After tiring and prolonged work schedule for many weeks, we decided to head towards a place where we could score a completely new experience. And also which could revive our energy to carry out the everlasting demand of IT Job. At least till we get chance for next enthralling journey. We were looking for a place which is comparatively less explored. And, where we could get a historical essence with divine feelings. That is when we visited Lepakshi Temple. And though we visited several weekend getaways around Bangalore before and after this like Coorg, Chikmagaluru, Wayanad, Ooty, Kodaikanal, Munnar, Alleppey, Kumarakom, Mahabalipuram, Yercaud, Pondicherry, Mysore, Kabini, Hampi, Badami, Halebidu. We must mention that the Lepakshi Tour was one of the most delightful and refreshing!
After giving it some thought, we reached to a conclusion that this would be a short one day trip somewhere near to Bangalore. Then after further exploration we settled down for a place named “Lepakshi”. As, it could have been easily covered in one day trip. Also it had all that we were carving for. So began our trip an early morning on a foggy day.
PS: If you are not so familiar with Bangalore, Lepakshi or around , here’s a guided trip to Lepakshi from Bangalore that you can take.
Lepakshi background
Lepakshi is a small village located in the Anantapur District, in Andhra Pradesh, India.The famous Veerabhadra temple that dates back to 1583, and is dedicated to Veerabhadra, is located here. It is one of the finest & oldest temples of India. It was built by the brothers Viranna and Virupanna. And, this temple is one of the most notable examples of the Vijayanagar architectural style. Also, it is famous for its sculptures. These were created by the artisans of Vijayanagara empire. Also, it has idols of Ganesha, Nandi, Veerabhadra, Shiva, Bhadrakali, Vishnu and Lakshmi. A huge Nandi bull made out of a single granite stone is one of the major attractions near the main Lepakshi temple. And, the place is renowned for being one of the best repository of mural paintings of the Vijayanagar Kings. Many old Kannada inscriptions dating back centuries can be seen on its walls.
Legend 1 from Lepakshi Temple : Legend has it that the Naga of the Nagalinga was carved out of a single stone by sculptors while they waited for their mother to prepare lunch.
Legend 2 from Lepakshi Temple : Another legend gives the town a significant place in the epic Ramayana. It says , this was where the bird Jatayu fell, wounded after a futile battle against Ravana who had abducted Sita and going to Sri Lanka with her. When Sri Rama reached the spot, he saw the bird and said compassionately, “Le Pakshi” — ‘rise,o bird!!’ in Telugu.
And that is where the place is believed to have got it’s name from.
Where is Lepakshi Temple ?
Lepakshi is around 135 KM from Bangalore. In fact, it is very near to Karnataka and Andhra boarder. So, you can stay in Bangalore and do a day trip to Lepakshi conveniently. You can also club your trip to Lepakshi with Nandi hills. You can book your accommodation in Bangalore using our favorite site Booking.com.
The most preferred and also the best route to take is NH7, Bangalore-Hyderabad highway. This is the same road which connects the Bangalore International Airport to Hebbal Flyover. It was fun to drive on NH7, although it was tough driving till International Airport due to ongoing construction and heavy traffic flow towards the Airport. (The construction is now over , though). But once we crossed the BIA, there was very less traffic and 4 lanes road with divider. Thereafter it was fun to drive. And finally, the road leading to Lepakshi temple is also in good condition. It is a narrow road but compensated by very less amount of traffic.
Directions to Lepakshi Temple
Our experience
We started at 6:45 AM from our house in our own car and reached at Lepaskhi around 9:30 AM with one break in between for fuel filling and breakfast. It was really fun to drive on NH7. We spent around 15-20 mins near Nandi statue and around 2 hours in exploring Main temple. Around 12 PM we started from Lepakshi and by 2:30 reached back to Bangalore.
The Basavanna Temple
1 KM before the main temple there is big Nandi statue, another major attraction of Lepakshi. As said, it is the biggest Nandi statue in India. A very nice park is built up around this statue and is very well maintained. You can spend sometime here and can take some good snaps.
Wonder 1 : Nandi at Basvanna Temple
At 27ft in length and 15ft in height, it is a colossal structure, reputedly India’s biggest monolithic Nandi. Its grand size and the perfectly proportioned body make it a popular photo-op with visitors. Can you imagine such a huge structure cut out of one single stone!! The whole area has been developed in the form of a park, around this Nandi. You can visit, roam around or just sit in the park.
There is a beautiful small pond as well at one side.
The Veerbhadra Temple, Lepakshi
As soon as you step into the temple premise, it will start tracing an impact of its enriched cultural and ancient engineering marvel. It is a true splendid creation which compelled me to think about the master skill posed by the engineers, architects and whoever else were involved in creating this masterpiece.The whole Lepakshi temple is made of stones depicting our never vanishing traditional and cultural integrity. Various deity of God and Goddess have been carved out on the walls and pillars of the temple. You can see various sculptures all around in the temple, all made of stone and some are crafted on walls and pillars. Another attraction is roof painting speared all over on the roof of temple depicting glorious ancient Indian culture and traditions.
As soon as you enter the temple, you get a feel of it’s vastness. You will immediately step into a courtyard that runs all across the main temple. The courtyard is neatly lined with Verandah on all sides, with endless pillars, intricately carved.
Upon crossing the courtyard, you can proceed to the main temple. A flight of stairs lead to the main temple. I bet you will be mesmerized with the carvings on the pillars and walls of this temple.
Wonder 2 : The Hanging pillar of Lepakshi Temple
Wonder 3 : The Shivling of Lepakshi Temple
From near this pillar, you can step out in the courtyard of the temple. Now, you are in the backside of the main temple. From here, walk towards the right, and take a turn at the end towards right once more. You will soon witness a huge Shivling. But the Shivling is also hooded under a multiface snake (the naag). This is a unique Shivling. We haven’t witnessed any such Shivling in the rest of the country so far.
Wonder 4 : The incomplete Kalyan Mandapa of Lepakshi Temple
After crossing the Shivling you will arrive at a structure that looks incomplete. It is a Kalyan Mandapa (a marriage hall).
Legend 4 of Lepakshi Temple : It is said the if this Kalyan Mantapa had been completed, Lord Shiva and Ma Parvati’s marriage would have happened here. It’s construction was started by the then King’s accountant while the king himself was on a trip. When the King came back, he was utterly furious with the accountant for having spent the kingdom’s money on this construction without the King’s knowledge or approval (I feel it was more of an ego clash that the king had). He immediately ordered the Kalyan Mandapa construction to be stopped. And so it remains incomplete, till date.
Wonder 5 : The eye on the wall in Lepakshi Temple
Right across the incomplete Kalyan Mandapa, one can witness a red mark in one of the walls . And this strongly resembles an eye. You must be wondering how come an eyemark on the wall!! So, there’s a legend behind this too and this is how it goes:
Legend 5 of Lepakshi Temple : It is believed that the King was so furious with the accountant on having constructed the Kalyan Mandapa that he inflicted a punishment on the accountant. The punishment was that his eye be popped out . And, that explains the eye mark on one of the walls. I am not sure how true it is. But it does look barbaric. I guess this is the only temple that I have visited so far, with blood marks present on it’s walls.
Wonder 6 : Sita’s footprints inside the Lepakshi Temple campus
Moving further , after crossing the Kalyan Mandapa, you will arrive at a huge footprint in the temple floor. Almost as if someone stamped with strength on the floor. This footprint is believed to be of Goddess Sita. Interestingly, this footprint is always wet. You can see water from underneath constantly sipping and washing this foot. Although, the source of this water is unknown. Yet, it is believed that since it is the footstep of the divine Goddess, the water appears magically as a sign of respect to her. And you can try to dry or wipe out the water, it slowly seeps back into place. Interesting..huh!!
Legend 6 of Lepakshi Temple : It is said that when Ravana was abducting Goddess Sita, and taking her to Sri Lanka, they stopped at this temple to rest for a while. That is believed to be the source of the footprint that is seen in the floor of the temple premises.
Wonder 7 : the Priest of Lepakshi Temple
Well, this did need a special mention. Although nothing to do with historical significance or architectural wonder, I couldn’t help feeling that the priest of Lepakshi temple is a wonder in himself. As you step inside the temple, he will greet you with a charming smile. And the first thing he will ask you is which language you know. Whichever language be your preference – hindi, english, tamil, telugu, kannada, Malayalam – he will interact with you in that language. He will explain to you enthusiastically about the wonders of this temple and their legend. And then he will leave you at your own to explore the place. No pressure of worshipping, no unnecessary bothering. And even if you are not there to offer your prayers, no problem. You will still be welcome. You can just visit the premises like a tourist at a historical site.
Rest of the Lepakshi temple
Apart from the special wonders and legends of the temple, there are many other interesting spots:
- The longVerandahs with infinite pillars,
- The chambers for meditation accessible through the Verandahs
- A small temple of Ganesha
- A leafless tree that is believed to be standing since ages
And there are countless more. In conclusion, it is a must visit in our opinion.
What we loved about Lepakshi Temple
Overall it was a wonderful trip that we had. We went to Lepakshi temple without knowing much about the legends and the wonders of the place. So, I guess we loved the place even more than usual. Also, we loved the fact that it was not at all crowded here. And, it is indeed an offbeat destination very near to Bangalore that many don’t seem to know about. Overall, there were hardly one or two other souls visible here and there. Thus, giving us an experience of utter tranquility.
Tips for visiting Lepakshi Temple
Travel Options
- Best is by your own vehicle. You can take cab from tour operator. Other option is to take Buses plying from Bangalore to Hyderabad. You will need to get down near boarder check-post. From there you can take auto/tempo running towards Lepakshi.
- However, be prepared to drive through fog and mist if you are starting early in the morning.
Food & Refreshment outlets on the way
- Kamat (after crossing Chikballapur town), APTDC (Near Andhra-Karnataka boarder, where you will take left turn for Lepakshi Temple ), Cafe Coffee Day while returning back, on the other side of the highway.
- For refreshment, best option is to use the toilets attached with less crowded restaurants and cafes like Cafe Coffee Day (Yes, we used that!) . Also, don’t forget with an Indian toilet, you use water instead of toilet paper!! Read these washroom tips to be prepared for using Indian washrooms safely when you travel.
Update: On our recent trip to Gandikota and Belum caves from Bangalore, we discovered there are several new food joints opened on either side of the highway till Lepakshi Village. So, you have a lot more options for food now that we had when we traveled here!!
Other tips
- Although the Lepakshi temple timings are 6:00am to 6:00pm, Try to reach as early in the morning as possible. Since the temple premise is all stones. And, you will not be allowed to enter with your shoes on. So as the day advances, the stones tend to become very hot, making it really difficult to walk across.
- Bring your water bottle with you. There are not many provisions near the temple.
- Wear comfortable cotton cloths, it is mostly hot all through the year in this area.
- Do visit the bull temple as well as the main temple.
- If you would like to go for a guided tour, here’s one for you from Bangalore to Lepakshi.
- We had a little hiccup almost 5km before reaching the temple. The village people had come out on the roads and were protesting against some water shortage issue. They had blocked the roads and were not allowing anyone to cross. Ultimately, we had to leave the highway and loop through the fields. So, it gave the trip a little adventurous edge too 😀 We will suggest : check the local news, ensure everything is peaceful. Although incidences like these are one in a million.
- There is no entrance fee to temple.
- It is good to offer some minimal money to the temple, that will go towards it’s sustenance. It’s up to your free will.
Although so far we have visited several other brilliant temples in India like Halebidu temple , Ranakpur Jain Temple and temples in Kolar and the Shore temple at Mahabalipuram. Each one is unique in it’s own way. But none we have found to be as intriguing as the Lepakshi Temple!!
***************************Wish you a nice and memorable trip*****************************
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I went to Lepakshi in 1986, when i was in class 8, as part of the tour we had covering Karnataka, tamilnadu and AP. The legend of jatayu was told to us by the pujari. its not a recent invention as someone was claiming here in the comments. We were told by Pujari two meanings for Lepakshi .. (Le Pakshi ..in telugu meaning ..get up o/ bird!.. or it could be referring something related to eyes).
Lets value the local folklore to reconstruct the historical significance of the temples. Lets not discount the local folklore , which is continuously getting passed on to us since ancient times. Going by the local folklore we can easily imagine and construct the routes and 100’s of places spanning across Indian subcontinent and even beyond., relating to our epics Ramayana, Mahabharata etc
Totally agree Ravi! We were told the same story by the Pujari. It somehow increased our interest and enthusiasm while exploring the place. Local folklores are always so interesting – none of us have lived that era, so, we have to rely on the word of mouth here! Appreciate your valuable comment
It is amazing.We do travel a lot and just now went from Bangalore to Delhi and Bangalore to Kanha and I have learnt a few things.
a) Your observations are amazing and helps anybody wanting to decide what to do in the weekend.
b)The trip planning and places to eat, washrooms make it very useful.
Keep it up. It is exceptional
Thank you so much! you made our day with your valuable feedback 🙂 . We are craving to do the Bangalore to Delhi road trip ourselves. Could you tell us how many stops you took in between and where?
Leepakshi temple or Veerabhadra temple is a true testimony about the Marvel of Vijayanagara architecture.But I would like to contradict few points :- the largest Nandi in india is not here but brihadeshwara temple in tanjavur, tamil nadu.
2nd I had visited this place some 20years back when I was kid that time there was no legend about Jatayu slain here.but past few years people have made the place holy in context to Ramayana.Infact Jatayupara in Kerala is claimed to be the place where jatayu was slain.Infact a temple nearby was built by Pandavas. now coming back to the significance of Veerabhadra temple.Linga here is given prominence in Skanda Purana.Plus The temple architecture shows the union of Vaishnavism and shaivism.
Thanks for your valuable inputs Hari. We will add the details you have provided and also update the information accordingly. Really appreciate you taking time and writing to us.
Hey! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would be okay.
I’m absolutely enjoying your blog and look forward to new updates.
yes the handle is right here on the blog.
This is a very informative article i got to know about a lot lipakshi temple.I also read a article on realbharat about lipakshi temple it was very helpful.Thank you for sharing.
thank you!
This article on lepakshi is really well written. Specially i loved the images.
Thank you so much Amit
Recently I read your post, wonderfully written, beautiful discription of Lapakshi temple.. planning to visit soon..
Thanks Arpita. The temple is very beautiful, do visit. You will love it! We recently did a road trip to Gandikota and Belum Caves also, You can as well combine you visit to Lepakshi temple with these places.
Really well written with loads of interesting information. Thanks. Really appreciate the info
Thanks Abhishek and Neha..it was indeed a pleasant experience going through the post. Very well written and smoothly flowing. Quite info-rich post, adequately labelled sequences of your whole experience..in short, loved it! Looking forward to more !
Thank you Kaushik. Really delighted to know you had a good experience on our blog. It’s feedback like yours that truly makes our day 🙂
Indeed an interesting place. I am looking forward to go there next weekend. You have a beautiful space, thanks for the detailed information.
Thank you Keerti. I am sure you will like the temple and the surroundings.
Lepakshi is a must visit the temple. The information is true and all the seven wonders are explained in detail. This post will inspire the tourists to include this temple in their next tour if not visited so far. Thanks for the info.
Thank you so much Sangam. This is one temple which doesn’t seem to be that well known as it should be. So, we are really glad to throw a light on it and gather the attention of our readers
Have been to Lepakshi quita a few times. Not been there since 2014. It is indeed a beautiful place and must be explored by everyone.
The Legend of the footprint although has conflicting stories. I have heard the below legends – (each time I went there I asked about the footprint as a first time visitor)
1) Footprint of Ram himself who stopped by when he found Jatayu
2) Footprint of Hanuman – This seems to be a popular one. He apparently bounced off this place with a thud (like a jump) while on his way to Lanka (looks more probable of all the legends)
3) Footprint of Ravanna – He tried to crush Jatayu with one leg on the flying chariot.
Footprint of Sita is a new one to hear, but interesting too.
But I have always that one observation. If it indeed is a footprint from so many years ago.. this is a pretty big footprint, surely not human??
Hi Sunny, the other legends sound equally interesting. Glad that you shared with us, will include in the blog. The footprint is indeed large compared to our sizes. But it is believed that the human beings used to be very huge at that point of time and they have been shrinking ever since. If you see the dresses of the Kings and Queens from the 14th and 15th centuries preserved in some of the palaces of Rajasthan, they are 6 feet gowns, and it’s believed they were 8 feet plus in height. If we go by this then the human of the era of Ramayana must have been so huge.
This is so beautiful Neha. I love the way you tell each story with the image. I did not know such a place existed so close to Bangalore. The Ramayana connect is interesting, and it looks like there are places in India that have a Ramayana Trail, which is otherwise not known. This has piqued my interest to go and explore this town.
Thank you. Ramayana tales are imprinted all over India. Lepakshi and it’s temple in particular are a must visit. So are the temples of Kolar that we visited recently. Will soon write about that too
So many legends in one single post! I did not know the origin of the word, Lepakshi until you told all of us here about it. I feel South India has a lot of well-conserved structures in comparison to North India. I hope to visit these destinations one day.
India is full of such structures all over. Be it the ruins and ancient temples of the empires of south India, the forts and palaces of Rajasthan, Gujarat or Madhya Pradesh and again the holy places in Uttarakhand. Lepakshi is one addition to that list which is a unique and beautiful heritage
How cool that you’ve got a really well preserved site so close to the city!
It’s strange it’s rarely visited, even tho, you’re showing it the right way. I love the idea of visiting temple, because I didn’t have the chance to do so. I’ve never been to Asia yet, and for me, you’re just making it justice!
There are some places that remain just so unexplored in spite of being so wonderful. Isn’t it? I guess after raising awareness at least those coming to Bangalore will be eager to visit.
It’s strange that this temple complex is rarely visited. It is so gorgeous and interesting and filled with wonders. Sita’s footprint is quite a mystery.
You are right. I guess it’s not one of those places glamorized by the media and tourism department and all. So, we need to spread a word about it
Heard a lot about Lepakshi Temple and its miraculous pillar. Time to see it for myself.