Tourist Places in Kolar

Once a great city, Kolar is surrounded by abandoned forts, temples, and a few ancient gold mines. Kolar was ruled by several different kingdoms and served as the Ganga Dynasty's first prosperous capital. The ruins of Kolar city capture the curiosity of historians and visitors.

According to historical sources, Kolar was formerly known as Kolahalapura. According to tradition, the Chalukyas and the Chola Kings conflict, giving origin to this name. As recorded in history, the area was known initially as Kolahalapur and then changed to Kolar due to the battle between King Kartavirya Arjuna and Lord Parasurama, the sixth avatar of Lord Vishnu.

India's Karnataka state includes the city of Kolar, which serves as the district's administrative centre for Kolar. The city is well known for its milk production and gold mining, and other temples nearby include Someshwara and Kolaramma. Here we described some attractive places as follows.

1. Kolaramma temple

The Ganga dynasty ruled the "Kuvalala" area before the Cholas arrived. The primary god of the Saptha Matrikas was Kolaramma (Pidariyar Chamundeswary). The Cholas renovated the temple, situated in the east of the city. The temple is a remarkable representation of Ganga-Chola art and construction. There are two sanctums in the "L"-shaped temple, and a Mukha Mantapa connects them.

Kolaramma can be found in the southern part of northern Garbhagriha. At Mukha Mantapa, the Goddess can be seen reflected in a grid of mirrors. Along with Ganesha and Veerabhadra, the other Sapthamatrika idols all face east. In this sanctuary, a Sree Chakra is situated. The Saptha Matrikas' Mortar idols are located in the inner portion of the sanctuary's second chamber, divided into two sections.

On the outer enclosure's north wall is where you'll find Muka Nachch Iyar's vigraha(The divine represented in Hinduism through a manifest form). It is a Vigraha by the name of Cheluramma, and she is covered in cloth. It is stated that there are three Vigrahas in one because the Ganapathi idol has vehicles that represent both Garuda and Anjaneya. The temple's Veerabhadra idol is a work of art.

2. Antara Gange

Three kilometres west of the city, on one of Satha Sringa Parvatha's planes, there is a lovely setting. The delicious water that Basavanna is pouring from her lips at Anthara gange is a surprise to believers, a puzzle to the researcher, and most importantly, a source of joy.

Here, the stones have been naturally shaped into many different shapes. There is a Deepa Stambha from which one can see the seven tiny towns and villages on the hills.

One must climb 250 steps to reach Anthara gange, the home of Kashi Visweswara, after visiting Jalakanteswara at the bottom of the hills. Therahalli is achieved through the path that leads south from the opposite side. The Gangadhareswara Temple in Therahalli was built in the thirteenth century A.D. by Veera Ganga.

3. Someshwara Temple

This marvellous temple was constructed across a sizable area, including the Garbhagriha, Antharala, Mukha Mantapa, and a vast and beautiful outer Mantapa. A wonder of breathtaking beauty is the open Mantapa. Excellent examples of Vijayanagara art and architecture may be seen in the Vasantha Mantapa in the northeast and the Kalyana Mantapa in the southwest.

At Garbhagriha, Someswara Swamy presents as a 1.5-foot-tall Linga. The inner Dola mantapa of Kalyana mantapa, Vasantha mantapa, and Mukha mantapa's Bhuveneswaris have wonderfully crafted Ashta Dikpalakas. In the northwest corner, there is a specific Parvathi sub-temple. The temple's Pushkarini(temple's tank) is beautiful and has fantastic depth. The building is well designed.

4. Kurudumale

This place is situated 12 kilometres from Mulbagal. The Brahmanda Purana mentions the mythology of this kshetra, known by the name Koundinya Giri, a group of hills in this region. The 13.5-foot-tall Vinayaka vigraha orders people to kneel and offer homage in front of it. Despite its history, the temple still has Mukha mantapa and Sukhavasi in the Vijayanagara style.

Here visitors may see large pillars with elaborately carved artwork. Mushika is seated in the outer mantapa while the Lord is there, and the doorway and outside mantapa are both lavishly decorated. To the north of this temple is located Someshwara Temple, constructed on a structure made of rocks.

A 7 to 8-foot-tall vigraha of Vinayaka in the temple's courtyard invites the audience to stand and enjoy such beauty. The doors at Garbhagriha face south even though the god there faces east. Stone is used to construct the temple. Here, people bring and take care of the gods of other ancient temples.

5. Mulbagal

It is known as Mudala Bagilu and is situated in the state of Karnataka's southeast region (The eastern door). The structure of the Anjaneya temple is close to the bus station. Rama and Sita Lakshmana's idols are kept at this temple. Lakshmi Narasimha, Venugopala, and other deities are seated in the sub-temples.

