In the land of red soil, a legendary temple

Shivavilas Palace of the Sandur royals; the Kumaraswamy Temple complex in Sandur.

Kumaraswamy Temple complex 

Views surrounding the Kumaraswamy temple complex.  

Kumaraswamy Temple complex 

Just a 10 km drive from Sandur, through roads coated with reddish-brown soil from nearby mines, is the Sandur Kumaraswamy temple complex. Located on a hill called Krauncha Giri, the compound consists of two large temples dedicated to Goddess Parvathi and her son Kumaraswamy. There is also a smaller, sunken shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva.

For those interested in architecture, the Parvathi temple can be of particular interest. Built by the Badami Chalukyas in the 7th and 8th centuries, the temple is quite simple in layout with just a garbhagriha, the sanctum sanctorum of the temple, and an antarala that connects the garbhagriha and the mantapa.

A unique vimana sits atop the garbhagriha and a sukanasa atop the antarala. Dwarapalakas on either side of the entrance to the antarala are detailed and noteworthy. The outer walls lack any detailed ornamentation although there are five coves to place statues, out of which two are empty. The other four contain delicately carved figures that seem like forms of Shiva.

The interiors are dark, owing to the lack of any windows, making it difficult to spot any intricate details.

There are six large niches in the antarala, three on each side, which currently houses statues. It is unclear whether these statues were there originally or were added later on. Among them, the most interesting is that of the god of death, Yama, standing in full glory on the head of his vahana, the buffalo.

The more rudimentary Kumaraswamy
temple, next to the Parvathi Temple was built by the Rashtrakutas between the 8th and 10th century. It consists of a garbhagriha, a short antarala and a mantapa. It looks like structural additions have been made to the temple over time.

Legends

The legends and mythology associated with the structure have overshadowed the architecture. There are claims that this is the first temple dedicated to Subrahmanya in South India.

Parvathi, Subrahmanya’s mother, follows him and then sets off to find him a bride just like her. When she is successful in her mission, Subrahmanya refuses the match as he claims that he would always see his mother in the bride. He then takes it a step forward and takes a vow of celibacy. This tale was used for centuries to stop women from entering the Kumaraswamy temple.

Situated in the middle of a forested region, the temple complex was discovered by the rulers of Sandur a few centuries back. They patronised the temple. To date, their descendants bear maintenance charges.

Women enter

The clan continued to disallow women from entering the Kumaraswamy temple for a long time. In 1997, a 39-year-old woman was the first to step into the Kumaraswamy temple when M Y Ghorpade, the titular king of Sandur and a minister in the state government opened the temple to women.

Most people visiting Hampi drive through the dusty roads of Sandur past this temple complex, completely unaware of the beauty lurking in the midst of the iron ores. Sandur also has other sights to offer such as the Narihalla Dam and reservoir, the Shivavilas Palace and the Sandur Kushala Kala Kendra which empowers local communities and sells the most exquisite embroidery products.