Gangesvara Siva Temple

Gangesvara Siva Temple is a living shrine in the Old Town of Bhubaneswar, set in a walled precinct off the Ganges–Yamuna road about 200 metres north-east of the Lingaraj temple. It faces east, holds a Shiva linga in a circular yonipitha, and is cared for by the Ganga Yamuna Sangathana. Local belief says that after Parvati slew the demons Kirti and Basa she grew thirsty, so Shiva drove his trident into the ground to release a spring, and Ganga and Yamuna were invited to bless it. The twin Gangesvara and Yamunesvara temples, attributed to the Ganga rulers, recall this.

The present 8-metre pancharatha rekha temple is a later rebuilding that reuses older stones. A four-armed Vishnu with Garuda fills one niche, and the lower walls carry secular carvings: a mother with her child, a warrior with sword and shield, a woman feeding a monkey, amorous couples and an abduction scene. The Yamunesvara temple and the Ganga-Yamuna tank share the precinct.