Dec 9, 2025
After a quick visit to Ishawara Devalaya, we walk back to Sri Lakshmi Ranganatha Swami Devalaya. These two historic temples of Sokke date back to Hoysala period, their original structures were assemblies of granite blocks. However, both temples have been renovated, the original blocks have been replaced with concrete structures. Apparently Ishwara Devalaya's deities Shivalinga and Nandi are original. The Hoysala period structural blocks like turned pillars, slabs and beams lie in a heap next to the temple but the temple's inscription slab has been planted with care at the entrance. In the Sri Lakshmi Ranganatha Devalaya the original deity has been replaced with a recently made deity but the structure seems original, probably dating back to Vijayanagara or Palegar times.
Before I delve into the temple matter let me tell how I got connected to Sokke, a name I'd not heard of prior to Dec 2024. A primary school time friend from Bhadravathi called Naveen Meda is a patron of this temple, a tradition which started around 1180 CE by his grandfather Sri M Y Puttanarasimha Setty of Meda (ಮೇಡಾ) family from Huliyar in Tumkur district. Since then members of Meda family have continued the patronage to Sokke Lakshmi Ranganatha Swami Devalaya.
In this picture the outer walls of the structure are clearly visible, they are dressed granite slabs seemingly from Vijayanagara / Palegar time. The priest and caretaker pose at the main entrance which faces east. The second entrance is on the side, facing north. To the north of this temple dedicated to Ranganatha Swami is a smaller structure dedicated to Lakshmidevi.
The temple was reconditioned in 2007, the highlights being- the original deity was replaced with deities of Ranganatha, Bhudevi & Sridevi; consecration of idols of Lakshmidevi, Mahaganapati and Nagadevata; the wooden Garuda Kambha was replaced with a granite pillar; a portico supported by concrete pillars was added. Here's a closeup of entrance; the slabs flanking the passage have murals of Dwarapalas, the door-keepers. The four-armed Dwarapalas have Vishnu's symbols- Shankha & Chakra -in their rear hands. The fore-hands feature Abhaya Hasta and hold Vishnu's weapon mace. Both Dwarapala have a Kirtimukha each.
