BULL TEMPLE (Dodda Basavana Gudi)

Dodda Basavana Gudi (the Nandhi Temple) is

situated in Bull Temple Road, Basavanagudi, area
of South Bengaluru, part of the largest city of the
Indian state of Karnataka. The Hindu temple is
inside a park called Bugle Rock.

The bull referred to is a sacred Hindu Demi-God,

known as Nandi; Nandi is a close devotee and
attendant of Shiva. Dodda Basavana Gudi is said
to be one of the biggest temple to Nandi in the
world. The stone monolith idol of Nandi is
continually covered with new layers of butter,
benne in the local language of Kannada. There is
an idol of the elephant-headed Hindu deity
Ganesha close by Kadalekaayi parishey.

Department of Computer Science & Engineering, DSCE

 Every year on the last Monday
and Tuesday of the Hindu month
of Karthika Maasa a groundnut
fair is held in the temple premises
and groundnut is offered to the
deity. This fair is known as
‘Kadalekaayi Parishey’ in local
tongue. Groundnut sell
Kadalekaayi Parisheers and
devotees throng the place during
Kadalekaayi Parishey.

Nandi Temple is exclusively for

the worship of the sacred bull
(Basava in Kannada) in
Hinduism, known as Nandi, Lord
shiva’s vahana. The word "nandi"
means "joyful" in Sanskrit.

Department of Computer Science & Engineering, DSCE

The temple was built in 1537 by
Kempe Gowda under the Vijayanagar
empire in the Vijayanagara
architechtural style, he also founded
the city of Bengaluru. The temple is
named after the large granite Nandi
monolith placed on a plinth in the
temple shrine (garbagriha) which has
become blackened from years of
being rubbed with charcoal and
oil. The temple is a small one,
consisting only of the shrine fronted
by a porch in the Vijayanagara style.
The current tower (vimana) over the
shrine was constructed in the early
20th century and is adorned with
Saivite figures and motifs.
It is said to house one of the largest
Nandi murthis in the world. The
height of the murthi is approximately
15 ft (4.6 m) and it is approximately
20 feet (6.1 m) long.
Department of Computer Science & Engineering, DSCE
Department of Computer Science & Engineering, DSCE
Department of Computer Science & Engineering, DSCE