Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi

The Kasivisvesvara temple is the marquee of Lakkundi, built around 1087 CE as a twin temple whose Shiva and Surya sanctums face each other across a shared mandapa.

Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi, Lakkundi
Practical guide

Plan Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi

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Before you go to Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi

Check entry arrangements. Ask temple staff about visitor entry, dress requirements and access to the inner shrine before you travel, especially if you are visiting as a non-Hindu.

Dress respectfully and follow the institution’s admission and photography rules.

Typetemple
Nearest baseLakkundi
DistrictGadag
Best timeOctober to February
Time needed45 minutes to an hour
EntryFree
Places to visit5

Its walls are a lacework of Kalyani-Chalukya carving that blends the Dravida and Nagara idioms — the finest surviving example of the style.

What to expect

Highlights

  • The facing twin sanctums (Shiva and Surya).
  • The miniature-tower and perforated-window carving.
  • The blend of Dravida and Nagara detail.
Getting there

How to visit

  • In Lakkundi, about 11 km east of Gadag on the Koppal road; reached by bus, auto or taxi.
  • A protected ASI monument — remove footwear at the sanctum and do not touch the carvings.

Distance by road

  • Hubballi55 km
  • Koppal55 km
  • Bagalkot95 km
  • Hosapete90 km
  • Bengaluru420 km

Road km to Gadag; ghat roads and traffic vary — allow extra.

Timing

Best time

October to February; morning light on the east-facing carving.

Weather in Kasivisvesvara Temple, LakkundiSeasonal guide

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Today at Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi
Sunrise6:19 am
Sunset6:05 pm
Golden hour best light5:05 pm–6:05 pm
Blue hour after sunset6:05 pm–6:30 pm
Sun sets toward compass bearingW · 260°
Moon tonight🌔 Waxing gibbous · 58%

Sun and moon are calculated for this location and shown in IST. Photography windows are the hour around sunrise and sunset; the sunset bearing is degrees clockwise from true north. Moon phase is accurate to about half a day.

Visitor notes

  • Pair it with the other Lakkundi temples and the museum on one visit.
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Lakkundi Archaeological Museum — Attraction
Top pick Historic
Attraction
Lakkundi Archaeological Museum
270 m · 3 min walk

The ASI-operated sculpture gallery interprets inscriptions and portable finds from Lakkundi. Confirm museum opening and photography rules at the entrance.

DirectionsView guide

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Ranked guides

Top experiences around Lakkundi

4 more places around Lakkundi. Open a guide to plan the visit and onward journey.

heritageBrahma Jinalaya, Lakkundi

380 m · 5 min walk

The oldest and largest temple at Lakkundi, an early-11th-century Jain basadi dedicated to Mahavira and built by the poet-patron Attimabbe — a landmark of the Chalukyan "city of 101 temples and 101 wells".

templeNanneshwara Temple, Lakkundi

80 m · 1 min walk

A compact Chalukya Shiva temple at Lakkundi, considered a stylistic forerunner to the grander Kasivisvesvara that stands close by — finely proportioned and richly moulded.

templeManikeshwara Temple, Lakkundi

690 m · 9 min walk

A Chalukya Shiva temple at Lakkundi paired with the ornate Musukina Bhavi stepwell, one of the finely carved kalyanis for which the old capital is famed, with niched shrines around the water.

museumLakkundi Archaeological Museum

270 m · 3 min walk

An ASI gallery in Lakkundi displaying sculptures, hero-stones and inscriptions recovered from the town’s scores of Chalukya temples and stepwells — a useful key to the whole heritage cluster.

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Before you go

Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi — at a glance

TimingsDaylight hours
Best timeOctober to February; morning light

Entry: Free

Getting here

How to reach Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi

At Lakkundi, ~11 km east of Gadag on the Koppal road; bus, auto or taxi

Getting back

If you are travelling by bus or ferry, check the return service with the operator before setting out. Leave time to reach the stop or jetty after your visit.

Ask at the bus stand for the time of the last service back, not the next one. If you miss it, an auto or app cab is the fallback — agree the fare before you get in.

Getting around Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi

If you need step-free access, contact the site before travelling. Ask about a level entrance, steps along the route, the nearest drop-off point, seating and accessible toilets.

If you need help at Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi
112All emergencies (police · fire · medical)The single number to call in any emergency (ERSS).

Emergency numbers are verified against official government and state tourism sources. 112 works anywhere in India.

Nearby

What’s near Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi

templeNanneshwara Temple, Lakkundi

A compact Chalukya Shiva temple at Lakkundi, considered a stylistic forerunner to the grander Kasivisvesvara that stands close by — finely proportioned and richly moulded.

