Halasuru Someshwara Temple, Bangalore

Coordinates: 12°58′32″N 77°37′27″E / 12.975445°N 77.624231°E / 12.975445; 77.624231
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Halasuru Shri Someshwaraswami Temple
The entrance of Someshwara temple
Religion
AffiliationHinduism
DistrictBangalore
DeitySomeshwara
Location
LocationHalasuru
StateKarnataka
CountryIndia
Halasuru Someshwara Temple, Bangalore is located in Karnataka
Halasuru Someshwara Temple, Bangalore
Location in Karnataka
Geographic coordinates12°58′32″N 77°37′27″E / 12.975445°N 77.624231°E / 12.975445; 77.624231

Halasuru Someshwara Temple is located in the neighborhood of Halasuru in

Kempe Gowda II.[2][3]

Someshwara temples were built by the Chalukyas of Kalyani in Karnataka. During that period we see Tamil inscriptions as a few

Mudaliars
, originally Tulu speaking, had settled in parts of TN especially Arcot.The temple is being managed by the Muzarai department. The pradhana archakaru of this temple is Shri Ramanatha Dikshitaru along with Shri Sundara Dikshitaru and Shri Shanmukha Dikshitaru.

Legend

In the "Gazetter of Mysore" (1887), Benjamin Lewis Rice describes a legend behind the consecration of the temple.

Yalahanka. Being tired, he rested under a tree and fell asleep. The local deity Someshwara appeared to him in a dream and instructed him to build a temple in his honor using buried treasure. In return the chieftain would receive divine favor. Kempe Gowda found the treasure and dutifully completed the temple.[4]

According to another version of the legend, King Jayappa Gowda (1420-1450 CE) from a minor dynasty of the Yelahanka Nada Prabhus was hunting in a forest near the present Halasuru area, when he felt tired and relaxed under a tree. In a dream, a man appeared before him and told him that a

linga
(universal symbol of the god Shiva) was buried under the spot where he was sleeping. He was instructed to retrieve it and build a temple. Jayappa found the treasure and initially built the temple out of wood.

Another account attributes the temple to the

Chola Dynasty with later renovations made by the Yelahanka Nada Prabhus.[2]

Temple plan

According to Michell, the temple plan follows many of the basic elements of

Yali (mythical beast) pillars. The eastern gopuram is a well executed, typical 16th century structure.[3]

•The brahma samba is lactated in the east direction of the temple which is about 18 feet in height and has the base radius of 2 feet.

There are several notable sculptures and decorative features in the complex. An impressive pillar (kambha or

saptarishis (seven sages of Hindu lore).[2] Recent excavations at the temple site has revealed the existence of a temple tank (kalyani) which could be 1200 years old.[5]

Gallery

  • Entrance gopura or gateway of the Ulsur temple in Bangalore (c.1868), by Henry Dixon, from the Archaeological Survey of India Collections[6]
    Entrance gopura or gateway of the Ulsur temple in Bangalore (c.1868), by Henry Dixon, from the Archaeological Survey of India Collections[6]
  • Someshwara temple in 1890
    Someshwara temple in 1890
  • Ornate open mantapa (hall) at the Someshwara temple in Halasuru
    Ornate open
    mantapa
     (hall) at the Someshwara temple in Halasuru
  • Depiction of the Girija Kalyana (marriage of Parvati to the god Shiva
    Depiction of the Girija Kalyana (marriage of Parvati to the god Shiva
  • Durga slaying Mahishasura (a demon)
    Durga slaying Mahishasura (a demon)
  • Mantapa pillars at Someshwara temple in Halasuru
    Mantapa pillars at Someshwara temple in Halasuru

Inscriptions

  • Ulsoor Someshwara Temple, Tamil Inscription BN-15[7]
    Ulsoor Someshwara Temple, Tamil Inscription BN-15[7]
  • Tamil Inscription, Someshwara Temple, Ulsoor
    Tamil Inscription, Someshwara Temple, Ulsoor

References

  • Michell, George (1995) [1995].
    ISBN 0521-441102
    .

Notes

  1. ^ Dynamics of Language Maintenance Among Linguistic Minorities: A Sociolinguistic Study of the Tamil Communities in Bangalore. Central Institute of Indian Languages, 1986. 1986. p. 7.
  2. ^ a b c Achari, S.N (10 April 2012). "Bangalore's beautiful Someshwara temple". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  3. ^ a b Michell (1995), p. 69
  4. ^ B.L.Rice, p72 "Halasur"
  5. ^ R, Arthi (30 April 2010). "Ulsoor dig unearthing 1,200-year-old pond". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 3 January 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  6. ^ Dixon, Henry (1868). Archaeological Survey of India Collections. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  7. ^ Rice, Benjamin Lewis (1894). Epigraphia Carnatica: Volume IX: Inscriptions in the Bangalore District. Mysore State, British India: Mysore Department of Archaeology. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
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