On the Yadugiri hill at Melukote in Karnataka stands the Cheluvanarayana Swamy temple, one of the most sacred Vaishnava shrines of the South, where Vishnu is worshipped as Cheluvanarayana, the beautiful Narayana. The hill town is inseparable from the memory of the great teacher Ramanuja, who lived here for many years and made it a centre of Sri Vaishnavism.
The temple is famed for the Vairamudi festival, when the deity is adorned with a priceless ancient diamond crown, drawing vast crowds. Set upon a scenic hill with its sacred Kalyani tank, and rich with the legacy of Ramanuja, Melukote is a supreme seat of Vishnu devotion and one of the most revered temple towns of Karnataka.
