BELUR CITY GUIDE
Just
as soft music calms the mind, a small silent prayer soothes the soul and makes
you feel fresher, happier and one with the world. There are many such places of
worship in India, where you can feel the divine communion with the Almighty. One
such place is Belur, about 222 km west of Bangalore, where the famous Chenna
Keshava Temple is to be found. It has some of the most intricate and beautiful
carvings in India.
In this modern world, ruled by techno-gizmos, it is hard to comprehend the work
that has gone into the architectural marvels of the Chenna Keshava Temple by the
sweat of the brow and the skill of the hand.
Belur was the capital of the Hoysalas during the 11th and 12th centuries, before
the capital was moved to Halebid. Most of the temples in Belur and Halebid were
built during the reign of Bittadeva, the fifth king of the Hoysalas dynasty, who
is said to have changed his name to Vishnuvardhana when he
converted from Jainism to Vaishnavism under the influence of
Ramanujacharya.
Chenna
Keshava Temple
Since
the Deity in the temple is very beautiful (Chenna) to look at, with long-hair
(Keshava), this form of Lord Krishna is referred to as Chenna Keshava. Lord
Krishna in this form has four hands - two upper hands hold a disc and a conch,
the two lower ones a lotus and a club. This wonderful temple, covered with intricate
sculptures, including scenes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata took almost 103
years to complete. The temple walls measure 443 ft by 396 ft, approximately.
The five-storey temple measures about 178 ft by 156 ft. The temple bears the
14th century gopuram (temple tower) over the main entrance and two altars in
the main temple. Don't forget to see the wonderful carvings of 645 elephants
at the outside walls of the temple. If you have the time, just check for this
fact, that no two elephant carvings are the same. Also don't miss the intricately
carved pillar with many small carvings of Lord Narasimha inside the temple hall.
There is a shrine dedicated to Lord Vishnu called Viranarayan in the temple.
Behind the main temple is a temple dedicated to the Goddess Lakshmi, the consort
of Lord Chenna Keshava.
The ten perforated screens on both sides of the eastern entrance of the assembly
hall is an intricate work of art depicting various important scenes from the
puranas and epics.