Mysore is known as the 'City of Palaces' but it has a number of beautiful temples as well. The members of the Royal family of Mysore were very religious and hence built new temples, renovated and expanded existing ones. Most of the temples are located in the fort or around the Palace. Few of the temples existed for centuries before the Wodeyars of Mysore and some were built during their reign.

There is no doubt that the Chamundeshwari temple on top of the Chamundi hills is the most famous temple in Mysore. Goddess Chamundi is the presiding deity of the Wodeyar Royal family. This temple is dedicated to the Goddess who killed the demon Mahishasura, after whom the city of Mysore is named. Initially the temple was a small one, but under the patronage of the Wodeyars it was expanded and has become the grand temple it is today. What many people do not know is that the Mahabaleswar temple, which is also on Chamundi hills, is older than the Chamundeswari temple. This temple was a very important one, but once the Chamudeswari temple started getting extensive royal patronage the prominence of this temple began to decline.

The other important temples in the city of Mysore are - the Lakshmiramana Swamy temple, which is the oldest temple in the city, Prassana Krishanswamy temple built by Krishnaraja Wodeyar III, Shewtavarahaswamy temple built by Krishnaraja Wodeyar III and the Trineswaraswamy temple. Most of the temples were inside the Mysore Fort and close to the Palace so that the Royal family had easy access to it to offer their daily prayers.

Chamundeshwari Temple on Chamundi Hill

3 kms from Mysore city, atop the Chamundi hill is the huge Chamundeshwari temple- the most famous of Mysore temples. A flight of 1000 stone steps from the foothills takes you to the temple at a height of 3000 ft. which is preferred by pilgrims although it is accessible by a motorable road. The temple is a fine quadrangular structure of Dravidian style with a splendid 40 mt high gopura or tower at the entrance. The silver-plated doorway has the images of the Goddess in different forms. In the sanctum sanctorum is the solid gold idol of the goddess Chamundeshwari, the tutelary deity of the Mysore maharajas and has been held in reverence for centuries. In fact the city itself owes its name to the goddess who vanquished the legendery demon Mahishasura. Special pujas or worhip-services and the rathotsava or car festival that are held here during Dasara attract big crowds.
Timings : Open all 7 days a week.
Archane - 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. & 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Special Aarti - 7 30 a.m.
Abhisheka - 6 a.m. to 7 30 p.m. @ 6 p.m. to 7 30 p.m.
Anna Dasoha and Special Pooja on Tuesdays and Fridays
Ph : 0821-2590027

Lakshmiramana Swamy Temple Mysore

Mahabaleshwara Temple Mysore

The Mahabaleshwara temple on top of the Chamundi hills is the oldest temple on top of the hill. The Mahabaleshwara temple was a very important before the Chamundeshwari temple gained prominence. The Mahabaleshwara temple lost its importance after the Mysore Kings started patronizing the Chamundi temple. In the earlier days the hill was called Mahabaladri or Mahabala Thirtha after the Lord of the temple. The name Chamundi Hills is of recent origin. This temple is situated to the south of the Chamundeswari Temple and attracts a small number of devotees. Records of the Ganga period show that the temple existed during their reign as well.

The oldest record of the temple dates back to 950 AD. The famous Hoysala King Vishnuvardhana is said to have expanded this temple. It is believed that the Hoysalas added the Ardha Mantapa and Nava Ranga. Both of them have lathe-turned pillars typical of the other Hoysala temples. Inside the temple there are attractive images of Sapta Matrikas, Nataraja, Parvathi and Bhairava, all built in the style used by the Hoysalas. The image of Vishnu is from the Ganga period.

In the niches behind are the statues of Dakshina Murthy and Mahishamardhini, the latter statue is in the Ganga style. In the back of the temple, on the back corridor, there are a few images of Gods like Indra and Bhiikshatana Shiva that indicate that the temple has Chola workmanship as well. There is an image of Brahma from the Ganga period. The front Mantapa was built during the 17th century. This ancient temple that has the workmanship of more that three dynasties is worth visiting.

Prasanna Krishnaswamy Temple Mysore

Krishnaraja Wodeyar III built the Prasanna Krishnaswamy temple. This temple is dedicated to Lord Krishna the founder of the Yadu dynasty. Construction of temple began 1825 and was completed in 1829. He presented the temple with about 40 bronze statues of Gods, Goddesses and saints. His name was inscribed next to the name of the statue. There is a statue of Krishnaraja Wodeyar III along with his wives with labels on their pedestals. The statue of the Maharaja is also worshipped.

In the prakara or the enclosure of the temple is a small cell enshrining the figure of the sage Atri. The figure of the sage was installed, as he was the gotra-rishi of the Maharaja. In the shrine of Ramanujacharya in the temple, there are three small stone figures of Paravasudeva, Anathasayana and Rajamannar (a form of Lord Krishna). The Navaranga (the central pillared hall) of Prasanna Krishnaswamy Temple has beautiful murals on its walls. The murals represent stories from Bhagavat the epic relating to Krishna.

