The document provides details about Western Chalukya temple architecture. It discusses the basic layout of temples including the floor plan, architectural articulation, and figure sculptures. The floor plan is defined by the size of the shrine and sanctum as well as the distribution of the building mass. Architectural articulation refers to ornamental components that shape the outer wall and can produce stepped, stellate, or square patterns. Figure sculptures include miniature representations on architectural elements. Two exemplar temples, the Chennakesava temple and Hoysaleswara temple, are then described in detail highlighting their design features.

2. TEMPLE COMPLEXES – BASIC LAYOUT
A typical Western Chalukya temple may be examined from three aspects — the basic
floor plan, the architectural articulation, and the figure sculptures.
The basic floor plan is defined by the size of the shrine, the size of the sanctum, the
distribution of the building mass, and by the pradakshina (path for
circumambulation), if there is one.

3. •Figure sculptures are miniature representations
that stand by themselves, including architectural
components on pilasters, buildings, sculptures, and
complete towers.
• They are generally categorised as "figure
sculpture" or "other decorative features“.
• On occasion, rich figure sculpture can obscure the
articulation of a shrine, when representations of
gods, goddesses, and mythical figures are in
abundance.

4. •Architectural articulation refers to the ornamental components that give shape to the outer
wall of the shrine.
•These include projections, recesses, and representations that can produce a variety of patterns
and outlines, either stepped, stellate (star-shaped), or square.
• If stepped (also called "stepped diamond of projecting corners"), these components form five
or seven projections on each side of the shrine, where all but the central one are projecting
corners (projections with two full faces created by two recesses, left and right, that are at right
angles with each other).
• If square (also called "square with simple projections"), these components form three or five
projections on a side, only two of which are projecting corners.
• Stellate patterns form star points which are normally 8-, 16-, or 32-pointed and are sub-divided
into interrupted and uninterrupted stellate components.
• In an 'interrupted' stellate plan, the stellate outline is interrupted by orthogonal (right-angle)
projections in the cardinal directions, resulting in star points that have been skipped.
• Two basic kinds of architectural articulation are found in Indian architecture: the southern
Indian dravida and the northern Indian nagara.

5. ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES
 Vesara style was adopted by the Hoysala kings.
 Temples and Shrines had more than one central
GARBHAGRIHA.
 These Garbhagrihas were grouped along one large
Mandapa.
MANDAPA was a cross shaped pillared hall.
GOPURAMS were added in later stages.
Garbhagriha is generally star shaped in plan>> derived
from a perfect square rotated at equal angles.
Towers crowning the Garbhagriha acquired a bell-like
profile which was a streamline version of SHIKARA-
VIMANA.

6. Domical bay ceiling in Kaitabheshvara temple at
Kubatur, 1100 CE, in the Shimoga district
The Western Chalukya decorative inventiveness focused on the pillars,
door panels, lintels (torana), domical roofs in bays,[49] outer wall
decorations such as Kirtimukha (gargoyle faces common in Western
Chalukya decoration),[50][51] and miniature towers on pilasters.
Kirtimukha decoration at Kasivisvesvara Temple
atLakkundi
Vimana
ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS
Domical bay

7. Open mantapa (hall) at theMahadeva Temple at
Itagi, theKoppal district, 1112 CE
Yali Balustrade at
Tripurantakesvara
Temple,Balligavi,
the Shivamogga district
MANTAPA
SCULPTURE
Figure Sculpture
Temple Deities

8. Miniature decorative
dravida-style tower
(aedicule) at
Siddhesvara Temple
in Haveri
Miniature decorativenagara-style
tower (aedicule) at Siddhesvara
Temple in Haveri
MINIATURE TOWERS

9. •Stepped floorplan of Dattatreya Temple (one side of
the shrine) with five projections at Chattarki in
Gulbarga district, 12th century CE
•Sixteen-pointed uninterrupted stellate floorplan
(one side of the shrine), Trimurti Temple at
Savadi in Gadag district, 11th century CE
•Thirty-two pointed interrupted stellate floorplan (one
side of the shrine)
• Square floorplan with five projections per side of
the shrine

10. CHANNAKESHAVA TEMPLE
BELUR
The Chennakesava Temple at Belur is a Vaisnava temple, i.e. dedicated
to an avatar of Lord Vishnu – Kesava.
The temple was commissioned by Hoysala king Vishnuvardhana in 1117
AD.
 The stone walls of the temple are ladden with intricate sculptures of
various avatars of Vishnu and other Hindu gods.
Other intricate details and sculptures include SHILABALIKAS,
DARPANA SUNDARI(beauty with the mirror).

