BELUR & HALEBEED

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150 miles from Bangalore is Belur - famous for the Chennakeshava Temple built in the Hoysala style of Architecture. Temple construction which  started in 1116 AD  was completed 103 years later.

The temple commemorates the victory of Hoysalas  over the Cholas in the great battle of Talakad. The temple is intricately carved with sculptures, friezes & pillars.

Halebeed is another temple town 10 miles away from Belur. Temple at Halebeed is dedicated to the Lord Shiva and is equally endowed with carved friezes. There is also an open air museum, exhibiting the best pieces of south Indian sculpture excavated from the region. 

The quality of workmanship at both sites is consistently high. The realistic rendering of everyday life into a lifeless stone leaves the visitor breathless. The stone masons have turned stone into a veritable album of their time, minutely recording all the trials and tribulations of their great age in an imperishable material. Plasticity of the artists is something truly remarkable indeed. The details of textiles, jewerlry and hairstyles of the ladies depicted on these temples bear testimony to the  advanced culture of  Hoysalas.

Lord Ganesh in the style of Halebeed and Belur

HOYSALESWARA
TEMPLE
     

This temple in Belur serves as a  remarkable example of  Hoysala art. The interior and exterior walls of the temple are covered with intricate sculptures depicting the various Hindu gods, sages, stylized animals and birds, and friezes portraying the life of the Hoysala rulers.

The temple and the adjacent museum containing a collection of fine sculptures are set in a garden. Temple  construction   started  in the year 1121 (Approx.) and went on for 80  years. But it is  sad that it was never completed. 

CHENNAKESHAVA
TEMPLE
   
The Chenna - Keshava (handsome  Lord Vishnu) Temple at Belur was built over a period of 103 years  (1116 - 1219 AD) . One has to visit the temple to appreciate the enormity and intricacy of  stone carvings that cover the interior and exterior walls  and also the roof of this temple. Such workmanship is not found anywhere else in the world. The seven storied gopuram (entrance arch) is breathtakingly beautiful with  some sculptures explicitly depicting the sacred temple rituals of  female dancers. The temple is set  inside  a paved compound which encompasses a water  well and a bathing tank as well.  Other famous landmarks  in Belur are the Chennigaraya, the Viranarayana and the Jain Temples.