Janandh at 20:37, 1 August 2025

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{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=December 2019}}
{{Infobox Hindu temple
| name = Lakshminarasimha temple at Vignasante
| image = Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante.JPG
| alt = A 13th-century Vishnu temple in Vignasante
| coordinates = {{coord|13|08|48.7|N|76|32|23.3|E|type:landmark_region:IN|display=inline,title}}
| map_type = India#
| state = [[Karnataka]]
| country = [[India]]
| district = [[Tumkur District]]
| locale = Vighnasante
| deity = [[Vishnu]]
| architecture = [[Hoysala architecture|Hoysala]]
| year_completed = c. 1286 CE
| creator = Appayya, Gopala and Madhava (brothers)
}}
The '''Lakshminarasimha temple''' at Vignasante is a 13th-century [[Vishnu]] temple in the village of Vignasante, [[Tumkur district]], [[Karnataka]], India. The three-shrine temple is dedicated to Venugopala, [[Narasimha]] and [[Lakshmi Narayana]]. One of the late temples built before Hoysala empire came under sustained attacks from the Delhi Sultanate, it illustrates the mature Hoysalanadu architectural tradition. The fully carved, three storey Vesara vimana of this temple is notable.<ref name=dhaky>{{cite book| author1=Madhusudan A. Dhaky|author2=Michael Meister|title=Encyclopaedia of Indian Temple Architecture, Volume 1 Part 3 South India Text & Plates|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=a1VJAQAAIAAJ | year=1996|publisher= American Institute of Indian Studies|isbn= 978-81-86526-00-2|pages = 384–386 }}</ref>

The monument is protected by the Karnataka state division of the [[Archaeological Survey of India]].<ref name="protect">{{cite web |url=http://asi.nic.in/asi_protected_monu_karnataka.asp|title=Alphabetical List of Protected Monuments-List of State Protected|work=Archaeological Survey of India, Government of India|publisher=Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts|access-date=10 November 2014}}</ref>

==Location and date==
Vighnasante is about {{Convert|65|km|mi|0}} east-northeast of Hassan city, and {{Convert|140|km|mi|0}} west of Bengaluru, the capital of Karnataka. It is connected to India's national highway network with NH 75.

The inscriptions here name the location as "Igganasante" (now Vignasante). The temple was built in 1286 CE, by three brothers named Appayya, Gopala and Madhava, during the rule of the [[Hoysala]] king [[Narasimha III]].<ref name=dhaky/><ref name="stone"/>

==Architecture==
[[File:Lakshminarasimha temple, Vignasante.jpg|thumb|left|Floor plan of the temple]]
This three shrined (''trikuta'') temple was built using [[Soap stone]], and it illustrates the classic [[Hoysala architecture|Hoysala architectural]] idiom.<ref name=dhaky/> Although it has three sanctums, only the central shrine has a tower (called ''[[shikhara]]'') over it.<ref name="stone">Hardy (1995), p.348</ref><ref name="Foekema 1996, pp.24-25">Foekema (1996), pp.24-25</ref> The eastern sanctum is dedicated to Venugopala (Krishna with flute), western to a seated Lakshmi Narayana (Vishnu with Lakshmi), while the southern central sanctum has Narasimha (man-lion avatar of Vishnu).<ref name=dhaky/>

The entrance of this square-plan temple faces north.<ref name=dhaky/> This entrance is through an open pillared hall or porch (''mukhamantapa'') followed by a closed hall (''navaranga [[mantapa]]'').<ref name="taste">Foekema (1996), p.25</ref><ref name="sign"/> The porch consists of an [[awning]] supported by lathe turned half pillars and [[parapet]]s on either side. The ceiling of the closed hall is supported by four lathe turned pillars.<ref name="wall">Foekema (1996), pp.21-22</ref> The navaranga mantapa leads to the central sanctum via a [[Vestibule (architecture)|vestibule]]. Other sanctums do not have a vestibule, are connected directly to the closed hall.<ref name=dhaky/> The nave inside and also the outside open ''mantapa'' has srikara-style pillars, all highly decorated with stone ornamentation so fine, states Dhaky, that it is of the "silver jewelry genre".<ref name=dhaky/>

