Mylara Lingeshwara Temple, Mylara
Shiva (as Mailara / Mylara Lingeshwara, also called Mallari) temple · Mylara (Mailara), Vijayanagara (formerly Bellary), Karnataka, India
The Mylara Lingeshwara Temple stands in the village of Mylara (also spelt Mailara), in the south-western corner of Hoovina Hadagali taluk in Vijayanagara district, Karnataka, about two kilometres from the Tungabhadra river. Shiva is worshipped here as Mailara, also called Mallari, 'the defeater of Malla', and the temple is the centre of one of the largest annual fairs in northern Karnataka.
The temple is best known for the Karnikotsava, held at the Magha full moon (usually in February), when a devotee standing on a tall wooden bow pronounces a short prophecy for the coming year. The Vijayanagara district administration notes that the village is called Uglara in inscriptions, a name it links to the ring-like course of the Tungabhadra around the village.
Faith & Tradition
Religious Significance of Mylara Lingeshwara Temple, Mylara
According to a legend recorded in the Bellary District Gazetteer, the demon Mallasura and his brother obtained a boon from Brahma that no human being could harm them, and began to torment the sages. Shiva took a new form and, with an army of 'seven crores' (elu koti), fought them for ten days and killed both with his bow. Pilgrims at the fair shout 'Elukoti!' in memory of this army. The district administration notes that two heads below the main image are identified as Mallasura and Manikasura.
Devotees known as goravas, men and women who have taken a special vow, dress in woollen blankets or overcoats and headgear for the fair; The Hindu describes them beating a damaru and chanting 'Elukoti'. The gazetteer records that some goravas imitate the dogs believed to have formed part of Shiva's army.
The prophecy itself is the high point of the fair. The Hindu reported in 2010 that the designated gorava, who traditionally fasts through the eleven days of the fair, stands on top of a bow about ten feet high on the penultimate day, utters a single cryptic line, and then lets himself fall to be caught by devotees below. The district administration says the prophecy is read by people of the region, especially farmers, as a forecast of the coming rainy season.
Heritage
History of Mylara Lingeshwara Temple, Mylara
The district administration describes the worship of Mailara here as very ancient, with the temple's architecture and inscriptions belonging mainly to the Kalyana Chalukya and Vijayanagara periods. Polished, lathe-turned pillars of Kalyana Chalukya style in the hall show that a temple existed here in that period.
Inscriptions on a pillar of the temple date from the reigns of the Vijayanagara kings Devaraya I and Devaraya II (1412 and 1416 CE) and record the building of several halls, a decorated gateway (chitra-torana) and other additions. A record of 1518 CE notes the making of festival (utsava) images of the deity, and another of 1547 CE records a gift of land, according to the district administration. The adjoining Gangamalamma temple had its vestibule and hall built in 1412 CE by Gangarasa, an official of the treasury.
The fair has drawn very large crowds for decades. The 1972 Bellary District Gazetteer estimated attendance at two to three lakh people and noted that the fair also served as an important cattle market, while The Hindu reported about ten lakh devotees on the prophecy day in 2010.
Architecture and sacred features
According to the district administration, the temple complex has a sanctum, vestibule, assembly hall, open hall, subsidiary shrines and a main gateway tower. The sanctum holds a clay image of Mailara about four feet tall, with a self-manifested (swayambhu) Shiva linga in front of it; the four-armed deity holds a trident, damaru, sword and bowl, and is framed by a kirtimukha arch with attendants bearing fly-whisks. The district administration says the clay image has earned the deity the name 'Mud Mylar', and its antiquity the name 'Hire Mylar'.
Above the sanctum is a three-tiered tower in the Dravida style. The hall doorway carries Gajalakshmi on its lintel and creeper ornament on the jambs, and a four-pillared hall is in Vijayanagara style. Within the premises are the Gangamalamma temple and sculptures or shrines of Kanchaveera, Kalamma, Veerabhadra and Junjappa.
Plan Your Visit
Darshan and Visitor Information
During the Karnikotsava the village receives very large crowds, so expect heavy traffic and plan accommodation in advance. Respect the vows and rituals of the goravas and follow instructions from the temple and police during the prophecy. Confirm the festival dates, darshan timings and local arrangements with the temple administration or the Vijayanagara district administration before travelling.
Timings and arrangements change with seasons and festivals. Confirm current details with the temple administration before travelling. Last reviewed 1 November 2026.
Sacred Calendar
Festivals at Mylara Lingeshwara Temple, Mylara
Mailara Jatre and Karnikotsava
An eleven-day fair ending with the Karnikotsava, when a fasting gorava on a ten-foot bow pronounces a prophecy for the coming year that farmers read as a rain forecast; rites include milk-churning, a silent ride, Goravara Doni Seve, Bhandara Puja and Ambali prasada.
Location
How to Reach Mylara Lingeshwara Temple, Mylara
Mylara lies in the extreme south-west of Hoovina Hadagali taluk. Distances from Hoovina Hadagali town vary between sources: 33 km in the 1972 district gazetteer, 38 km on the district administration's page and about 40 km in The Hindu. The district administration lists Jindal Vijayanagar airport (with flights to Bengaluru and Hyderabad), Hubballi airport and Hosapete railway station as the main gateways to the district, with buses from Ballari and Hosapete.
Location: Mylara (Mailara), Vijayanagara (formerly Bellary), Karnataka, India
Nearest airport: Jindal Vijayanagar (district gateway, per the district administration)
Nearest railway station: Hosapete (district gateway, per the district administration)
More in Hindu temples in Karnataka · Shiva (as Mailara / Mylara Lingeshwara, also called Mallari) temples · Temples in Ballari District
Questions
Mylara Lingeshwara Temple, Mylara: Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Karnikotsava at Mylara?
It is the prophecy ritual of the annual Mailara fair, held at the Magha full moon. A gorava who has fasted through the fair stands on a ten-foot bow and pronounces a single line believed to foretell the coming year, especially the rains.
Which deity is worshipped at Mylara?
Shiva as Mailara, also called Mallari, 'the defeater of Malla'. The sanctum has a clay image of Mailara with a swayambhu Shiva linga in front of it.
What is the legend of Mylara?
According to tradition recorded in the Bellary District Gazetteer, Shiva took the form of Mailara and, with an army of seven crores, killed the demon Mallasura and his brother with his bow after a ten-day battle. Pilgrims shout 'Elukoti' in memory of that army.
Who are the goravas?
Goravas are men and women who have taken a special vow to Mailara; during the fair they wear woollen blankets or overcoats and headgear and chant 'Elukoti'.
How old is the Mylara temple?
The district administration dates its pillared hall to the Kalyana Chalukya period, and pillar inscriptions of 1412 and 1416 CE record Vijayanagara-period additions.
Where is Mylara?
Mylara is in the south-western corner of Hoovina Hadagali taluk, Vijayanagara district, about two km from the Tungabhadra and roughly 33–40 km from Hoovina Hadagali town depending on the source.
Sources and attribution
- Vijayanagara District Administration (Government of Karnataka, NIC) — Mylaralingeshwar Temple – Mylara, Hovina Hadagali
- Government of Karnataka – Karnataka State Gazetteer, via Internet Archive — Bellary District Gazetteer (1972): 'Mailara or Mylara' and list of fairs
- The Hindu — Mylara jatra attracts 10 lakh devotees on penultimate day (2 February 2010)
- Wikipedia — Mylara Lingeshwara Temple
- Wikipedia — Karnikotsava
Further reading: Mylara Lingeshwara Temple, Mylara on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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