Tourist places in and around Kollur

Shukla Theertham'

Is a tank one away. There is a shrine of Sri Siddeswara.

Kumbasi

According to Puranas, Gautama Rishi, who was doing penance in this land, was harassed by an asura by name Kumba. Pandavas, who were here on a pilgrimage, came to his rescue.Bheema invoked Lord Vinayaka, got a sword and vanquished the demon. Lord Vinayaka is a Swayambu Murthi and is in standing posture.

There is a small shrine in the midst of the temple tank, which has Surya Pushkarni on the one side and Chandra Pushkarni on the other side. There are images of Har and Hara the Kamandala of sage Gautama. Pujas are offered to the Kamandala as Devi Ganga is believed to bepresent in it.

Kodeshwara

Lord Brahma is believed to have performed penance and had darshan of Lord Siva as Kotilingeswara. In the sanctum, the Lingam is enshrined in a shallow Peetam. There are shrines for Vinayaka, Parvati and Ardhanareeswara. Koti Theertham is thesacred water. The main festival is on Full moon day during Nov-Dec.

Sankaranarayana

The shrine of Lord Sankaranarayana is on the banks of Varahi river. A sage by name Kroda was doing penance here to have darshan of Hari and Hara in one form. There are two Swayambu Lingames in the sanctum. According to another legend , Siva and Vishnu appeared here to vanquish Kara and Ratta, demon brothers.

There are separate shrines for Sri Venugopal, Subramanya and Panchamukha Anjaneya. A rare feature in this temple is that water is perennially seeping from the sanctum and prakaram.

Theerthams

Agni Theertham is near the sanctum. Bhargava Theertham and Koti Theertham are outside the temple. Kroda Theertham is yet another sacred water on the hil.

Gokarna

This is the sacred abode of Atma Lingam, brought by Ravana from Mount Kailas. When he was carrying it to Lanka, Devas tried to stop him. Vinayaka came to their rescue. He appeared before Ravana as a Brahmachari boy. When Ravana gave the Atma Lingam to the boy to hold it, Vinayaka kept it on the ground, and it got rooted. Even Ravana could not remove it. Hence the Devas named the Lingam Mahabaleshwar. The shrine faces west. Gokarna is hailed as one of the Parasurama Kshetras as the sage hurled his axe from here to redeem the land from sea.

According to Puranas, at the time of Creation of the World, Lord Siva emerged from the ears of Bhoomidevi at this spot. Hence the Lingam that appeared here came to be known as Adi Gokarna (go means Earth and Karna means ear). The sanctum of Mahabaleshwar reveals only a 3 feet by 3 feet square Saligrama Peetam. There is a golden rakha on the Peetam and a small hole in the middle, through which one can have a glimpse of theSiras of Atma Lingam. The six-foot-tall Lingam inside can be seen only once in 40 years when the Ashta Bhandana Kumbabhishekam is held. In this temple, devotees are allowed to perform puja to Atma Lingam.

Other shrines

Chandikeswara, Vinayaka, Adi Gokarneswara and Dattatreya have separate shrines. Devi Parvati is enshrined behind the main temple. She is known as Thamra Gori. An image of Lord Ganesha is installed outside the temple. A small dent visible on His head is sid to have been caused when Ravana hit him. Devotees congregate here for Sivaratri festival.

Koti Theertham is the sacred tank. It is customary to have a sea bather, make a Lingam out of sand and offer worshi[ before proceeding to the temple. Pilgrims perform Shraddha for their ancestors on the shores of Gokarna.

There are four other Siva shrines around Gokarna, together known as Pancha Maha Kshetras. They are Sejjeshwara, Gunavanteshwara, Murudeshwara, Dhareshwara and Mahabaleshwara.

Sadhasringagiri

Indranila mountain to the east of Himalayas is the abode of Lord Vishnu, Mount Kailas is the abode of Lord Siva and Sadhasringagiri between the two is the abode of Lord Brahma. According to a legend, once an enraged Garuda uprooted this hill and flew down south.While the divine bird was flying over Gokarna, the weight became unbearable. Sage Agastya came to his rescue and got the hill dropped in the sea here. The hill picturesquely rised on the southern side of the sea. The scenic beauty is a feast to the eyes of the nature-lover.

Situated on the hill is a for Rama, Sita and Lakshmanan. Manikeswara and Siddeswara ara also enshrined. Pandavas are said to have visited this place, and hence the other name Pandavakudi.