. The central shrine is well decorated and its tower has a ''sukanasi'' (called "nose") which is actually a lower tower over the vestibule that connects the shrine (cella containing the image of the deity) to the hall (''mantapa''). The ''sukanasi'' looks like an extension of the main tower over the central shrine.Foekema (1996), p22 According to art critic Gerard Foekema, the temple as a whole exhibits the "new style" and belongs to the 2nd phase of Hoysala building activity (13th century), with two sets of eaves, and six moldings at the base of the outer wall.Quote:"A eave is a projecting roof overhanging a wall", Foekema (1996), p93 The first eave is located where the superstructure meets the temple outer wall and the second eave runs around the temple and about a metre below the first eave. In between the two eaves are decorative miniature towers on pilasters (called

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." ...

), with sculptured wall images of Hindu deities and their attendants below the second eave. This temple depicts a hundred and twenty panels of artwork, which are largely related to the

Vaishnavism Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...

tradition of Hinduism. Twenty four sculptures of Vishnu show his four arms holding his four icons – a

conch Conch () is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-sized sea snails. Conch shells typically have a high spire and a noticeable siphonal canal (in other words, the shell comes to a noticeable point at both ends). In North Am ...

, a

wheel A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle Bearing (mechanical), bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the Simple machine, six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction wi ...

, a lotus and a mace – in all possible permutations.Foekema (1966), p72 The temple also includes panels from Shaivism and Shaktism, such as one of Mahisasuramardini stamping on the buffalo-demon. Below the panel of deities is the base of the wall consisting of six decorative rectangular moldings of equal width which run all around the temple.Quote:"Generally, Hoysala temples built in the 13th century have 6 mouldings ("new style") while those built a century earlier have 5 mouldings ("old style")" Foekema (1996), p28 The six horizontal mouldings of the ''adhistana'' include intricately sculptured

frieze In architecture, the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Paterae are also usually used to decorate friezes. Even when neither columns nor ...

s.Quote:"A rectangular band of stone decorated with sculpture", Foekema (1996), p93 Seen from top to bottom; the first frieze depicts birds (''hansa''), the second depicts the mythical ''

makara ''Makara'' ( sa, मकर, translit=Makara) is a legendary sea-creature in Hindu mythology. In Hindu astrology, Makara is equivalent to the Zodiac sign Capricorn. Makara appears as the vahana (vehicle) of the river goddess Ganga, Narmada, a ...

'', the third frieze has depictions of ''Ramayana'', ''Mahabharata'' and ''Bhagavata Purana'' legends narrated in the clockwise direction (direction of devotee circumambulation). The fourth frieze has leafy scrolls, the fifth and sixth friezes have a procession of horses and elephants respectively.Foekema (1966), p29 In the frieze that depicts the epics, the

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...

starts from the western corner of the southern shrine, while the

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 Kuruk ...

starts from the northern side of the central shrine vividly illustrating the demise of many heroes of the famous war between

Pandava The Pandavas (Sanskrit: पाण्डव, IAST: Pāṇḍava) refers to the five legendary brothers— Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva—who are the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. They are acknowledg ...

s and

Kaurava ''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a legendary king of India who is the ancestor of many of the characters of the epic ''Mahabharata''. Usually, the term is used for the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra and his wif ...

s.Foekema (1966), p72 The interior of the temple consists of a closed hall (''mantapa'') of modest size with four polished lathe turned pillars supporting the roof.Quote:"This is a common feature of Western Chalukya-Hoysala temples", Kamath (2001), p117 The four central pillars divide the hall into nine equal "bays" (compartments) and nine decorated ceilings.Quote:"A bay is a square or rectangular compartment in the hall", Foekema (1966), p93 The sanctum of the three shrines contain the images of

Venugopala 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 ...

Narayana Narayana (Sanskrit: नारायण, IAST: ''Nārāyaṇa'') is one of the forms and names of Vishnu, who is in yogic slumber under the celestial waters, referring to the masculine principle. He is also known as Purushottama, and is co ...

in the middle and Lakshminarasimha; all forms (

Avatar Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearanc ...

) of Vishnu.

Gallery

File:Sri Lakshminarayana Temple , Hosaholalu - West side view.jpg, Lakshminarayana temple at Hosaholalu File:Lakshminarayana Temple, Hosaholalu - during PHMSTBGP-2020 (154).jpg, The jagati ("platform") File:Sri Lakshminarayana Temple, Hosaholalu - North View.jpg, North Side View - ornate relief work on ''vimana'' exterior File:Lakshminarayana Temple, Hosaholalu - during PHMSTBGP-2020 (161).jpg, The Shrine and superstructure over it File:Lakshminarayan Temple, Hosaholalu.jpg, Rear view File:Stellate shrine outer wall with relief in Lakshminarayana temple at Hosaholalu.jpg, Star pointed ''vimana'' File:Wall frieze and moulding relief in Lakshminarayana temple at Hosaholalu.jpg, Close up of bas-relief File:Ornate relief between eves and frieze of moldings at the base in Lakshminarayana Temple at Hosaholalu.jpg, Wall relief File:Lakshminarayana Temple at Hosaholalu, wall panel relief.JPG, Wall panel relief File:Hindu deities in panel relief in Lakshminarayana Temple at Hosaholalu.jpg, Wall relief File:Swirls and Flourishes in frieze Lakshminarayana Temple at Hosaholalu.jpg, Swirls and flourishes on molding frieze File:Richly Decorated Carving of Sri Krishna - Sri Lakshminarayana Temple,Hosaholalu.jpg, Krishna dancing on Naga File:Lakshminarayana Temple, Hosaholalu - during PHMSTBGP-2020 (230).jpg, Krishna with flute File:Richly Decorated Carving of Goddess Durga - Sri Lakshminarayana Temple,Hosaholalu.jpg, Goddess Durga, Mahisasuramardini File:Lakshminarayana Temple, Hosaholalu - during PHMSTBGP-2020 (22).jpg, Vedic deity Indra

Notes

References

* Gerard Foekema, A Complete Guide To Hoysala Temples, 1996, Abhinav, * Suryanath U. Kamat, A Concise history of Karnataka from pre-historic times to the present, Jupiter books, MCC, Bangalore, 2001 (Reprinted 2002) OCLC: 7796041 * {{Hindu temples in Karnataka Hindu temples in Mandya district Religious buildings and structures completed in 1250 Devi temples in Karnataka 13th-century Hindu temples

Location and date

Architecture

Gallery

See also

Notes

References