21.1Chamundeshwari on the hill
The Chamundeshwari temple, the tutelary shrine of the Wadiyars, stands atop Chamundi Hill. Its seven-tier gopura dates chiefly to the eighteenth century, with the temple's earlier fabric considerably older and repeated royal endowments recorded through the medieval and modern periods; Krishnaraja Wadiyar III presented the temple's simhavahana and other ornaments.[1] A monolithic Nandi of about 4.9 metres, carved in 1659, stands on the hill road.
21.2Riverine shrines
The Ranganathaswamy temple at Srirangapatna is the first of the three Ranga kshetras on the Kaveri, with Ganga-period origins and later Hoysala and Vijayanagara additions.[2] At Talakadu the Panchalinga shrines — Vaidyeshvara, Pathaleshwara, Maruleshwara, Arkeshwara and Mallikarjuna — are periodically excavated from encroaching sand and are the focus of the Panchalinga Darshana held roughly every twelve years.[3]
Nanjangud's Srikanteshwara temple, on the Kabini, is among the largest in Karnataka and received substantial Wadiyar and, notably, Tipu Sultan patronage — the famous emerald linga is traditionally attributed to his gift.[4]
21.3Jain and other traditions
Shravanabelagola in neighbouring Hassan district remains the principal Digambara Jain pilgrimage centre of the south. Within the city, St Philomena's Cathedral (consecrated 1956, Neo-Gothic, modelled on Cologne Cathedral) and the Jama Masjid at Srirangapatna record the region's Christian and Muslim histories.[5]