These murals along with those in the Varahaswamy temple are exquisite examples of the distinctive and exceptional 19th century Mysore paintings. The sanctum sanctorum has a beautiful statue of Lord Krishna in the crawling posture, Ambegalu Krishna. The statue is made of chlorite schist. He has a butterball in his hand and a childish expression. This temple is known for its Kirshna Janmashtami celebrations. During the eight day celebration of Lord Krishna's birthday a religious procession is organized from this temple.

Shweta Varahaswamy temple

The Shweta Varahaswamy temple is also known as the Varahaswamy temple. This temple is located at the southern entrance of the Fort. The temple is built in the architectural style followed by the Hoysalas. The shrine of the Goddess has an elegantly carved doorway and intricately carved pillars and tower. The Navaranga has stucco niches at the sides of the entrance. The Navaranga has beautiful mural paintings on its walls. These paintings depict incidents from the Ramayana and the Bhagavata. These paintings especially pay attention to the exploits of Lord Krishna.

The temple has images with inscriptions on their pedestals. There is an inscription on a processional image that records that its donor was Chikka Devaraja Wodeyar (1672-1704). It is said that Chikka Devaraja Wodeyar obtained the stone image of Shweta Varahaswamy from Srimushnam, a city in what is the present day Tamil Nadu and consecrated it at the new temple built in Srirnagapatna, the then capital of Mysore State. After the defeat of Tippu Sultan the capital was shifted back to Mysore city and the idol too was shifted from there and installed in the sanctum sanctorum of the present temple in 1809.

It is claimed that Dewan Purnaiya had this temple built with materials of a Hoysala building in Shimoga district according to the wishes of Krishnaraja Wodeyar III. There are two inscribed images of Srivaishnava Acharyas, Desikar and Jiyar, in the temple. Desikar also known as Vedanthacharya was a popular Sri Vaishnava teacher and author in the 13th and 14the centuries. These statues have inscriptions on them that indicate that Krishnaraja Wodeyar III presented them to the temple at Mysore that he built in 1829. The temple structure has a number of masons' marks and letters in several places.

There is an inscription Maya Bhadra in characters if the 12th or 13th century on the southern outer wall of the shrine of the goddess. It is not clear what the expression means and whether it refers to the artist or to the niche itself. The temple is enclosed within high walls. The southeastern wall has a mural representing Rama Pattabhisheka or the coronation of Lord Rama. The painted inscription under the painted panel states that the painting was made on Monday the second of the bright half of the month Magaha in the cyclic year Bhava of Saka era 1797.

Trinesvaraswamy Temple

Trinesvaraswamy Temple is dedicated to the three-eyed Lord Shiva and is located in the northeast corner of the fort, facing the Mysore Palace or the Amba Vilasa Palace. This enormous temple has been built in the Dravidian style. This old temple existed even before the reign of Raja Wodeyar (1578-1617). Originally the temple was located on the bank of the Devaraya Sagar or Doddakere. The fort was enlarged during the reign of Kanthirava Narasaraja Wodeyar (1638-1659) and his successor Dodda Devaraja Wodeyar (1659-1672) and as a result the temple came within the fort enclosure.

The temple was expanded and renovated by the Maharajas of Myosre. Kanthirava Narasaraja Wodeyar constructed a verandah and consecrated five Lingas and several deities including Dakshinamurthy, Kshetrapala, Kumara and Surya. There is a stone image of the King with his hands folded. Next to him there is a statue of Dodda Devaraja Wodeyar in the same pose. The temple has a Prakara or an enclosure with a lofty Mahadwara or main entrance. It is said that the Mahadwara had a huge Gopura. This Gopura was destroyed in the 18th century. The two niches inside the Mahadawara have statues of Ganapathi and Bhairava.

In the northwest of the Prakara there are a number of Naga stones under a Peepul tree. Around the Prakara there are several Lingas and shrines of Parvathi, Chamundeswari, Suryanarayana and Sankaracharya. The marble statue of the Shankaracharya is a later addition. The Navaranga has two entrances, one on the west and the other on the south. To the left of the Sukhanasi entrance there is a statue that is about half a meter in height. The statue is of sage Trinabindu. According to Sthala Purana (local legend), the sage performed penance at this spot to Lord Shiva.

Shiva appeared to the sage and he consecrated the Lingam on that spot. Therefore the Lingam is Trinesvara or Trinayanesvara, the three-eyed Shiva. In a cell that faces the south entrance there is a metallic statue of the God. On either side in the two niches are statues of Ganapathi. On the south outer wall of the Navaranga are two niches that enshrine the figure of Virabhadra and Dakshinamurthy. The statue of Dakshinamurthy is seated under a tree in the posture of meditation.

The statue has four hands, one holding a rosary, another a Rudra Veena, the third a book and the fourth in Chinmudra or teaching pose. The pedestal is sculptured with the figures of seven sages. In a niche in the Prakara, facing the south entrance are the two statues of Kanthirava Narasaraja Wodeyar and Dodda Devaraja Wodeyar. The temple attracts a large number of devotees during the Shivaratri celebrations. Special prayers are offered every three hours of the holy Shivaratri night till dawn