Karpagavinayagar Temple at Pillayarpatti in Chettinad enshrines Lord Ganesha. This rock cut temple is one of the oldest cave temples in Tamil Nadu and it is a very popular Vigneshwara (Ganesha) temple attracting huge number of devotees. Pillayarpatti Nagarathar community patronizes this temple with pride and devotion.
Outsiders often wonder how the Sri Aurobindo Ashram and Auroville are related. While the Mother founded both on the ideals of Sri Aurobindo, the two are separate legal entities that have been evolving independently. Broadly speaking, while the Ashram focuses on the inner development and transformation of individuals, Auroville's focus is the creation of a new society and city, which is global and universal, belonging to humanity as a whole.
The Matri Mandir is surrounded by four zones: the cultural, international, industrial, and residential. The Cultural Zone has educational, cultural and sports activities as its focus. It consists of schools, a sports complex, and a youth center. A centralized structure (Sri Aurobindo International Institute of Educational Research), which is involved in research on new teaching methods while recognizing traditional educational levels, coordinates the whole system of education in Auroville. The sports complex provides facilities for tennis, football, handball, and riding.
The Venkataramana Swamy Temple was built by Maharajah Chikka Devaraya Wodiyar. The temple is 300 years old. Some of the best characteristics of the Dravidian temple art is depicted in the temple. The temple is situated adjacent to Tipu’s summer palace.
The Maha Bodhi Society Temple is a comparatively new social system. The main shrine is built as a reproduction of the historical stupa at Bodh Gaya.
The grounds of the temple are very peaceful. Visitors usually take a stroll around the temple before leaving. The temple also has a library with books on Buuddhism.
Mahabodhi Society Temple is built of bricks and it is one of the oldest brick structures. It is an example for the best Indian brick work. This brickwork became the base for the later architectural traditions. The Temple’s central tower is 55 meters.
The Temple is a dainty blend of modern technology and spiritual harmony with a unique combination of glass and gopurams. It is built on a hillock. The surroundings are beautiful. This temple was built to promote vedic culture and spiritual learning.
Thousands of devotees attend the annual Krishna and Balarama Rath Yatra. The temple is built in a seven acre hillock. This area was discarded by the Bangalore Development Authority as waste land. A person by the name Pandit Dasa purchased the hillock from the BDA at a cost of Rs 11 lakhs and this temple was constructed.
The Gavi Gangadeshwara Cave Temple is an unusual cave temple. It was built by Kempe Gowda. The temple is situated near Basavanagudi. It is well known for its architecture.
The temple is so constructed that on Sankaranti, the sun’s rays enter the temple between the horns of Nandi outside the temple. This helps in illuminating the image of Lord Shiva. This rare phenomenon attracts large number of devotees.
The Dodda Ganesha Temple is located on the Bull Temple Road in Basavanagudi. It was built by Dempegowda I. Once while he was strolling, he came across several rocks and one of the boulders had a figure of Ganesha engraved on them. He ordered his sculptors to convert the figure into a huge and fantastic single stone idol of Lord Ganesha.
The massive Ganesha of this famous temple is about 18 ft tall in height and 16 ft wide. The lord is also known as Shakthi Ganapathi and Satya Ganapthi. The idol is believed to be growing on its right side.
The Bull Temple is one of the oldest temples in Bangalore. It is located in Basavanagudi. The temple is dedicated to Nandi, the bull, which is the mount of Lord Shiva.
This temple was built in 1537 by Kempe Gowda, who also was the founder of the city of Bangalore. It is one of the famous landmarks of the city.
This huge statue of the Nandi bull is carved out of a single black stone.
5 kilometers away from Badami at Cholachigud is the locale of the famous Banashankari Temple. The temple is believed to have been built in the 17th century by the Chalukyas of Kalyan. The quaint hamlet taking its name from the goddess Banashankari lies enroute to Badami. The powerful eight-armed goddess on a snarling gold lion guards the village where a huge fair is held, attracting thousands of devotees.
Banashankari Temple has substantial mythic relevancy too. The Skanda Purana says that Devi Parvathi killed a demon called Durgamasura at Banashankari. The idol is made of black stone and the Goddess is seen to be seated on a lion. It can also be seen that she is treading a monster by her foot.