Sri Ramalingeshwara Temple, Kongahalli

 

Ramalingeshwara temple is also an ancient temple which has been renovated by now and maintained by mujurai department. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva and the lingam here is very big and nandi also is huge. This temple is located at Kongahalli which is close to Nanjangudu (may be around 15 kms from Nanjangudu) and from Mysore it is around 30 kms. The temple premises is very huge and they have maintained it very neatly. There have a garden in front of the temple which is maintained and managed by the locals who work in the temple. 

Inside the temple there are two Nandis in front of the Lingam. One huge nandi is completely covered by glass so that people do not touch it and make it dirty or destroy it so it is covered out completely. There are many small temples nearby to this temple which you can visit if you come here. The road to this place is also very good. Those who would like to travel to this place can contact the priest Ramesh's number 6360472770 or 9611962742 and you can enquire more about the temple. It is opened at 6 am in the morning. Evening they are opened until 7.00 pm everyday.

Chikkammadevi Temple at Chikkamma Betta

                                                                        

Chikkammadevi is located within 60kms from Mysore. It is one of the popular piligrimage place close to HD Kote and also prominent place to trek around. This temple is  located very close to Sargur and HD Kote and is situated in Puradakatte Taluk on the top of the Chikkammadevi Betta. This place is surrounded by complete greenery, mountains and lake. The road to the temple is also good from the foot hill to the top and well maintained temple. The drive to the top is also very exciting and mesmerising as the way is completely zig zag with lot of hairpin bends till the top of the hill. The view from the top of the hill is breathtaking and you can also see huge agricultural lands, village below the hill and Nugu reservoir. It is a feast to the eyes and you can get some fresh cool air too. Once you reach the top you need to climb few steps (may be around 60 steps) to reach the temple.

This goddess is considered to be one of the seven sisters of Chamundeshwari of Mysore and  it is said that the Mysore Wodeyars built this temple and they used to do pooja at this place too. Now this temple comes under Mujurai and under the control of the government. The temple is maintained very well and quite clean and you will also find water tank for all the devotees who come here to pray to the god, but there is lack of toilet facility here. You can also find petty shops close to the temple who sell eateries and make a living out of it. Special poojas are performed on Tuesdays and Fridays here and there will be crowd during Amavasya days too. You should be careful about your things as there are lot of monkeys who are always ready to steal your food :).  You can go biking here and enjoy the long curvy way to the top and best scenery around the hill. If you travel towards Mysore I would suggest you should visit this place too as it is not far from Mysore.

Laxminarasimhaswamy Temple, Dudda

                                                            

 This temple is an ancient temple dedicated to Laxminarasimha swamy which is located at a place called Dudda.  The road to this temple is very narrow not huge enough to drive easily and it is located around the residential houses and so quite difficult to find this place, but you can always use the google maps and travel. The temple is very old dating back to the Chola times and the statue of the lord is very very beautiful and carved in black stone and very nicely maintained premises. The temple premises is not so huge though. The temple is 16 kilometres from Mandya city. 

When i visited the place it was closed but the old priest who was sitting there in the temple steps opened the temple for me to have a glimpse of the lord. It was very kind of him as I had gone there around 4 pm and the temple opens at 6.00 pm evening but still he opened it for me. He also said that his family members are performing pooja here from many years and they have developed a lot of temple structures and made it look more nicer.

If you are travelling towards Mandya you should get blessings of the Lord Narasimhaswamy here and feel the presence of the divine here. 

Sri Gavisiddeshwara Temple, Maradevanahalli

 

                                                                        

This temple is located 40 kilometres from Mysore and very close to Mandya. If you travelling to Mandya this is a must visit place. The temple is very beautiful as it is made from white marble and so the whole temple premises and surrounding is so pure white in colour. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva and is located on a very small hill top which is surrounded by natures beauty and mountains and there is so much greenery around it. When you drive to this place, you can feel so much close to the nature as there are many paddy fields. The temple has a huge Shiva Linga on the top of the temple and a big Nandi sitting in front of Shivalingam. This is the uniqueness of this temple which makes it very different from other temples. The surrounding of the temple is also very clean and neatly maintained with a nice garden around it. 

There is another small temple behind this big Shiva temple. There are nice and clean steps which leads to this small temple on top from the garden. Its a breathtaking  view from the top of the hill near the temple. Very serene environment and so quite and peaceful place. I would personally recommend this place for those who travel to Mandya, should visit this place. Road near the temple is very nice and you would love the sights around the temple. A good place to spend some time alone here. You can also do very nice photo shoots as they have well maintained garden around the Temple. 

Nageshwara and Chennakeshava Temple

 Nageshwara and Chennakeshava Temple

This is an ancient temple located at Mosale which is 15 kilometres from Hassan is a real hidden gem of Karnataka. This is a remarkable example of Hoysala Architecture which was build during 12th to 13 century AD which belongs to Veera Ballala II.  It comes under National Archaeological Survey of India which is a protected monument. These two temples are built using soap stone and has a quite a big entrance and the whole temple is carved intricately which say a lot about the craftsmanship of those days.

This is a very less known temples among the Hoysala Temples of Hassan district. These two temples are built side by side in one complex and the walls outside have very unique carvings around the temples. One Temple among the two is dedicated to Lord Shiva (i.e. Nageshwara temple) and another one is Vishnu temple (Chennakeshava). There is not much inscriptions about this place in the temple premises but only one inscription near the doorway of the temple can be seen. We cannot see the name of the sculptors in these temples which are found in most of the Hoysala temples.

The Chennakeshava temple has a beautiful image of 6 foot Lord Chennakeshava which is a best example of standing cult image of the Hindu god Vishnu, and is accompanied by Bhoodevi and Sridevi. The Nageshwara temple.  This temple has sculptures of Garuda, Keshava, Janardana, Venugopala, Madhava also.The Nageshwara temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva and other deities residing there are Chamundeshwari, Saptamathrike, Ganapati, Sharada etc. 

This place is not on the main road so its a bit difficult to find the temple as it is little inside to the main road but it is a worth visit if come to Hassan and surrounding places. I would personally recommend this temple for every History Students out there!. Its quite a marvel and a gem that has been found in this place.