Lakshmi Devi temple, Doddagaddavalli

                           Lakshmi Devi temple in Doddagaddavalli is the only Chathushkuta temple (four shrines and towers) built in Hoysala Architecture style. The temple does not stand on a jagati (platform), a feature which became popular in later Hoysala temples. The temple was commissioned by a merchant called Kullahana Rahuta and his wife Sahaja Devi in1114 AD.

                           Built inside a stone-wall enclosure, with the entrance through a porch, the temple has four sanctums (garbagriha) and only one common navaranga (hall). The roof of the entrance porch is supported by circular lathe-turned pillars. The plan of this temple is very unique, because it has four shrines placed around a common centre. Three of them share a small open hall, and at the fourth side of the hall there is an oblong extension providing two lateral entrances to the temple, from east and west side, and connecting it with shrine number four. Another unusual feature of the temple is the existence of four more minor shrines at each corner of the temple complex with two sides of each shrine attached to the courtyard wall. The 8 towers include the shikaras of 4 main shrines along with the 4 small shrines standing in eight different directions, probably intended to represent the cardinal and ordinal directions or the Ashta dikkugalu (North, East, West, South, North East, North West, South East and South West). The temple is having a separate fifth shrine of Bhairava, an avatar of the Hindu god Shiva.

                 The main eastern shrine houses Goddess Lakshmi Devi, with Lord Keshava in the south (though now the original murthi is missing), Lord Shiva in the form of a Linga in west and Goddess Kali in the northern shrine. There are two huge nude Bethala sculptures depicted as dwarapalakas of Goddess Kali. The common sabhamantapa is square in plan with 4 central lathe turned pillars. The main shikara of the garbhagriha which houses Goddess Lakshmi Devi is in Dravidian in style, while the other 8 shikaras are in Kadamba Nagara style. The outer walls of the temple are plain and decorated with pilasters surmounted by miniature shikaras. All the vimanas(shrines) have their original tower (superstructure) intact and so are the kalasha (decorative water pot like structure) on top of the main towers. The beautiful Hoysala emblems adorn the vestibules of all four shikaras.