Mukteswara Temple is the cynosure of the village of Chaudayyadanapura in the Haveri district of Karnataka. The temple is situated on the banks of the Tungabhadra River and was built during the reign of the Kalyani Chalukyas and the Seunas of Devagiri. The Mukteswara Temple is dedicated to an Udbhava Linga named Mukteshwar.
History of Mukteswara Temple
The history of Mukteshwar Temple at Chaudayyadanapur is known through the 7 inscriptions in medieval Kannada, engraved on large steles. These medieval Kannada inscriptions on the temple walls mention the Veera Shaivam movement for the first time during the 11th century. The temple shows the earliest scriptures mentioning Lord Basaveshwara, the great social reformer and thinker of the 12th century; he spearheaded the movement of worshipping of Lord Shiva from Suddha Shaivam to Veera Shaivam. Under the administration of Basaveshwara, the movement thrived and spread across the entire southern peninsula since almost all the temples across South India have only lingam installed instead of other idol forms of Lord Shiva.
Architecture of Mukteswara Temple
The Mukteshwar Temple is a single cella temple in Jakanachari style. There are inscriptions on the temple walls which reveal the reign of the Gupta dynasty in the region and that King Chandragupta II who was also known as Vikramaditya ruled from his seat in Ujjain. The dome of the temple is hollow and is closed by the slabs of the stupa. The shikhara of the Mukteshwara temple is 2.2 m in its axis at the base. The stupa is made of 3 beautiful loti form mouldings diminishing in size and a lotus bud at its base. This temple also carries authentic information about the Gupta dynasty. The Mukteswara Temple bears witness to the Kannada Kingdom of the medieval ages.
Visiting Information on Mukteswara Temple
The village of Chaudayyadanapura is about 40 km from the town of Haveri. The town has its own railway station and the nearest airport in the area is the Hubli Airport which is at a distance of about 73 km. The ideal time to visit the Mukteswara Temple and the area around is in the months of March and February.
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