Bhubaneshwar is often called the city of temples . It is impossible to know exactly how many temples there are, but it has been estimated that there might be over 700 temples in the city. This number, while impressive, is just a fraction of the original number, which, sometime in the 13 th century, would have been about 7000. Wikipedia has a page dedicated to the Hindu temples of Bhubaneshwar , where 93 temples are listed. All these are ancient temples, built between the 7 th and 13 th centuries CE. Bhubaneshwar was once known as Ekamra Kshetra , the sacred mango grove. We know this name from an inscription at the Ananta Vasudeva temple, which mentions the name of the place, and the main temple (that we now know as the Lingaraja temple) in the mango grove. Ananta Vasudeva Temple, with a sculpture of Trivikrama in the niche It is extremely interesting to note that the Ananta Vasudeva temple is the only temple to Lord Vishnu in this city. Varaha, Ananta Vasudeva Temple Located v...
A temple on the banks of a river is not an unusual sight. However, this one is special, because the village this temple is located in, is the village my ancestors belonged to. I first visited this temple in 2001, after years of searching for my roots. I can only describe as indescribable – the curious feeling of finally coming home – that I felt on setting foot in this village. This is the village of Kadathur, located between Udumalaipettai (Udumalpet) and Palani, home to the Arjuneswarar Temple.