Chennakeshava Temple, Belur

The Chennakeshava Temple stands on the banks of the Yagachi River at Belur, an early capital of the Hoysala kings, about 35 km from Hassan and 220 km from Bengaluru. King Vishnuvardhana commissioned it in 1117 CE, and the work took 103 years over three generations. Damaged in wars and repeatedly repaired, it has remained a working temple to Vishnu, worshipped here as Chennakesava, the handsome Keshava, and is an important Vaishnava pilgrimage site.

The temple is celebrated for its sculpture. Friezes record 12th-century life, with musicians and dancers, along with scenes from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Puranas, and the iconography also takes in themes from Shaivism and Shaktism and figures of a Jina and the Buddha. In 2023 it was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site with the temples at Halebidu, 16 km away, and Somanathapura, as the Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas.