from here & there - A historical temple complex

Located just outside the Malavalli town, the Marehalli temple complex is easy to miss as it is hidden amidst serene nature. Marehalli was an agrahara during the rule of the Gangas, while the existing Lakshmi Narasimha Temple was built by the Cholas. The agrahara came under the rule of various rulers like the Hoysalas, Vijayanagar kings, Mysore Wadiyars and Tipu Sultan. The temple was renovated and additions were made by the Hoysala and the Vijayanagar rulers.

The different styles of architecture employed here are clearly visible. The main temple has a garbhagriha which houses the idol of Narasimha in a sitting position with Lakshmi. The pillars are all rudimentary and the walls are bereft of any carving. There are two subsidiary shrines dedicated to Bhudevi and Neela Devi. One can also see idols of Vedanta Deshikar and Nammalvar in the prakara of the temple.

There is a pillared entrance to the temple from north and a pillared mantapa in the south-east. They seem to be later additions and are asymmetrical. Interestingly, there is also a smaller temple dedicated to Shiva as Amruteshwara just near the entrance gate of the main temple. It has a garbhagriha, an antarala and a navaranga. There are two stepped tanks of different sizes outside the temple complex. The locals lovingly call the main deity as Marehalli Mudukappa owing to the long history of the temple. Marehalli is about 2 km from Malavalli and is en-route Shivanasamudra and Talakadu from Bengaluru.