Kukanur Mahamaya Temple

Getting there

• By air

  Jindal Vijaynagar Airport, at 95.4 km, is the nearest airport, with Hubli Airport at 118 km.

• By train

  Kuknur, Koppal and Yelburga are the nearest railway stations.

• By road

  The temple is 27.6 km from Koppal town, about 35 minutes by NH67 and NH367. Those two national highways meet at Kukanoor.

Why devotees come here

Kukanur Mahamaya Temple stands in the centre of Kukanur town in Koppal district, Karnataka. The presiding deity is Mahashakti Jyeshta Devi. Inside the sanctum she shares one pedestal with Pralayambika, a very rare arrangement.

Inscriptions describe Kukanur as a highly sacred site that once housed nine Shiva Lingas and nine Shakti Peethas. This earned it the title Shiva-Shakti-Surat-Samputa Kshetra. Local legend says the town was earlier called Chandrahasa Pattana, and that it was part of the Belkola region of the Kuntala country.

The original structure was built by the Kalyani Chalukyas and renovated during the Vijayanagara period. The Mahamaya Temple is the main religious and historical attraction in the town, and the Indian epic Mahabharata mentions the temple. The sanctum is crowned with a Dravidian-style tower called a shikhara.

The complex has a sanctum, an ante-chamber, a circumambulatory path, an assembly hall and a grand hall. The grand hall dates from the Vijayanagara era. Smaller shrines and sacred ponds stand inside the enclosure too. Legend says a hidden underground temple to Kali lies below the Mahamaya Temple.

Festivals

• MahanavamiMahamaya Rathotsava

  The annual chariot festival draws large crowds.

Tips for your visit

• Inside the enclosure, smaller shrines include the Bindumadhava Temple and sacred ponds called pushkarnis.
• Nearby, the Navalingeshwara Temple is rare for its nine sanctums, and the Kalleshwara Temple is also close by.
• Kuknoor is also well connected by road to Koppal, Yelburga and Gadag-Betageri.

Questions people ask