[[File:Ornate sikhara over shrine in Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante.JPG|thumb|upright|Ornate ''[[shikhara]]'' (tower) over shrine in Lakshminarasimha temple at Vignasante]]
The mantapa of the shrine, as well as the three sanctums, are square. The outer shape of each Vesara ''vimana'' is stellate (star shaped) with rotated squares. This architecture creates numerous recesses and projections that are used for decorative relief. Above the central sanctum's vestibule, on the outside, is a projection called ''sukhanasi'', which looks like a low protrusion of the main tower over the shrine. This ''sukhanasi'' is highly decorated with carvings with a Garuda in the ''mahanasi'' (fronton). The other two sanctum's outside has "beautifully carved tiara" and "exceedingly elegant mundamala", states Dhaky.<ref name=dhaky/><ref name="Foekema 1996, pp.24-25"/>

The sanctum doorframes and pilasters from porch onwards are profusely carved.<ref name=dhaky/> The vimana of each sanctum has a dvi-anga (two section) plan, with carved lotus enlivening the ''karna'' and ''subhadra''. At the top of the temple superstructure tower is the ''[[kalasha]]'', a decorative water-pot like structure that is placed over a large ornate dome. This dome is the largest piece of sculpture in the temple measuring up to 2m x 2m.<ref name="lion">Foekema (1996), p.27</ref>

The design of the tower, according to art historian Percy Brown, is a characteristic feature to the Hoysala art. According to Brown, the stellate form of the base of the shrine with its projections and recesses is carried through the tower giving it a "fluted effect". The tower is divided into tiers with each tier diminishing in height and culminating in an umbrella like structure.<ref name="brown">Brown in Kamath (1980), pp.134-135</ref> According to Brown, the lathe turned pillars with four brackets above are a signature style of the 11th-13th century Chalukya-Hoysala architectural idiom.<ref name="sign">Brown in Kamath (1980), p.134</ref>

The decor on the parapet outer wall, the domical ceiling, the [[lintel]] over the entrance and the pillars shows the good taste of the Hoysala artisans.<ref name="pillar">Foekema (1996), p.24</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Profile of Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante in the Tumkur district.JPG|Overview of the temple
Profile of Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante.JPG|Profile of Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante
Domical ceiling above lintel in mukhamantapa of Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante.JPG|Domical ceiling above lintel in ''mukhamantapa'' (porch entrance) of Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante
Domical ceiling over mukhamantapa in Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante.JPG|Domical ceiling over mukhamantapa in Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante
Lathe turned half pillars, ornamantal door jamb and lintel in the mukha mantapa of Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante.JPG|Lathe turned half pillars, ornamantal door jamb and lintel in the mukha mantapa of Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante
Old Kannada inscription in Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante.JPG|Old Kannada inscription in Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante
Ornate roof above mantapa in Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante.JPG|Ornate roof above mantapa in Lakshmi Narasimha temple at Vignasante

</gallery>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

===Bibliography===
* Gerard Foekema, A Complete Guide to Hoysala Temples, Abhinav, 1996, New Delhi, {{ISBN|81-7017-345-0}}
* {{Cite book |last=Kamath |first=Suryanath U. |title=A concise history of Karnataka: from pre-historic times to the present |orig-date=1980 |year=2001 |publisher=Jupiter books |location=Bangalore |oclc=7796041 |lccn=80905179}}
* Adam Hardy, Indian Temple Architecture: Form and Transformation : the Karṇāṭa Drāviḍa Tradition, 7th to 13th Centuries, Abhinav, 1995, New Delhi, {{ISBN|81-7017-312-4}}.

[[Category:Hindu temples in Tumakuru district]]
[[Category:Devi temples in Karnataka]]
[[Category:13th-century Hindu temples]]

Lakshminarasimha Temple, Vignasante - Revision history

Janandh at 20:37, 1 August 2025