Belur Chennakeshava Temple: Kappe Chennigaraya Shrine – Lakshminarayana Carved into the Ceiling

Relief depicting Lakshminarayana carved into the ceiling of the Kappe Chennigaraya Temple, situated inside the Belur Chennakeshava Temple complex in Karnataka, India

Relief depicting Lakshminarayana carved into a section of the ceiling

Lakshminarayana carved on a section of the ceiling
The image shows one of the sections of the ceiling in the navaraga of the Kappe Chennigaraya Temple. A sculptural relief depicting Lakshminarayana – a form of Vishnu presented with his consort Lakshmi – is at the center surrounded by finely carved geometrical patterns. As you can see, the ceiling is recessed with a square-shaped niche and is carved with geometrical patterns at different levels of the niche.

Note that Lakshminarayana is a combination of two names, Lakshmi and Narayana. Narayana is another name of Vishnu, and it means one who dwells on the water. In Sanskrit, Nara means water and Ayana means dwelling. According to Hindu mythology, Vishnu lives on the cosmic ocean.

Commissioned by Shantala Devi, the pattada rani (principal queen consort) of King Vishnuvardana, the builder of the main Chennakeshava Temple, the construction of the Kappe Chennigaraya Temple began at the same time as the main temple, i.e., in 1117 CE.

Kappe Chennigaraya Images
East Facade
North Facade
Navaranga Pillars
Dance Floor
Venugopala Standing in the South Garbhagriha
Ugra Narasimha Carved on the Lintel of the South Garbhagriha Door
Outer Wall around the West Garbhagriha

Related Pages
Belur Chennakeshava Temple – Bracket Figures
Belur Chennakeshava Temple – Navaranga
Belur Chennakeshava Temple – Garbhagriha Outer Wall
Somanathapura Keshava Temple – A Masterpiece of Hoysala Temple Art

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