80 m · 1 min walk · straight line
museumLakkundi Archaeological Museum

An ASI gallery in Lakkundi displaying sculptures, hero-stones and inscriptions recovered from the town’s scores of Chalukya temples and stepwells — a useful key to the whole heritage cluster.

270 m · 3 min walk · straight line
heritageBrahma Jinalaya, Lakkundi

The oldest and largest temple at Lakkundi, an early-11th-century Jain basadi dedicated to Mahavira and built by the poet-patron Attimabbe — a landmark of the Chalukyan "city of 101 temples and 101 wells".

380 m · 5 min walk · straight line
templeManikeshwara Temple, Lakkundi

A Chalukya Shiva temple at Lakkundi paired with the ornate Musukina Bhavi stepwell, one of the finely carved kalyanis for which the old capital is famed, with niched shrines around the water.

690 m · 9 min walk · straight line
templeTrikuteshwara Temple, Gadag

A Kalyani-Chalukya Shaiva complex in Gadag town enshrining a three-linga (trikuta) pedestal, famous for its adjoining Saraswati shrine with intricately lathe-turned stone pillars — a masterwork of 12th-century Deccan carving.

10.5 km · ~18 min by cab · straight line
templeVeeranarayana Temple, Gadag

An early-12th-century Vishnu temple in Gadag town, linked to the Hoysala king Vishnuvardhana, where the 15th-century poet Kumaravyasa is said to have composed his Kannada Mahabharata (the Karnata Bharata Katha Manjari).

10.8 km · ~18 min by cab · straight line
templeDoddabasappa Temple, Dambal

A Western Chalukya Shiva temple at Dambal (c. 1124 CE) built on a rare 24-point stellate plan, its polygonal star-shaped vimana ringed by bands of carving and fronted by a large Nandi.

11.2 km · ~19 min by cab · straight line
wildlifeBinkadakatti Zoo

A small state zoo and deer park at Binkadakatti on the edge of Gadag, opened in 1972 in a dry-scrub reserve — spotted deer, blackbuck, birds and a green picnic stop for families.

13.3 km · ~22 min by cab · straight line
wildlifeKappatagudda Wildlife Sanctuary

A range of dry-deciduous hills spanning the Gadag, Mundargi and Shirahatti taluks — notified as a sanctuary in 2019, rich in medicinal herbs, wolves, hyenas and blackbuck, with the Nandiveri math at its foot.

25.1 km · ~42 min by cab · straight line
wildlifeMagadi Bird Sanctuary

A wetland tank near Magadi in Shirahatti taluk that draws thousands of migratory bar-headed geese and 130-plus bird species each winter — a Conservation Reserve and a Ramsar site of international importance.

29.1 km · ~48 min by cab · straight line
templeSomeshwara Temple, Lakshmeshwar

An 11th-century Chalukya Shiva temple in the walled compound of Lakshmeshwar (ancient Puligere), carrying scores of old Kannada inscriptions — a major centre of the Chalukyan temple country.

39.1 km · ~65 min by cab · straight line
heritageShankha Basadi, Lakshmeshwar

The Sankha Jinalaya at Lakshmeshwar, an 8th-century Jain basadi to Neminatha (whose emblem is the conch, shankha), built under the Chalukya queen Kumkuma Mahadevi and holding a monolithic Sahasrakuta pillar of a thousand Tirthankaras.

39.7 km · ~66 min by cab · straight line

All 5 places to visit in Lakkundi →

On the map

Where Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi is

Good to know

Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi — frequently asked

When is the best time to visit Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi?

October to February; morning light on the east-facing carving.

What are the entry fee and timings at Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi?

Entry: Free. Timings: Daylight hours.

How do I reach Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi?

In Lakkundi, about 11 km east of Gadag on the Koppal road; reached by bus, auto or taxi. A protected ASI monument — remove footwear at the sanctum and do not touch the carvings.

How much time do I need for Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi?

45 minutes to an hour.

What else is near Kasivisvesvara Temple, Lakkundi?

Nearby you can pair Nanneshwara Temple, Lakkundi (80 m), Lakkundi Archaeological Museum (270 m), Brahma Jinalaya, Lakkundi (380 m), Manikeshwara Temple, Lakkundi (690 m).

Image credits

Photographs: P. Madhusudan, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0), Manjunath Doddamani Gajendragad at English Wikipedia (Public domain), Rkiran josh (CC BY-SA 3.0), Dineshkannambadi (CC BY-SA 3.0). Wikimedia Commons.