Highlights
- The nine linked shrines in a row.
- The early Deccan-style stone architecture.
- The old temple town of Kukanoor.
The Navalinga temples at Kukanoor (Kuknur) are a rare 9th-century complex with nine linga sanctums set in a row.
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.
Built in the Rashtrakuta–early-Chalukya Deccan style and carrying old inscriptions, they are among the oldest temple groups in the district.
Road km to Koppal; ghat roads and traffic vary — allow extra.
October to February; mornings.
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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.
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At Kukanoor (Kuknur) in the Yelburga belt; by road
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.
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.
Emergency numbers are verified against official government and state tourism sources. 112 works anywhere in India.
The Western Chalukyan Mahadeva temple at Itagi (Ittagi), built around 1112 CE and hailed in its inscription as "Devalaya Chakravarti", the emperor among temples — a masterpiece of carved pillars and a stellate shrine ringed by minor temples.
5.6 km · ~14 min by auto · straight line
A boulder hill near Koppal carrying a second Ashokan Minor Rock Edict and an ancient Male Malleshwara shrine, with wide views over the town.
22.7 km · ~38 min by cab · straight lineThe old hill fort above Koppal (ancient Kopana), long reputed "impregnable" — an upper and lower fort of ramparts and bastions that passed through the Kalyani Chalukyas, Bahmani, Adil Shahi, Mughals, Marathas, Hyder Ali–Tipu and the British.
23.9 km · ~40 min by cab · straight lineThe centuries-old Gavisiddeshwara (Gavimath) Lingayat matha in Koppal, whose January Gavisiddeshwara Jatre — sometimes called a "Kumbha Mela of South India" — draws enormous crowds for days of rituals, cattle fairs and free meals.
24.8 km · ~41 min by cab · straight lineA Minor Rock Edict of Emperor Ashoka (c. 258 BCE) carved in Brahmi near Gavimath in Koppal — one of the oldest deciphered records in India, sheltered under a rock canopy.
25.2 km · ~42 min by cab · straight lineA ruined hill fort (Kummata Durga) in the Koppal countryside associated with the 14th-century hero Kumara Rama of Kampili — bastioned walls and gateways on a boulder hill.
42.5 km · ~71 min by cab · straight lineThe hill temple of the goddess Huligemma (Huligyamma) at Huligi on the Tungabhadra near Munirabad — a popular Shakta pilgrimage centre with a big annual fair.
43.5 km · ~72 min by cab · straight lineThe 16th-century Vijayanagara-Dravidian temple of Kanakachala Lakshmi Narasimha at Kanakagiri ("Swarnagiri"), a Nayaka palegar capital — three tiered gopuras, massive yali pillars and black-stone statues of the Kanakagiri kings and queens.
44.5 km · ~74 min by cab · straight lineA scenic reservoir and lake near Sanapur on the Anegundi side of the Tungabhadra, its emerald water ringed by paddy and boulders — a popular offbeat spot for coracle rides and quiet views.
50.1 km · ~84 min by cab · straight lineA roughly 2,500-year-old megalithic dolmen necropolis on the Moryar Gudda hills west of Gangavathi — hundreds of stone "Moryara Mane" (houses of the dwarves) — a site on UNESCO’s World Heritage tentative list.
50.3 km · ~84 min by cab · straight lineA rocky hill above Anegundi, across the Tungabhadra from Hampi, revered as a birthplace of Hanuman (Anjaneya) — a stepped climb to a hilltop Hanuman temple with sweeping views over the Kishkindha boulder-country.
51.3 km · ~85 min by cab · straight lineA sacred lake near Anegundi tied to the Ramayana (the Shabari legend) and to Shiva and Parvati — counted among the holy sarovars of India, ringed by shrines and lotus-covered water.
54.5 km · ~91 min by cab · straight lineOctober to February; mornings.
Entry: Free. Timings: Daylight hours.
At Kukanoor in the Yelburga belt; reached by road with a vehicle. Remove footwear and dress modestly at the active shrines.
45 minutes to an hour.
Nearby you can pair Itagi Mahadeva Temple (5.6 km), Palkigundu (22.7 km), Koppal Fort (23.9 km), Gavisiddeshwara Math (24.8 km).
We have not published a story about Navalinga Temples, Kukanoor itself yet. These cover Kukanoor and the wider district, with separate journeys between stops.
Route-level itineraries and practical guides for the rest of Karnataka.
Photographs: P. Madhusudan, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0), P. Madhusudan (CC0). Wikimedia Commons.