Kanchi Varadaraja, Tirupathi Govindaraja, and Tirumala Venkatesha reside in this enclosure. It has a large Gopura shell on the outside.

6. Narasimha Theertha

Sripadaraju Mata is in the city, while Sripadaru's Brindavana is located at Narsimha Theertha, 2 kilometres away. Visitors always visited the cave where Sri Vyasa Rayaru studied Dwaitha philosophy. On the boulder, Swayambhu is represented by Yoga Narasimha Swamy.

7. Avani

The distance from Mulbagal is 12 kilometres. There is a Ramalingeswara Swamy temple complex, a Sita Parvati temple sitting on top of hills, and the grave inscription of the Nolamba queen Deevabbarasi. The first century of the Christian period was her time of existence, and an excellent place to relax is the Saraswathi temple near Shankar Mutt. Lakshmaneswara, Bharateswara, and Shatrughneswara have temples in the Ramalingeswara Swamy complex. There are other shrines dedicated to Vali, Sugreeva, and Angada.

As per tradition, this is where Sita gave birth to Lava and Kusha at the Valmiki Ashrama. A shrine dedicated to the "Lava Kusha linga" might be used as motivation. Dhanushkoti and Horaler Gundu are two natural tanks that can be seen on the approach to the highlands.

8. Bangauru Thirupathi

The temple that resembles Tirupathi Venkateshwara is located in Guttahalli on the pathway from Mulbagal to Bethamangala. Its name is Bangaru Tirupathi. The god faces east, and the temple is placed on a small hill. A window built out of the western wall gives a glimpse of the god.

Shrines dedicated to Varaha, Yinayaka, and Anjaneya are located on the path leading to the temple. A temple to Padmavathi is situated on another hill. This facility has a big pond in front of it (Kalyani). In the month of Shravan, many pilgrims travel there.

9. Virupakshi

This temple was built close to Lekkanna Dandesha, a commander of the Vijayanagara Empire and the creator of Shiva Tatlva Chintamani created this temple. Mulbagal is 4 kilometres away from here. There is a temple devoted to Simha Vahana Durga in addition to the main temple, which is wonderfully decorated and crafted. Durga is a goddess with four arms. A lion can be watched in front of Parvathi in the temple.

The charming temple tank is known by the name Manmatha Pushkarini. The temple's entrance, the Gopura, is in excellent shape and incredibly stunning.

10. Kolar Gold Field

The mining region and taluk known as Kolar Gold Fields (KGF) is located in Kamataka, India's Kolar District.The corporate office of Kolar Gold Fields is situated in Robertsonpet.

It includes the K.G.F. township, where Bharat Gold Mines Limited (BGML) and BEML personnel's families make up most of the population (formerly Bharat Earth Movers Limited). K.G.F. is around 100 kilometres from Bangalore and 30 kilometres from Kolar.

A group of hills rises east of K.G.F., with Dod Betta Hill, the highest at 315 feet above sea level. The town was well-known for its gold mining for almost a century, which ultimately stopped in 2001 due to the low-level gold output. The early 1900s built India's first power production facility to support K.G.F. activities.

11. Budikote

Budikote sometimes referred to as the "Fort of Ash," is a small village in Karnataka, India's Kolar District's Bangarpet Taluk. Kolar Gold Fileds, the closest city, is almost 24 kilometres away (15 miles). It has the name of an old fort, and there was also the birthplace of Tipu Sultan's father, Hyder Ali.

12. Kotilinga:

Numerous Shiva Lingas have been lined up in the 6-kilometre range of Kotilinga road between K.G.F. and Bethamangala. It was constructed in 1980 and consisted of eleven temples honouring various gods. The local god is named Kotilinga. The Shivalinga here is enormous and stands more than 100 feet tall.

The main attraction of the temple is a massive 108-foot-tall (33-meter) linga and a 35-foot-tall (11-meter) Lord Nandi statue that is encircled by lakhs of smaller lingas spread out across 15 acres (61,000 m2). Eleven little temples for different gods have been constructed on the land.

How to Reach

By Air

The closest large airport, roughly 67 kilometres from Kolar town, is Bengaluru Kempegouda International Airport.

By Rail

There isn't a train station in the Kodagu area. Mysore Hassan and Mangalore in Karnataka, Thalassery, and Kannur in Kerala are the closest railroad stations to Madikeri.

By Road

While a state highway and district roads connect other taluks, National Highway 75 (formerly NH-4) serves Narasapura, Kolar, and Mulbagal. Thirupathi, Bangalore, Narasapura, Kolar, Mulbagal, Chittor, Vellore, Katpadi, and Chennai are all connected by the NH-75. From Bangalore, Mulbagal is around a 90-minute drive away.