Achyutaraya Temple

The Achyuta Raya temple was built during the rule of Achyuta Deva Raya, who was one of the emperors of the Vijayanagara Empire. He came to power by succeeding his elder brother Krishna Deva Raya in the year 1529.

The stunning and heavenly temple is devoted to Lord Tiruvengalanatha; he is a configuration of Lord Vishnu. Thus, this temple was initially known as Tiruvengalanatha Temple. However, later on, it came to be called after the king in whose reign it was built. Hence, it became widely known as the Achyuta Raya temple.

Between two rectangular concentric courtyards is the main shrine located. The inner walls of the courtyard are lined with pillared verandah. The outside pillars are mostly in ruins where pillars are almost scattered along the walls. Two ruined towers welcome one into the temple courtyard. If you move in straight through the entrance you go into the inner court and spot a chamber facing the porch to the central hall. The tiny shrine was once an idol of Garuda the eagle god and the principle deity. The open hall leads to one of the finest pillars which spots the lion-faced Yalis standing on elephants. The arms soldiers riding the Yalis holding on to the beast mouth are seen. The whole thing is carved on a monolithic block of rocks. Two guard deities stand at the entrance of the inner sanctum. The inner place is circular and dark and empty to view.

The twin chambered shrine of the goddess is towards the west of the main shrine, Carvings in the pillars of the hall reveal themes like Lord Krishna playing the flute, calves enjoying the music, Lord Vishnu blesses an elephant, Krishna dances holding on to a snake. At the end of the compound is a Kalyana mantapa. A water channel is seen flowing along the compound. The tiny exit at the end of the compound leads to a boulder where ten handed fierce goddesses' image is carved on a rock, which further leads the way to the Matanga Hill top.

The temple is situated between the Gandhamadana and Matanga hills. There are two main routes to reach the temple. One is from Kodandarama Temple passing through the Courtesan Street and leading to the principal minarets of the Achyuta Raya Temple.

The other course to the temple is by climbing the stairs near the Nandi or Monolithic Bull situated at the eastern corner of Hampi Bazaar. The second one is the easier and the more convenient one.

By Air- Hampi does not have any airport of its own. The nearest one is the Bellary airport. Tourists can take a flight to Bellary and then can use local means of transport like cabs to reach Hampi. The total distance between Bellary and Hampi is 64km.

 By Rail- Hampi does not have any railway station of its own. The one from Hampi is Hospet which is at a distance of about 13 km. Tourists can hire a taxi to Hampi from Hospet. The distance from Bangalore to Hampi is 288kms.

By Road- Hampi has a good road network. There are numerous buses that connect Hampi to a number of major and important towns in Karnataka. The tourists also have the option of hiring private cars or cabs. Travellers can reach Hampi by bus. AC and Volvo buses are available.