To mark the renovation, two inscriptions slabs were embedded into the front wall.
Transcriptions of the two inscriptions:
||ಓಂ ಶ್ರೀ ಮಂಜುನಾಥಯ ನಮಃ||
ಸ್ವಸ್ಥಿ, ಶ್ರೀ ವಿಜಯಾಭ್ಯುದಯ ಶಾಲಿ ವಾಹನ ಶಕವರ್ಷ ೧೯೨೯ರ ಸರ್ವಜಿತ್ ಸಂವತ್ಸರ ಉತ್ತರಾಯಣ ವಸಂತಋತು ವೈಶಾಖಮಾಸ ಬಹುಳ ಸಪ್ತಮಿ ಕ್ರಿ.ಶ.೦೯-೦೫-೨೦೦೬ರ ಬುಧವಾರದಂದು ಚಿಕ್ಕಮಗಳೂರು ಜಿಲ್ಲೆ, ತರೀಕೆರೆ ತಾಲ್ಲೂಕು, ಸೊಕ್ಕೆ ಗ್ರಾಮದಲ್ಲಿ ಶಿಥಿಲಗೊಂಡಿದ್ದ ಶ್ರೀ ರಂಗನಾಥ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನ ಹಾಗೂ ಶ್ರೀಲಕ್ಷ್ಮೀ ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನವನ್ನು ಸಂರಕ್ಷಿಸುವ ಉದ್ದೇಶದಿಂದ ಶ್ರೀ ಧರ್ಮಸ್ಥಳ ಮಂಜುನಾಥೇಶ್ವರ ಧರ್ಮೋತ್ಥಾನ ಟ್ರಸ್ಟಿನ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರಾಗಿರುವ 'ರಾಜರ್ಷಿ ಡಾ|| ಡಿ.ವೀರೇಂದ್ರ ಹೆಗ್ಗಡೆಯವರು ಶ್ರೀ ರಂಗನಾಥ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ ಹಾಗೂ ಶ್ರೀಲಕ್ಷ್ಮೀ ದೇವಾಲಯದ ಜೀರ್ಣೋದ್ದಾರ ಸಮಿತಿ ಮತ್ತು ಭಕ್ತಾಧಿಗಳ ಸಹಕಾರದೊಂದಿಗೆ 'ರೂ ೫ ಲಕ್ಷಗಳ ವೆಚ್ಚದಲ್ಲಿ ಕುಶಲ ತಂತ್ರಜ್ಞರ ಮೂಲಕ ಜೀರ್ಣೋದ್ಧಾರ ಕಾರ್ಯವನ್ನು ನಡೆಸಿ, ದೇವತಾ ಕಾರ್ಯಗಳು ಸಾಂಗೋಪಸಾಂಗವಾಗಿ ನಡೆಸಲೆಂದು ದೇವಸ್ಥಾನದ ಸೇವಾ ಸಮಿತಿಯವರಿಗೆ ಈ ಮೂಲಕ ವಹಿಸಿಕೊಟ್ಟಾಗ ಬರೆದ ಶಿಲಾಶಾಸನಕ್ಕೆ ಮಂಗಳ ಮಹಾ. ಶ್ರೀ ಶ್ರೀ ಶ್ರೀ
The gist of the inscription on the first tablet is that Ranganatha Swami and Lakshmidevi temples which were in a dilapidated state were repaired with support from Dr. D Veerendra Hegde, president of Sri Dharmasthala Manjunatheshwara Dharmothana Trust, Lakshmi Ranganatha Swami Devastana committee and temple devotees. An amount of ₹5L was spent for the repairs.
ಓಂ
ಸೊಕ್ಕೆ ಶ್ರೀ ಲಕ್ಷ್ಮೀರಂಗನಾಥಸ್ವಾಮಿ ಪ್ರಸನ್ನ
ಶ್ರೀರಂಗನಾಥಸ್ವಾಮಿ, ಶ್ರೀಲಕ್ಷ್ಮೀದೇವಾಲಯ ಟ್ರಸ್ಟ್ (ರಿ), ಸೊಕ್ಕೆ, ಕಾರ್ಯಾಲಯ ಹುಳಿಯಾರು, ಹಾಗೂ ಶ್ರೀಧರ್ಮಸ್ಥಳ ಧಮೋತ್ಥಾನ ಟ್ರಸ್ಟ್ (ರಿ) ಇವರ ಸಹಯೋಗದೊಂದಿಗೆ ಜೀಣೋದ್ಧಾರಗೊಂಡ ಶ್ರೀಭೂದೇವಿ ಶ್ರೀದೇವಿ, ಶ್ರೀರಂಗನಾಥಸ್ವಾಮಿ ಶ್ರೀಲಕ್ಷ್ಮೀದೇವಿ, ಶ್ರೀ ಮಹಾಗಣಪತಿ ಶ್ರೀ ನಾಗದೇವತಾ, ಈದೇವರುಗಳ ಪುನರ್ ಪ್ರತಿಷ್ಠಾಪನೆ, ಮಹಾ ಕುಂಬಾಭಿಷೇಕ ಮಹೋತ್ಸವವು ದಿನಾಂಕ 09-05-2007ನೇ ಬುಧವಾರದಂದು ನೆರವೇರಿಸಲ್ಪಟ್ಟಿತು.
ದಿವ್ಯ ಸಾನಿಧ್ಯ ಪರಮ ಪೂಜ್ಯ ಶ್ರೀಶ್ರೀಶ್ರೀ ವೀರೇಶಾನಂದ ಸರಸ್ವತಿಯವರು ಶ್ರೀ ರಾಮಕೃಷ್ಣ ವಿವೇಕಾನಂದ ಆಶ್ರಮ, ತುಮಕೂರು, ಅವರ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷತೆ
ಶ್ರೀ ಎಂ.ವಿ.ಸೂರ್ಯನಾರಾಯಣ ಶ್ರೇಷ್ಠಿಯವರು, ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರು, ಕ, ಆ, ವೈ, ಮಹಾ ಸಭಾ ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು.
ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರು ಸದಸ್ಯರು, ಸೊಕ್ಕೆ ಗ್ರಾಮಸ್ಥರು, ಭಕ್ತಾದಿಗಳು ಹಾಗೂ ಮೇದಾ ವಂಶಸ್ಥರು.
ದಿನಾಂಕ 09-05-2007 ಸೊಕ್ಕ
ವಿಶ್ವಕರ್ಮ ಆರ್ಟ್ಸ್, ಯಳನಡು
The second tablet states that Maha Kumbhabisheka was performed on Wednesday the 9th of May 2007 with the divine presence of Sri Sri Sri Veereshananda Saraswati of Sri Ramakrishna Ashram, Tumakuru and Sri M V Suryanarayana Sreshti, people of Sokke, devotees & members of Meda family.
The temple saw another round of renovation in the past few years during which a Navagraha Mantapa was built; the courtyard was paved; and boundary walls, rooms & bathrooms were built. After the recent renovation the temple's ambiance improved significantly. It's my personal opinion that a temple should be clean, neat & tidy with a lot of greenery. When a person enters a temple premises the ambiance must have a calming effect. Trees like Neem, Bilva Patri, Banyan, Ashwatta, Parijata, etc. create such an ambiance. As an example, see Ramakrishna Ashram premises, they have nice gardens and a peaceful environment.
Opposite the main temple is Garuda Kambha, the pillar dedicated to Vishnu's mount Garuda. The pillar prior to this granite pillar was a wooden one which was termite infested. Next to the Garuda Kambha is a tiny temple dedicated to Nagadevata. Below is the collage of Garuda Kambha and Nagadevata shrine.
Now let's take a look at the temple interior. This is the Sabha Mantapa with a central pavilion bound by four pillars. These pillars' design has been carried down from Chalukyan times.
In this view the Antharala door is on the left hand side and on the right is the north-facing entrance. Also, in the foreground is the deity's swing. It's a tradition in Vishnu temples to place the deity in a swing and perform rituals.
On one the pillars are relief sculptures of Garuda and Hanuman.
A few other sculptures caught my attention but I'm sharing just two here- Krishna slaying Kaliya, and cow nursing a calf.
This is the Ranga-Mantapa ceiling. This design too is age old, can be seen in some of the ancient Chalukyan temples. Here temple caretakers have taken the trouble of having the ceiling painted.
The temple has a vestibule between its Ranga-Mantapa and Garbhagudi. Flanking the Garbhagudi entrance is a pair of Kirtimukha. The purpose of having Kirtimukha is to ward of evil energy. Ranganatha's idol in the Garbhagudi is under a thick layer of flowers.
The present idol has replaced the idol installed in year 2007.
Here's the idol sans decoration. The standing four-armed Ranganatha has Shankha & Chakra, a mace and the right forehand gesture if Abhayahasta symbolizing protection, reassurance and peace.
Sokke Ranganatha covered in silver ornaments from head to toes.
This is Lakshmidevi's temple, structure is ancient, seems very much of the same period as the main temple.
This temple has two chambers- Mukha-mantapa and Garbhagruha. In the sanctum is the idol of Lakshmi and just outside the sanctum entrance is Maha-Ganapati.
Here's a similar series of pictures- decorated with flowers, idols sans decoration and covered in silver ornaments.
Lastly, here are two aerial views of the temple premises shot just before sunset. You can see a faint patch of sunlight in front of Lakshmidevi shrine.
At the northeastern corner of the premises stands a small structure which will soon be established as Navagraha Mantapa, the shrine of nine celestial deities- Surya, Chandra, Mangal, Budha, Brihaspati, Shukra, Shani, Rahu and Ketu. These deities influence destiny, health, and fortune hence worshipped.
I wanted to shoot a few shots in early morning light but didn't get the opportunity because we had planned an early morning trip to Ranganatha Devalaya on Hanne Gudda which is about 7 km from Sokke. Yes, that hill sitting on the horizon is Hanne Gudda.
On Hanne Gudda is a temple dedicated to Ranganatha Swami and that temple is believed to the origin of Sokke Ranganatha Swamy.
In the following post I'll share my experience at Hanne Gudda.
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