Melkote- a Paradise in itself

On my way back from Mysore, I happened to visit this historic temple that was built by the Hoysala rulers. My mom has a penchant for historic monuments and there was no way that she could miss this one. She made us drive 40km one way on a different route to visit these beautiful temples. The one on the foothills was dedicated to 'Swami Cheluvaraya Narayana' while the one on the peak of the hill was dedicated to 'Yoga Narasimha'.



Clicking pics inside the temple premises was strictly prohibited, but I couldn't resist and ended up asking permissions to click pics of the temple pillars. I have visited many temples, but have never seen a one with different pillars. Most of the temples that I have visited had similar pillars, but this temple had pillars that were all carved differently.




The temple on the hill had around 100 steps that we needed to climb to reach the sanctum. The steps were as old as the temple and the wear and tear over centuries made them slippery. My husband and I took turns to carry my 2 1/2 year old son to ensure that he is not bullied by those monkeys who would snatch away anything they see in your hands. I didn't dare to click their pics because I love my phone as much as I love my kids.

The temple premises was calm and had we not dragged my mom out, she would settle there for another year at least admiring the beauty of Hoysala architecture. The roads that reached the temple were properly laid, but looked like no man's land. It were only us on the roads, but the temple had enough crowd to make us wait for around an hour to get the glimpse of the idol.

The old temple pond there has attracted filmmakers towards it. Many regional films have this pond in them. We didn't spend too much time there as we had to cross the that section before it would turn dark. We finally reached home at 10pm and there is nothing that feels like home 😀.