High medieval · Hindu · India

Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Temple, Simhachalam

Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh · 17.7666°, 83.2504°

Varaha Narasimha (Vishnu)Eastern GangaKalinga–Dravida fusion
Sacred since
1087 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
attested 1087; central shrine 13th c.
patron: Kulottunga Chola I (inscriptions); Narasimhadeva I

History & significance

Hill temple above Visakhapatnam where the fierce man-lion is kept eternally cool under a covering of sandalwood paste, removed for just twelve hours a year (Chandana Visarjana on Akshaya Tritiya) when the true form gives darshan. Over 500 inscriptions make it one of the best-documented temples of the Andhra country.

Sthala katha — the legend

Prahlada himself is said to have raised the first shrine to the boar-lion who saved him; the paste soothes the burning rage Narasimha carried from tearing Hiranyakashipu apart.

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Related sites

Shri Jagannath Temple, Puri
Puri · India
12th c. (Anantavarman Chodaganga; completed under Anangabhima III)
Konark Sun Temple
Konark · India
c. 1250 CE

Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-26 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Eastern Ganga