Navaranga Exterior
The outline of the Navaranga exterior is step-shaped and consists of multiple sections. There are three entrances, the main entrance on the east side, the south entrance, and the north entrance. There is no entrance on the west side because of the garbhagriha located on that side. Architecturally, the temple is symmetrical about an east-west axis. In other words, the north-side design is a mirror image of the south-side design (and vice-versa). However, no two architectural elements are alike. Between the main entrance and the south/north entrance, there are four sections of walls.
Jagati
The Chennakeshava Temple stands on a Jagati, a star-shaped four-foot-high platform with an extended terrace surrounding the temple. This terrace acts as the pradakshinpatha, the path on which visitors walk in the clockwise direction to perform circumambulation.
The temple floor is at a higher level than Jagati, so the approach to the door at the main entrance is through two staircases. The first staircase leads to Jagati from the courtyard, and the second to the doorway from Jagati. These staircases are flanked by four mini shrines, two on the courtyard floor and two on the Jagati terrace.
Mini-shrines beside the steps to the temple
Deity inside a mini-shrine
The image here shows one of the mini shrines. Flanking the door of the shrine are two pillars with the sculptural reliefs of dwarapalakas, the door keepers, carved in the lower half. Attached to each of these pillars is Yali, a mythical creature formed by combining the parts of different animals. As you can see, it is a lion on top of the head of an elephant in this case.
Standing inside this mini-shrine is a beautiful statue of Bhairava, who in Hindu mythology is a fierce form of Shiva created by himself to destroy both the internal and external enemies. His sculptural depictions indicate the fierceness of his physical presence.As you can see from the image, he is standing on top of a slain demon with a dancing pose. Although he is a digambara (i.e., wearing no clothes), he is wearing a variety of jewelry, including necklaces, anklets, armbands and an udiyana (waistband). He is also wearing the yajnopavita, a looped thread sacred to Hindus worn across the chest from the left shoulder to the waist.With one of his left hands, Bhairava is carrying a severed-head belonging to Brahma. According to a legend, Brahma used to have five heads, four of which facing the cardinal directions and the fifth head gazing upwards. Shiva cut off the fifth head when he realized Brahma became infatuated with a female goddess he created.Bhairava’s other hands are holding a variety of objects that include a trishula (trident), Shula (a pointed weapon), damaru (drum-like instrument), and pasha (noose).
Hoysala emblem
Mounted between the shrines and the door are the sculptures depicting a boy killing the tiger with a lance. See the images below. These sculptures represent the lanchana (emblem) of the Hoysala dynasty, and the story is based on an inscription attributed to King Vishnuvardhana and is about the founding of this dynasty.
According to this inscription, the name Hoysala is a combination of two words, hoy and sala. Hoy in Halegaannada (old Kannada) means hurl, and Sala is the name of the founder of the Hoysala dynasty. Here is the legend of Sala in brief:
While Sala is walking with his guru, a Jain sage named Sudatta Muni, a tiger suddenly appears from nowhere and is about to pounce on his guru. To save himself from the tiger, his guru yells, “Hoy Sala.” Sala complies immediately and throws the lance he was holding at the tiger. He then fights the tiger and kills it, saving his guru’s life.
Sala was a boy at that time, and the news of his bravery soon spread, and he became a legend. He used his fame to found a dynasty, which got its name from the words uttered by his guru.
Located on the left and right sides of the three entrances, these beautifully carved sculptures capture the Hoysala legend very well. However, note that the animal appears to be a lion rather than a tiger.
