Itagi Mahadeva Temple

The Mahadeva temple at Itagi (Ittagi) in Yelburga taluk is a Western Chalukyan masterpiece built around 1112 CE by the commander Mahadeva under Vikramaditya VI.

Itagi Mahadeva Temple, Yelburga
Practical guide

Plan Itagi Mahadeva Temple

Who's going?Tailor Itagi Mahadeva Temple to your trip
Before you go to Itagi Mahadeva Temple

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 baseYelburga
DistrictKoppal
Best timeOctober to February
Time needed1 to 1.5 hours
EntryFree

Its inscription hails it as "Devalaya Chakravarti" — emperor among temples — and it is often ranked, after Halebidu, among the finest temples in the Kannada country, with a stellate shrine and lathe-turned pillars ringed by minor shrines.

What to expect

Highlights

  • The exquisitely carved main shrine and pillars.
  • The ring of 13 minor temples around it.
  • The founding inscription calling it the "emperor of temples".
Getting there

How to visit

  • At Itagi in Yelburga taluk, reached by road from Koppal or Gadag; a car is best.
  • Remove footwear and dress modestly at the shrine.

Distance by road

  • Hosapete35 km
  • Ballari90 km
  • Hubballi140 km
  • Kalaburagi190 km
  • Bengaluru350 km

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

Timing

Best time

October to February; morning light on the carvings.

Weather in Itagi Mahadeva TempleSeasonal guide

Live forecast loads in your browser.

Today at Itagi Mahadeva Temple
Sunrise6:19 am
Sunset6:04 pm
Golden hour best light5:04 pm–6:04 pm
Blue hour after sunset6:04 pm–6:29 pm
Sun sets toward compass bearingW · 260°
Moon tonight🌔 Waxing gibbous · 57%

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

  • A protected Chalukyan monument — do not touch the carvings and photograph only where allowed.
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Before you go

Itagi Mahadeva Temple — at a glance

TimingsTemple hours
Best timeOctober to February; morning light on the carvings

Entry: Free

Getting here

How to reach Itagi Mahadeva Temple

At Itagi in Yelburga taluk; by road from Koppal or Gadag

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 Itagi Mahadeva Temple

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 Itagi Mahadeva Temple
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 Itagi Mahadeva Temple

templeNavalinga Temples, Kukanoor

A rare 9th-century Rashtrakuta–early-Chalukya complex at Kukanoor (Kuknur) with nine linga sanctums set in a row, richly built in the Deccan style and carrying old inscriptions.

5.6 km · ~14 min by auto · straight line
heritagePalkigundu

A boulder hill near Koppal carrying a second Ashokan Minor Rock Edict and an ancient Male Malleshwara shrine, with wide views over the town.

21.3 km · ~36 min by cab · straight line
fortKoppal Fort

The 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.

22.6 km · ~38 min by cab · straight line
heritageGavisiddeshwara Math

The 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.

23.7 km · ~40 min by cab · straight line
heritageAshokan Rock Edict, Gavimath

A 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.

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H
Huligemma Temple, Huligi
Place
templeHuligemma Temple, Huligi

The 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 line
K
Kammata Durga Fort
Place
fortKammata Durga Fort

A 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.

44.1 km · ~73 min by cab · straight line
templeKanakachalapathi Temple, Kanakagiri

The 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.

47.7 km · ~80 min by cab · straight line
damSanapur Dam

A 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.

51.1 km · ~85 min by cab · straight line
heritageHire Benakal

A 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.

52.3 km · ~87 min by cab · straight line
hillAnjanadri Hill

A 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.

52.4 km · ~87 min by cab · straight line
lakePampa Sarovar

A 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.

55.6 km · ~93 min by cab · straight line
On the map

Where Itagi Mahadeva Temple is

Good to know

Itagi Mahadeva Temple — frequently asked

When is the best time to visit Itagi Mahadeva Temple?

October to February; morning light on the carvings.

What are the entry fee and timings at Itagi Mahadeva Temple?

Entry: Free. Timings: Temple hours.

How do I reach Itagi Mahadeva Temple?

At Itagi in Yelburga taluk, reached by road from Koppal or Gadag; a car is best. Remove footwear and dress modestly at the shrine.

How much time do I need for Itagi Mahadeva Temple?

1 to 1.5 hours.

What else is near Itagi Mahadeva Temple?

Nearby you can pair Navalinga Temples, Kukanoor (5.6 km), Palkigundu (21.3 km), Koppal Fort (22.6 km), Gavisiddeshwara Math (23.7 km).

Read before you go

Itagi Mahadeva Temple guides, stories & itineraries

Stories & history of Itagi Mahadeva Temple

Written about Itagi Mahadeva Temple itself — its history, its legends and the arguments about them.

Karnataka-wide guides & itineraries

Route-level itineraries and practical guides for the rest of Karnataka.

See all 12 Koppal guides & stories →

Image credits

Photographs: Ganesh.Subramaniam85, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), Manjunath Doddamani Gajendragad at en.wikipedia (Public domain), Manjunath Doddamani Gajendragad at English Wikipedia (Public domain), Sudeep m (CC BY-SA 3.0). Wikimedia Commons.