11. ANTARALA
GARBAGRIHA
HYPOSTYLE HALL
PRADAKSHINA PATHA

12. • As usual the sanctum consists of a square vestibule
(antarala) and a square holy cella (garbhagiha).
• The entrances of both are flanked by life-size sculptures of
door guardians (dvarapalakas). They bear a mace (gadha).
• In the cella stands a cult-image of Vishnu, an extremely
large one bearing a wheel (chakra), a mace (gadha), a
lotus (padma) and a conch (shankha).
• This is the order of attributes corresponding with the
form of the god Keshava.
• "Chenna" means beautiful and Keshava means Krishna,
one of the avatars of Lord Vishnu.
THE SANCTUM

13. HALL
This view shows the perforated stone screens of the
external walls, called jali, which imitate the lattice
work and were added fifty years after the the
erection of the building.
The parapet-wall is very high in this case, more
than two meters, and is topped with a slanting
seat-back. This seat-back is decorated with panels
showing mythological scenes.
The hall (mandapa) is of the open type, originally it only had a parapet. The hall of
the temple is very large and very ornate.
Originally it was an open hall without full walls, it had a parapet-wall and a roof
only resting on pillars.
 Later on the space between parapet and roof has been closed-off with
magnificent screens, together with the further embellishment of the temple.
Its plan is not a square but a stepped diamond, which is usual in this kind of open
halls.
Below it are numerous horizontal bands with lavish sculptural decorations and
depictions, some of them extremely delicate.

14. RAYAGOPURA
 Originally the interior received much daylight, but the
added screens make it dark and mysterious.
 The top of the thick parapet-wall is a seat.
 Due to the size of the building the parapet is very high
here, and therefore small steps are provided for
reaching the wide top.
 Hundreds of people could sit here and watch dancing
performances in the hall.
THE INTERIOR
 The main entrance to the complex is crowned
by a Rayagopura (superstructure over
entrance) built during the days of
the Vijayanagar empire.[6
 Two main sthambha (pillar) exist here. The
pillar facing the main temple,
the Garuda (eagle) sthambha was erected in
the Vijayanagar period while the pillar on the
right, the Deepa sthambha (pillar with lamp)
dates from the Hoysala period.
THE RAYAGOPURA

15. The Chennakesava temple has three entrances and their doorways have decorated
sculptures called dvarapalaka (doorkeepers) on either side. The Kappe Chennigraya
temple became a dvikuta (two shrined temple) with the later addition of a
shrine to its original plan. The original shrine has a star-shaped plan while the
additional shrine is a simple square. The image inside is also that of Kesava ( a form
of the god KRISHNA) and was commissioned by Shantala Devi, the noted queen
of King Vishnuvardhana.[2]
DARPANA SUNDARI

16. The variety among the many
pillars of the hall is extremely
large and one of them is even
decorated with life-size figure
sculpture.
The four central pillars are
the most heavy ones.
 They are very large
specimens of ornate lathe-
turned bell pillars, and their
production also was a great
technical achievement.
They support a domed ceiling
that is one of the most
elaborately decorated ceilings
in all India.
PILLARS

18. Santalesvara shrine
Hoysalesvara
shrine
Nandi
mantapa
star shaped
vimana
with projections
on 3 sides
•Shrines face the east
and contain
shivalingas
•Another shrine for
Lord Surya with a 7.1
ft tall image of the
God.
5 ft high star shaped pedestal
mantapa
•Dvikuta vimana with 2
low shikaras.
Sukanasi – connects
mantapa to garbagriha
Main entrance
•4 porches for entry – 2 on East, 1
on South and the North entrance
being the main one.
N

19. •The construction was completed in
1121 CE.Sculptures continued to be
added to it till at least 1141.
•In the 12th century, the temple was
built by Ketamalla, , during the rule
of King Vishnuvardhana of Hoysala
Empire.
The Hoysaleswara Temple faces a
large tank that was built in 11th
century .
Each of these temples resembles
the Belur Chennakesava temple in
plan.
Built of grey soap-stone, best
suited for fine carving
All entry porches have miniature
shrines as flanking
sukanasi (a low tower that looks like
an extension of the main tower),and
the row of decorated miniature roofs
of the hall are all missing.
At the entrance, you can find the
dancing
Ganesha.

