English: The Kasivisvesvara temple – also referred to as Kashi Vishveswara temple, Kasivisveswar temple, Kashi Vishvanatha temple, Kashivishwanathar temple – is a Hindu temple of Shaivism tradition in Lakkundi, a small village-like town.

Location and history:

• The temple is located in the southern part of Lakkundi (close to Nanneshwara temple). It is about 12 kilometers southeast of Gadag-Betageri twin city, between Hampi and Goa. It can be reached by India's National Highway 67.
• Prior to the 14th-century, Lakkundi was a large, major historic city referred in pre-14th century texts and inscriptions as Lokkigundi – serving as a capital of the Hoysala dynasty. The city was destroyed in the Sultanate raids and wars that began in the 13th-century but rose from the ruins during the Vijayanagara Empire. The end of Vijayanagara Empire brought further social and political chaos to this region. Lakkundi was reduced to a galaxy of abandoned and mutilated ruins, spread over a cluster of small rural villages with a combined population of few thousand residents in the 19th-century.
• This ruined temple was among the dozens in this Lakkundi area that were rediscovered in the 19th-century by British archaeologists and scholars such as Henry Cousens. He remarked that this temple is the most elaborately finished temple in this village, and one of the most ornate in the Kanarese region. Much is damaged and the temple is in ruins like the dozens of others in Lakkundi-Gadag region. Broken parts of the temple, defaced and beheaded statues of this and other Lakkundi area Jain and Hindu temples lay here and all over the village area. The temple has been cleaned up and partially put back together. The mandapa, pillars, sanctum, ceiling, all carvings and plan is original.

Features:

• This is a Hindu temple, dedicated to Shiva. It was once a major temple complex, likely a hub and major landmark of the Hoysala era capital here. The surviving structures include a twin temple joined by a mandapa. The foundation suggests that this open mandapa once had a roof. There were additional shrines, pilgrims services and a water tank.
• The primary temple faces east. It features an ardha mandapa, mandapa, antarala and garbhagriya (sanctum). The open (missing) mandapa was open to various directions. The surviving main temple can be entered from the east or south.
• The second temple facing the main temple is dedicated to Surya (sun god). Much is ruined and lost to history in this smaller temple, but Surya's horses, Usha and Pratusha have survived into the modern age.
• In the main (primary) temple of Shiva, the door jambs and two surviving entrances, as well those connecting one mandapa or section of the temple to other are elaborately carved with intricate details. The decoration consists of eight parallel layers (sakhas) and a pilaster in the middle (total nine). The miniature motifs show a profusion of Hindu icons ranging from gods, goddesses, festive dancers and musucians, kama, artha, dharma and scenes of daily life. A Gajalakshmi is on the lalita-bimba, The upper sakhas depict the Vedic Adityas and Shaiva motifs. Some artwork is perforated stone artwork, of the type generally seen in jewelry and marble.
• The mandapa pillars are highly polished precise structures, and with detailed Hindu motifs carved into them. The artists used hollowed out sections and bases, and all parts are carefully carved and smooth on the outside, and even the inside that is not directly visible but can be seen with mirrors or felt by touch.
• The temple reliefs and statues reverentially include the saptamatrikas (seven mothers), Ganesha, Brahma, Shiva, Vishnu. Many reliefs depict legends from the Vedas and the Puranas, particularly those related to Rudra-Shiva. Some scenes depicted are those from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata (for example, Bhima fighting Bhagadatta).
• The sanctum is a plain and has a Shiva-linga.
• The temple architecture is Chalukyan.
• The temple has several important inscriptions. These help date the temple, as well confirm the significance of this temple to the regional Hindu kings and community. One inscription mentions a school and an acharya attached to this temple.