Ulsoor Someshwara temple, Bangalore

Your friendly bee has made her way to Bangalore again, this time to the heritage temple of Lord Shiva. Tucked away in the by lanes of Ulsoor stands the Someshwara temple. Located in the by lane just opposite the Police Station, the temple is one of the oldest in Bangalore. Squeezing through the small lanes and battling the signal and the one-way road, we make it to the threshold of the temple. This part of the city is an era behind the speeding Metro trains that run nearby, quite close to the temple. 

The tall wooden gates

The tall and imposing gopura at the entrance beckons us indoor, and we walk in through the massive wooden doors. The compound is shaded by the branches of the trees that still stand around the temple. To the right is a small shrine to Lord Ganesha. The temple is being renovated, and new structures are being added. There is a hall under construction next to Ganesha’s shrine, possibly for the navagrahas (the nine planets).

The gopura viewed from inside

To the left of the entrance, almost easy to miss, is a small shrine with a Shiva linga. 

Ahead of us is a covered hall supported by pillars. The entrance to this hall is marked by a sculpture depicting the wedding of Shiva and Parvathi. We walk towards the big golden coloured Nandi who sits guarding the entrance of the garbhagudi. We find devotees whispering wishes in the ears of Nandi in the hope that the Lord’s vahana will convey their wishes to his master. 

The pillared hall

To our left, before we enter, are the murthys of Lord Shiva and Parvathi seated on a swing. The life-size murthys are covered in a glass case, with an open front. Some devotees give a push to the swing, sending the Lord and Devi on a to and fro. We enter the temple. 

There is a short wait as the nada is closed. We are lucky to come during the opening time when the crowds are thin! Soon, the curtains are removed and we see the Lord in the linga form. There is a small Ganesha murthy next to the sanctum. The worship area is divided into two sides, one for ladies and the other for men. There is not much space inside, and I discover how painful things can get when I hit my head against a stone carving jutting out of a pillar. 

To the right are the murthys of Lord Nataraja and Devi, possibly utsava murthys. We exit the sannidhanam, and take the small covered circumambulatory path inside the temple. There are small shrines to different deities including four of the primary Nayanmar (devotees of Shiva, who have contributed greatly to Shavite Tamil literature). The structure is entirely made in stone. Despite having a few tube lights, the path is dark for most part. 

We exit and come to the outer circumambulatory path. A small Narthana Ganapathy is installed on the outer wall. The temple compound has many trees and flowering plants, making it a pleasant shaded walk. The compound wall has stone sculptures of different deities around it.  

A part of the outer path

The sculptures on the wall

We reach the shrine of Kamakshi Amman, the Lord’s consort. Her sannidhi is to the left of Someshwara’s. A small golden lion guards her entrance. Here again, there are separate lines for ladies and gentlemen. We pay our respects to Devi, and continue ahead to the shrine of Lord Hanuman. A few feet ahead is a peepal tree that shades Nagaraja, the serpent deities.

After completing our worship, we sit down in the pillared hall. We spend a few peaceful minutes and slowly get up to leave the temple.

I will take you to a different temple next week. Till then, stay safe, and stay devout.