Laxmi Devi Temple: Hoysala

Laxmi Devi Temple: Hoysala

The Hoysala-era Laxmi temple in Karnataka is in news these days but not for good reasons. Reportedly, miscreants entered the temple and broke the idol of goddess Mahakali. The temple, situated in Doddagaddavalli is a major tourist and religious attraction in the state and is visited by lakhs of devotees every year.

Lakshmi Devi Temple:

The Lakshmi Devi temple was built by the Hoysalas in the year 1114 CE during the rule of king Vishnuvardhana. The temple lies in the old town of Halebid, which is located in Hassan District of Karnataka.

The temple's structure is a pidha deula whereas the superstructure over the shrine is a curvilinear than nagara sikhara of a Hoysala temple.

The temple is a chatuskuta construction (4 shrine and tower). The towers are in Kadamba nagara style. The mantapa is open and square. The reason for the square plan is the presence of shrines on all four sides of the mantapa.

There is a separate fifth shrine of Bhairava, an avatar of Lord Shiva. The main deity is Goddess Lakshmi whereas all Hoysala temples are dedicated to either Lord Vishnu, Lord Shiva and in some cases to Jains.

An archaeological Survey of India (ASI) monument and is also among the monuments proposed for the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Hoysala Temple Architecture:

The Hoysala architecture is a distinct building style developed under the rule of the Hoysala Empire between the 11th and 14th centuries, in today's Karnataka state, India. The civilization is known for its temples built primarily in the Dravidian style of architecture.

Hoysala temples are sometimes called hybrid or vesara as their unique style seems neither completely dravida nor nagara, but somewhere in between.

Some of the famous temples are:

• Hoysaleshvara (Lord of the Hoysalas) Temple: At Halebid, Karnataka and built in dark schist stone by a Hoysala king in AD 1150.
• Chennakeshava Temple: At Somnathpur, Karnataka and was built around AD 1268 under Narasimha III.
• Kesava Temple: At Belur, Hassan district of Karnataka built by Vishnuvardhana.

About Hoysala

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

The Hoysala rulers were originally from Malenadu, an elevated region in the Western Ghats.

In the 12th century, taking advantage of the internecine warfare between the Western Chalukya Empire and Kalachuris of Kalyani, they annexed areas of present-day Karnataka and the fertile areas north of the Kaveri delta in present-day Tamil Nadu.

By the 13th century, they governed most of Karnataka, minor parts of Tamil Nadu and parts of western Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in the Deccan Plateau.