The sacred geography of the Indic world — every site mapped, dated, storied, and cited.
Magadi, Ramanagara (Bengaluru South) district, Karnataka · 12.9621°, 77.2105°
Two state-protected temples in the town of Magadi, about 41 km from Bangalore: the Ranganatha temple, consecrated under a Chola ruler in the early 12th century and given its gopuras by Krishnadeva Raya in 1524, and the Someshwara temple raised by the Kempe Gowda line. Magadi is the birthplace of Kempe Gowda, the Vijayanagara chieftain who founded Bangalore.
What follows is the temple’s own traditional account, transmitted through liturgy and local memory. It is recorded here as tradition, not as attested history.
The presiding image is said to have been installed by the sage Mandavya, from whom the place takes its name of Mandavya Kshetra, and a small figure of Ranganatha on the temple wall is believed to grow a little larger every year.
coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-28 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Chola, with Vijayanagara and Kempe Gowda additions
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