Badami was formerly known as Vatapi. Badami is located in Bagalkot district of Karnataka state. Brown is part of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. Located in a rugged red sandstone valley in Badami, there are cave temples, forts, and carvings around Agastya Lake. It is an excellent example of traditional temple architecture in India. The regular capital of the Badami Chalukyas was between AD 540 and 757. After the royal capital of the Chalukyas, there are many examples of Badami Dravidian architecture.
This place is also mentioned in Puranas and Mahabharata. According to Hindu mythology, the evil demon Vatapi was killed by sage Agastya. Hence the area is known as Vatapi and Agastya Teertha. The Badami caves have three Hindu temples and one Jain temple.
Visiting place in Badami
Bhootnath Temple
Bhootnath Temple
Bhutanatha Temple is dedicated to Lord Bhoothnath. There are two big temples in this complex. In which a temple is located on the east side of the lake which is Bhutnath temple. And the second temple is on the north-east side of the lake which is called the Mallikarjuna group. The temple is built in the early South Indian style or North Indian style. The temple is located in front of Agastya Lake. The sandstones used to build these temples give them a beautiful glitter in the midday sun.
Banashankari Amma Temple
The Banashankari temple is located at Cholachagudda. Rahu Kala is worshiped in this temple which is considered inauspicious according to Hindu mythology. The architecture of the Banashankari temple is done in Dravidian and Nagara style. The deity of this temple is also called Shakambhari. This temple was built by the Badami Chalukya king in the 7th century. This king worshiped Desi Banashankari as his Gurudeva. Banskhali is considered to be a form of Maa Shakambari Devi.
Mahakuta Temples
The Mahakoot temple reflects the unique rock-cut construction style of the Chalukyas. This temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple is built in Dravidian and Nagara style. The group is found in the temples at this place. The Dravidian style temples here have a dome-like structure. The complex has a tank filled with natural mountain springs. The water from this tank is called Vishnu Pushkarni or Papvinash Tirtha.
Badami cave temples
Badami cave temples
There are four different temples in the complex of Badami Cave Temples. The complex houses temples of Hindu and Jain religions. These caves are considered to be an example of Indian rock-cut architecture. One of the four caves here has the Nataraja form of Lord Shiva in the other cave, the other cave has Lord Vishnu installed in it, the third cave is Vishnu-related, the fourth cave is considered to be the symbol of Tirthankar of Jainism.
Malegitti Shivalaya Fort and Temple
Malegitti Shivalaya fort and temple was built in the 7th century. The temple is built in Dravidian style. The Malegitti Shivalaya is originally dedicated to the sun god Surya. Currently, this temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. There is a sanctuary on the temple premises.
