Home> Archive> 2022> Volume 12 Number 3 (Aug. 2022)
IJSSH 2022 Vol.12(3): 145-150 ISSN: 2010-3646
doi: 10.18178/ijssh.2022.V12.1081

Making Heritage Tourism Attractive: A Study of the Salient Features of the Beluru Keshava Temple, a 12th-Century Indian Monument

Vanishree Mahesh and M. G. Sreekumar

Abstract—In a world with an increased emphasis on travel for leisure, people are always looking for exciting destinations. While beaches and hill stations are still the most popular vacation destinations, heritage centres, especially monuments, are gaining popularity. Yet, only the well-known monuments get visitors, and the rest go unnoticed.   Taking India as an example, the most visited monuments are the Taj Mahal, the palaces of Rajasthan, and a few famous temples such as the Sun Temple of Odisha and the Vishwanath temple of Varanasi. However, India is home to thousands of architecturally and artistically rich temples that have survived for centuries.   The present paper focuses on one such magnificent ancient temple, the Chennakeshava temple of Beluru, constructed in 1117 under the patronage of rulers belonging to the Hoysala dynasty. Situated in Karnataka, India, the Beluru temple is a perfect example of India’s rich cultural heritage. The highly ornate sculptures and wall reliefs at this monument are a visual treat and give an insight into ancient India’s socio-cultural and religious life. The government of India now nominates this temple for the UNESCO world heritage tag. Knowing and understanding the key architectural features of a monument will enable visitors to appreciate and value it better. Hence, this study highlights and explains features unique to the Beluru temple in an easy-to-comprehend manner. The Jio Institute’s digital library team builds special collections (https://exhibits.jioinstitute.edu.in) to create awareness and preserve India’s vast and varied cultural heritage. This paper is a part of that effort.

Index Terms—Ancient India, heritage tourism, Hoysala dynasty, Indian history, culture, heritage, temple art and architecture.  

The authors are with Jio Digital Library, Jio Institute, Mumbai, India (e-mail: vanimahesh08@gmail.com, Mg.Sreekumar@jioinstitute.edu.in).

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Cite: Vanishree Mahesh and M. G. Sreekumar , "Making Heritage Tourism Attractive: A Study of the Salient Features of the Beluru Keshava Temple, a 12th-Century Indian Monument," International Journal of Social Science and Humanity vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 145-150, 2022.


Copyright © 2022 by the authors. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (CC BY 4.0).

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