12th Century Temple in Bangalore

Place Name: Chokkanathaswamy temple

Distance from Bangalore: approx 11 KM from Majestic

Route: Via MG road, trinity circle

Duration: Half day Trip

Road Condition: Good (traffic can be expected during peak hours)

Best time to visit: Any time in the year

As I was looking out for ancient monuments in Bangalore, I came across this ancient temple built in the 12^th century. Although it was in close proximity to the areas that I used to traverse, I was clueless on the existence of the temple until recently. I chose to drive down to this temple on a fine Saturday, when the weather was just perfect for a drive. This temple is located in the heart of the city i.e. Domlur. The temple belongs to the Cholas dynasty of the 12^th century. Popularly known as - "Sri Devi Bhudevi Sametha Chokkanatha Swamy Devasthanam”, this place is on the way towards ITPL, with a small deviation prior to the bus stop.

This temple has two notable sculptures which are eye catching - One in Tamil and another in Kannada. It is also being told that the Vijayanagar empire also donated to this temple. I was fortunate to collect some information on this temple from an elderly lady, who claimed to belong to the 5^th generation of the priests who performed puja at the temple. The main deity – Lord Chokkanatha Swamy was adorned majestically with flowers. After finishing my darshan, I enquired more about the temple from the leading priest, who informed me that the idol of the main deity was submerged 30 years ago and that it was brought here after renovation. It was remarkable that though the temple had been renovated with the modern day granites, the structure with the old sculptures remained untouched. There was ancient scriptures in Tamil and 1 scripture written in Kannada (written during the Vijayanagar dynasty). The 10 avatars of Lord Vishnu is depicted on one of the pillars. One can also notice one of the pillar on which Garuda is carved. This temple is believed to be the only temple possessing Pranic energy.

Here are a few of the snaps of the Temple….