20.  The two mantapas are connected
giving a large and imposing view of the
hall.
Individually, each shrine contains a
simple linga.
The plan of the inside of the temple is
simple but the exterior looks different
because of the introduction of many
projections and recesses in the walls
The temple was built at a height that
provided the architects sufficient
horizontal and vertical space to depict
large and small sculptures.

21. pierced window screens on the
exterior walls allowing light
into the mantapa
This temple originally had an
open mantapa to which outer
walls with pierced window
screens made with the same
material were erected, making
the mantapa a closed one
There are pierced windows on the
walls and reliefs, about 90 cm high
each of divinities, set on pedestals
and with canopies above. The
exterior walls of the temple have a
splendid assortment of stone
sculptures including depictions from
Hindu mythology.

22. charging elephants symbolizing
strength and stability
lions symbolizing courage
horses symbolizing speed
depictions from the Ramayana
and the Mahabharata
mythical beasts called makara
hansas (swans)
floral scrolls as decoration
floral scrolls as decoration
No two animals are alike in a total frieze span of
over 200 m. The vertical angles, without interfering with the
continuity of the frieze give height and strength to the whole
composition.

23. GARUDA PILLAR
•Another interesting object in the temple complex is the
rare Garuda Sthamba.
•The rare pillar on the south side depicts heroes
brandishing knives and cutting their own heads.
• The Kannada inscription honors Kuruva Lakshma, a
bodyguard of Veera Ballala II.
•A 8 ft (2.4 m) tall sculpture of Ganesha including the
platform rests at the South entrance.
LATHE TURNED
PILLARS
•The interior of the
temple is quite
plain except for
the lathe turned
pillars that run in
rows between the
north and south
entrances

24. Four pillars in front of
each shrine are the
most ornate and the
only ones that have
the madanika (chaste
maidens) sculptures in
their pillar
brackets. There are no
other madanikas in
the temple.

25. It is a stunning
masterpiece with
exclusive carvings.
There are more than a
thousand figures all
along the walls of the
temple.
The ceilings, interior and exterior
walls of the temple have beautiful
sculptures carved on them.
The most intricate of all
sculptures are found in the lintels
over two of
the doorways,
one on the
south side
doorway and
the other on
one of the
eastern
doorways.

26. The Hoysaleswara temple is most well
known for its sculptures that run all along
the outer wall, starting with an dancing
image of the god Ganesha on the left side
of the south entrance and ending with
another image of Ganesha on the right
hand side of the north entrance.
 In all there are 240 such images .
The ceilings, interior and exterior walls
of the temple have beautiful sculptures
carved on them.

28. KESHAVA TEMPLE
•Most typical and complete is the Kesava temple at
Somnathpur situated about 38Km from Mysore, a triple
shrine, or trikutachala, and illustrating the Hoysala style
in its late maturity.
•The Keshava temple was built in A.D 1268, by
Somanatha a Dandanayaka under the Hoysala king
Narashima III. It has 3 sanctums on the West, South and
North to Keshava, Venugopala and Janardhana, all
connected.
•The temple itself occupies the middle of the rectangular
courtyard surrounded by 64 cells each with pillars in front,
the whole enclosure measuring 215ft by 177ft, and
forming an appropriate cloistered setting.
•Owing to its combination of 3 shrines, the temple plan is
in the shape of a cross, its greatest length being 87ft and
its width 83ft, with its sole entrance on the east.
•These very moderate dimensions enable one, on entering
the courtyard through its eastern gateway, to see this
building in its entirety at a single glance, and it is indeed a
very perfect and finished production, a small, but typical
example of the style.
Front view of Kesava temple,
Somnathpur.
Idols of Janardhana and
Venugopala in Keshava temple,
Somnathpur.

29. KESHAVA TEMPLE
•So well balanced and finely proportioned are its parts
that no element obtrudes or is out of place, and
although the 3 stellate towers are only 30ft high, they
are fully in accord with the rest of the building.
•The temple structure stands on a high platform, the
outlines of which run parallel to the plan of the
building, following the points of its stellate shape, but
leaving a space some 7ft wide all around, as an
ambulatory.
•Its plan is fairly simple as it consists of a main pillared
hall in the centre, at the western end of which are the
3 shrines, one in axial alignment with the hall, the
others projecting laterally, like trancepts, thus
producing its cruciform effect.
•The exterior walls are disposed (inclined) and
embellished (highly carved). A single pillared hall
measuring 41ft long by 30ft wide comprises the
interior, but this is actually a composite of the two
compartments of the mukha-mandapa, or front hall,
and the navaranga, or middle hall, the former
containing 12 pillars and the latter 4, all elaborately
lathe- tuned in the manner of the style.
•From each of the 3 interior walls of the middle hall a
doorway leads to a square vestibule or sukhanasi,
beyond which, in each instance, is the cella.
Rear view of Keshava temple, Somanthpur.
Lathe-tuned pillars in
Keshava temple,
Somnathpur.
Plan of Keshava temple, Somnathpur.

