The Kadri Manjunatha Temple located in Mangalore

Mangalore

Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...

 in the state of Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

, dates back to approximately 1068 The square temple built with nine water tanks, nestles at the foot of the highest hill at Kadri in Mangalore.

Description

The chief deity

Deity

A deity is a recognized preternatural or supernatural immortal being, who may be thought of as holy, divine, or sacred, held in high regard, and respected by believers....

 of this temple

Temple

A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out...

 is Manjunatha there is a shiv ling on him there is also a ( thri Lokeshwara statue

Statue

A statue is a sculpture in the round representing a person or persons, an animal, an idea or an event, normally full-length, as opposed to a bust, and at least close to life-size, or larger...

 made of bronze

Bronze

Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...

. This statue of Lokeshwara in the seated position with three faces and six arms is tipped to be the best bronze statue in India. It is about 1.6m tall.

The temple is a neat middle sized structure with a pyramid

Pyramid

A pyramid is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge at a single point. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilateral, or any polygon shape, meaning that a pyramid has at least three triangular surfaces...

-shaped roof. The temple, as the inscription indicates, may have been built in the 10th or 11th century, as evidenced by the installation of the Lokeshwara statue in the 968. The Balipitha in front of the temple also gives us an almost definite period going back to 10th century. Within the temple premises to the west is the temple of Goddess

Goddess

A goddess is a female deity. In some cultures goddesses are associated with Earth, motherhood, love, and the household. In other cultures, goddesses also rule over war, death, and destruction as well as healing....

 Durga

Durga

For the 1985 Hindi Film of Rajesh Khanna see DurgaaIn Hinduism, Durga ; ; meaning "the inaccessible" or "the invincible"; , durga) or Maa Durga "one who can redeem in situations of utmost distress" is a form of Devi, the supremely radiant goddess, depicted as having eighteen arms, riding a lion...

, and to the north the temple of Lord Ganesha.

History

The earliest reference to it is in the epigraph dated 968 on this statue. It mentions that King Kundavarma Bupendra of the Alupas

Alupas

The Alupas kings were a minor dynasty who ruled parts of coastal Karnataka. Later with the dominance of Kadambas in Banavasi, they became feudatory to them. With the changing political scenario, soon they became the feudatories to Chalukyas, Hoysalas and Vijayanagara Rayas...

 lineage, caused the Lokeshwara statue to be installed in Kadarika Vihara. Kadarika is the earliest name of the place, Buddhism took shelter at Kadri mutt till the 10th century. Hence the name Kadri. In one of the Vijayanagara epigraphs, the name Kadali can be come across.

There are some stone cave

Cave

A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...

s on top of the hill. The idol of thri lokeshwarnath of the temple is said to be the oldest of the South Indian temples. The seven sacred pond

Pond

A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or man-made, that is usually smaller than a lake. A wide variety of man-made bodies of water are classified as ponds, including water gardens, water features and koi ponds; all designed for aesthetic ornamentation as landscape or architectural...

s, Jogi Mutt and cave of Pandavas are the pilgrim attractions here.

Gomukha and water tanks

There is a natural spring at an elevated location at the back of the temple. It is called Gomukha. The water from this spring is let into 9 ponds of different sizes adjacent to it. People visiting the temple wash themselves in these ponds before entering the main temple.

External links

• Mangaladevi temple