Lingaraj Temple, Bhubaneswar

The Lingaraj Temple at Bhubaneswar is the largest and most important of the city's 'Old Town' temples, anchoring the cluster that earns Bhubaneswar its 'Temple City of India' title. Built in the 11th century during the Somavamshi period, with later expansions under the Eastern Ganga dynasty, the 55-metre temple is considered the apogee of the mature Kalinga style of temple architecture — a curvilinear deul (sanctum tower), a flat-roofed jagamohana (audience hall), a natamandira (dance hall), and a bhogamandapa (offering hall) all in one continuous east-west axis. The presiding deity is Lord Lingaraj — a Hari-Hara form representing both Shiva and Vishnu in a single Swayambhu lingam, an unusual syncretic deity. The temple sits next to the Bindusagar Tank, said to contain water from every sacred Hindu river, and is surrounded by 50+ smaller subsidiary shrines. Like Jagannath at Puri, Lingaraj does not permit non-Hindus inside the temple complex (a viewing platform on the north wall lets others see the structure). The annual Rukuna Rath Yatra during Ashokashtami (March-April) is the major festival.