30. •There are many temples, especially on the western side of India, which have their
plans elaborated into the shape of a star by means of a series of recesses and off-
sets, but the indentations and projections thus formed are produced by right
angles, or curves on right lines.
•In contrast to this, in the Chalukyan style, the stellate or astha-bhadra plan, is
worked out on an entirely different principle, being obtained by means of an
intricate geometrical device.
•This consists of a combination of equal squares, each with a common centre, but
whose diagonals vary by several degrees, the amount of difference in degrees
being in accordance with the number of points required to form the star.
DEVELOPMENT OF STELLATE PLAN OF TEMPLES
Development of stellate plan
of Keshava temple.

31. THE FORMATION OF THE TOWER OR SHIKARA
•Although the sikhara is separated from its
substructure, consists of the walls of the vimana, by a
wide projecting cornice or eave, the stellate system is
carried through this to produce a fluted effect on the
tower above.
•As in other regional developments the upward
tendency is however modified and balanced by a
scheme of horizontal lines and mouldings, which
resolve the whole tower into an orderly succession of
tiers, diminishing as they rise to terminate at the apex
in a low parasol-shaped finial.
•The motifs that make up the horizontal and vertical
pattern of the sikhara consist of complex grouping of
miniature shrines and niches, each tier being
separated either by a sunk moulding or a fretted
string-course.
•In mass this type of tower has no effective height,
and its contours, being a section of a parabola are not
strong in outline.
•There is a certain plastic beauty in its rich sculptured
texture, but architecturally it is formless, and lacks
structural strength.
Sikhara of
Keshava temple
showing fluted
effect to form
stellate system.

32. PLAN OF KESHAVA TEMPLE, SOMNATHPUR.
EASTERN
MAIN
ENTRANCE
RECTANGULAR COURTYARD
215ft x 177ft surrounded by 64 cells.
MUKHA MANDAPA
With 12 pillars.
AMBULATORY 7m wide.
KESHAVA SANCTUM
VENUGOPALA SANCTUM
JANARDHANA SANCTUM
NAVARANGA
with 4 pillars.

33. SECTION OF KESHAVA TEMPLE, SOMNATHPUR.
EASTERN MAIN
ENTRANCE
MUKHA MANDAPA
With 12 pillars.
30ft HIGH STELLATE TOWERS
CELLS

34. COLUMNS
Typical Hoyasalan architectural influence is
the lathe turned support pillars in the garbha-
grihas (sanctums).
These pillars were used as prototypes for all
upcoming temples
The pillars are cylindrical in shape with the
possible exception of the cubical capital and the
base sections. The ring like groves all along the
length, except in the lower portion that appears
like a bell.

35. ROOF DETAILS
The roofs are intricately sculpted with various patterns and design features.
There are patterns of flowers which are concentric and have a central point.
There is a snake like pattern, a square pattern and a star shaped pattern as well.

36. SCULPTURAL DETAILS
One of the finest examples is that of
Vishnu
and Lakshmi. The lotus has been provided
to add sense of balance as Lakshmi is
smaller than Vishnu and needs to rest her
feet somewhere. Also note that the
lotus is titling to the right due to her
foot’s
weight and the creative vision of the artist
to have included an elephant to support
the tilting lotus.
Another example is that
of the Airawat elephant
of Indra. Closer inspection
will reveal that the
elephant
is not an ordinary one and
has got 4 tusks.
Every deity has its own set of jewelery, the finger
nails are visible and proportions are right.

37. WALL DETAILS
The base layer consists of Elephants depicting strength. The
second layer of horses depicts speed, the third one of
carved patterns depicts beauty. While the fourth layer of
religious fables depicts culture, the fifth layer depicts art as
it consists of an innovative pattern of an imaginary animal
whose a mix of pig, human, rhino, pig and crocodile.
The walls are
perforated on some
walls allowing a dual
function of both
lighting and
ventilation