Bangalore's cosmopolitan nature is a result of industrialisation,
which in turn is the outcome of educational, commercial and
political progress. The cosmopolitan outlook of Bangalore is
very much evident in the cluster of religious centres in and
around the city. Featured below are a few centres of faith.
Banashankari Temple
 The
uniqueness of Sri Banashankari Amma Temple is that
the deity, Banashankari Amma is worshipped in Rahukala,
an inauspicious time according to Hindu belief. The area,
Banashankari is named after the goddess. Situated on
the busy Kanakapura Road near the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport
Corporation (BMTC) bus-stand, it is one of the most popular
temples of Bangalore. Devotees believe that by worshipping
the goddess Banashankari Amma in Rahukala one's hardships
and poverty will be removed.
Considering the large number of devotees who come to the temple,
the Government of Karnataka has taken it into the purview of
the Endowment Department. Though the temple is opened
to devotees everyday, Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays are
special days when thousands of devotees throng to the temple
from dawn to dusk to offer special Pujas. The goddess is worshipped
with deeparaadhane by lighting multiple oil lamps
in half cut lemon peels with the pulp removed.
The temple was built in 1915 by a devotee, Somanna Shetty
who installed a deity of Banashankari Amma brought
all the way from Badami in Bijapur district.
The Executive Officer at the temple, K. Puttaswamy
told bangalorebest.com that annually three big
cultural ceremonies are held at the temple. The first one
on September 13 every year celebrates the birthday
of Banashankari Amma. The temple also conducts the Dasara
Festival in October and the temple anniversary
in Pushya Maasa, which falls either in the end of December
or in the first week of January. Till recently the front yard
of the temple and the road that led to the temple were in
a state of disrepair, but now it has been given a facelift
with tarring and widening.
Prasanna Veeranjaneya
temple
The uniqueness of the Prasanna Veeranjaneya temple, apart from
the 22-foot-high deity of Veeranjaneya, is its peaceful atmosphere.
The cool breeze and surrounding greenery, coupled with an aura
of mysticism, bring solace to devotees visiting the temple.more...
The Shiva Temple
 The
Shiva Temple, located on Airport Road, is seated Shiva in the
Himalayas, built in the year 1995. Shiva's idol is a great crowd
puller due to its grandeur, aesthetic values, scenic beauty
and majestic look. During festivals it draws nearly four to
five lakhs of devotees in a day. Puja seva (service) is free
of cost for everyone.
more...
Brindavan
Shri Sathya Sai Baba's Brindavan is at Whitefield, 25 kms from
Bangalore city. Brindavan is fast developing into a spiritual
and educational centre on the lines of Prashanthi Nilayam at
Puttaparthi near Anantpur which is Sai Baba's abode. During
his month-long stay here, more than 5000 devotees visit the
place everyday. How to get there
Bus Route Numbers:
From Bangalore Bus Station: 333E
From City Market: 326, 320A
 Click
here to view a video on Sai Baba.
DharmarayaTemple
Located in Nagarathpet, this temple has two exceptionally
fine images of Lord Krishna and Dharmaraja - hero of the epic
‘Mahabharata’. The temple is also well known for the annual
Karaga festival.
The Karaga festival - a form of Shakti worship, is celebrated
during March/April of every year. The Karaga
procession starts from the Dharmaraya temple at Nagarthpet
at about 2 am.
Gavi Gangadareshwara
Temple
 This
temple, located near Basavanagudi, is well known for its remarkable
architecture. Dedicated to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathi,
the temple was built by Kempe Gowda, the founder of Bangalore.
Click here for an article on Gavi
Gangadareshwara Temple.
International Society
for Krishna consciousness (ISKCON)
 Sri
Radha Krishna temple and cultural complex is set on a seven-acre
hillock. ISKCON’s global project to commemorate the birth centennial
of its founder Sri Prabhupada, is built in the Neo-Classical
style, combined with traditional elements of temple architecture
and high-tech utilities. Ornamental arches and illuminated water
cascades lead to an elaborately decorated Rajagopuram.
There is a unique open air amphitheatre
for concerts and festivals.The four temple ‘gopurams’ are connected
by a stunning glazed glass canopy which forms the main ‘Hari
Naam Kirtan’ - a hall of 10,000 square feet. The hall has wonderful
ceiling paintings. There are also Vedic museums and exhibit
areas, a lecture hall with multiple language translation system
and landscaped gardens. The main attraction is ISKCON Vedic
Theatre, where a multimedia Vedic film is shown. Address:
Hare Krishna Hill, Chord Road, Bangalore. Phone: 332
1956
Click
here for a 360° panoramic view of the ISKCON temple.
Click
here for a 360° panoramic view of the interiors of ISKCON temple
Bull Temple
 A
temple built in the Dravidian style by Kempe Gowda, founder
of Bangalore, it has a monolithic bull which is 4.5 mts high
and 6.5 mts long. The Nandi bull is revered as the ‘vahana’
(vehicle) of Lord Shiva. The temple was supposedly built to
appease a bull that devoured all the groundnuts/peanuts grown
in the area. The bull stopped inflicting damage and the thankful
farmers held a Groundnut
Fair (Kadalekai Parase) near the temple premises
which continues even to this day!
Ramakrishna Math
Citizens of Bangalore who met Swami Vivekananda in 1905 set
up a Vedanta Society. Swami Ramakrishnananda, a disciple
of Sri Ramakrishna, established a permanent centre for the Ramakrishna
order in the Basavanagudi area. The Math was completed in 1909.
The Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi stayed here for nine days in
1911. The activities of the Math include daily worship of Sri
Ramakrishna, bhajans, religious discourses and publication of
religious books.
Shankar Math
 The
expansive Math building, built in 1911, was declared open by
Lord Harding, Viceroy of India, in the presence of the Jagadguru
Shankaracharya of Sringeri and the Maharaja of Mysore. This
Math is located near Basavanagudi locality and is 2 kms from
City Market area.
Vishwa Shanthi Ashram
Built in 1996, the Ashram has nine statues of the Hindu gods
(Navagrahas) - Surya, Chandra, Budha, Shukra, Mangala, Guru,
Shani, Rahu and Kethu. The giant Vishwa Roopa Vijaya Vittala
statue made of black granite, stands outside the Ashram. This
Ashram is situated in Nelamangala, on Tumkur Road.
Kadu Mallikarjuna Swamy Temple
 Built
in one of the oldest areas in Bangalore - Malleswaram, the temple
is on a hillock. As the legend goes, the temple belonged to
Chatrapati Shivaji's stepbrother Venkoji, who came upon a ‘shivalingam’
in 1669 and consecrated the temple around it.
Click
here of an exclusive article
Dodda Ganesha Temple
The monolithic Ganesha is about 18 ft in height and 16 ft in
width. The God is also known as Shakthi Ganapathi or Satya Ganapathi.
People from all walks of life come here to seek blessings. What
makes this idol more attractive to the devotees is, the different
types of decorations that are done during the week. The most
famous is the butter coating of the idol. More than 100 kgs
of butter is used for this purpose.
Click here for an article on Dodda
Ganesha Temple.
Sugreeva Venkateshwara Temple
Located in Balepet area, this temple houses idols of Sugreeva
and Venkateshwara. The inner shrine of the temple has an idol
of Lord Venkateshwara placed on a pedestal. The Sugreeva idol,
which is about six feet in height and appears like Hanuman.
The long teeth on either side of the mouth are the only thing
which differentiates it from Hanuman.
Click here for an article on Sugreeva
Venkateshwara Temple
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