Beluru - History and Travel Guide
BELURU - HISTORY & TRAVEL GUIDE Belur was the early capital of the Hoysala Empire.[1] With Halebidu which is only 16 km away, this is one of the major tourist destinations in Karnataka. Belur is located in Hassan district. According to inscriptions discovered here, it was also referred to as Velapuri. The main attraction in Belur is the Chennakeshava temple complex which contains the Chennakeshava Temple (dedicated to Chennakeshava, meaning handsome Vishnu) as the centerpiece, surrounded by the Kappe Chennigaraya temple built by Shantaladevi, queen of king Vishnuvardhana. It is said that Shantaladevi herself danced in front of the main shrine during its installation and her dance inspired the poses of the figurines on the temple walls.[2] The first moulding were the temple wall meets the jagati (platform) around the temple is made up entirely of a frieze of elephants There are two more shrines here that are still in use by devotees and there is a Pushkarni or stepped well