Kotilingeshwara Temple is located in Kammasandra, a small village in the Kolar district of Karnataka. The temple as seen today was built in 1980, but the history of this area goes back to the 8th century CE.
Kotilingeshwara Temple is famous for its hundreds of thousands of Shivlings, including one of the tallest with a height of 108 feet. The temple is known as Koti Linga Temple. In this temple, Shivlings are constantly being enshrined.
The aim is to reach 1 crore (ten million), making true to its name, Kotilingeshwara (Koti-crore).
Kotilingeshwara Temple Kolar History: The Story of Bhakta Manjunath
1200 years ago, the area where Kammasandra Village is located was known as Dharmasthali. It was a part of the Rashtrakuta Empire. There was a temple dedicated to Shri Manjunatha here that was highly revered by the people.
Manjunath Sharma was born in this village in about 788 CE. He grew up to be a nonbeliever in God and would often insult the deity in the temple. He was also an antisocial and a local bully.
As the years progressed, Manjunath Sharma realized his great error and became an ardent devotee of Shri Manjunath (Rudra Dev). By his worship and devotion, he was indeed blessed by God, but the villagers did not know of it. One day Manjunath Sharma visited the local Shri Manjunath temple with his family.
As they entered the temple, all the lit lamps in the temple got extinguished for no apparent reason. There was a great outcry and the people blamed Manjunath Sharma and rushed to assault him. Luckily, a representative of the King was present and he controlled the crowd and asked them to maintain calm.
The king’s representative asked Manjunath Sharma to prove his innocence. Manjunath Sharma sang a devotional hymn known as Mayakaya Deepam, which had been composed by Maharishi Ved Vyas. The lamps lit up again and seemed even brighter than before. Everyone realized Manjunath Sharma was a changed man, blessed by God.
Manjunath Sharma is now Bhakta Manjunath. He declared that since he must have insulted God at least a crore times, he would establish one crore Shivlings to atone for his past sins. He was helped by his family and also had the support of the King in achieving this task. The area came to be known as Kotilingeshwara and it is where the temple seen today stands.
Kotilingeshwara Today
The temple as it stands today was built by Swami Sambha Shiva Murthy after he had a dream in which he saw Lord Shiva. The temple was completed and the first Shivling was enshrined in 1980.
Later, 101 Shivlings were enshrined and then 1001. In 1994, a Shivling with a height of 108 feet was built, making the temple an attraction. Over the years, hundreds of thousands of Shivlings were enshrined. This continues till now to reach 1 crore Shivlings.
A statue of Nandi, Lord Shiva’s beloved bull, can be seen on the premises. This giant statue measures 11 meters by 1.2 meters and sits on a high platform.
There are 11 other temples in the complex beside the main Kotilingeshwara Temple. They are dedicated to Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh, Venkataramani, Subramanya, Panduranga, Panchmukha Ganapati, Rama, Sita, Lakshman and Anjaneya.
Temples dedicated to Devis include Annapurna Devi, Karumari Amma, and Kannika Parmeshwari. Abhishek Puja and Maha Mangal Aarti are done in the temple at 07:30 AM and Mahamangal Aarti in the evening.
The temple has been declared a tourist site by the Government of Karnataka. Hundreds of thousands of devotees and tourists visit this temple each year.
How to Reach Kammasandra

By Train
The nearest railway station is Coromandel, about 6 km from Kammasandra.

By Air
The nearest airport is Bangalore Airport, about 98 km from Kammasandra.
Where to Stay in Kammasandra
The temple authorities provide accommodation facilities for devotees. There are also a few hotels and guesthouses to choose from.
Book your Stay with YatraDham.
Kotilingeshwara Temple Timings
Kotilingeshwara Temple Timings are given below. You must go through it before visiting this temple.
6:00 AM to 9:30 PM
Kotilingeshwara Temple Timings on Sunday
7:00 AM to 8:30 PM
Meal Timings (Free Anna Prasadam)
12:30 PM to 3:30 PM | |
7:00 PM to 8:30 PM |
Kotilingeshwara Temple Images
Click here for Kotilingeshwara Temple Images
Details | Charges |
---|---|
Entry Fee | Rs. 20 per person |
Camera Fee | Rs. 100 per camera |
Parking Charges | Rs. 30 |
Linga Installation Fee | Starts from Rs. 8,000 |
Distances from Kammasandra
Kolar | 32 km |
Bangalore | 95 km |
Chennai | 264 km |
Mysore | 281 km |
Dharmasthala | 391 km |