The Brahmeswara Temple is one of the few in Bhubaneswar that can be dated with confidence: an inscription records that it was built around 1058 CE by Queen Kolavati Devi, mother of the Somavamsi king Udyota Keshari. It is dedicated to Shiva.
It is a panchayatana temple — the main tower stands on a platform with four smaller shrines at the corners — and it is noted for its lively panels of musicians and dancers, among the earliest in Odisha, and for the use of iron beams in its construction.
Top things to do at Brahmeswara Temple
See the five-shrine layout
Walk the platform and look back at the main tower framed by its corner shrines; it is one of the clearest panchayatana layouts in the city.
Look for the musicians
The friezes of women playing instruments and dancing are thought to foreshadow the devadasi dance traditions later associated with Odissi.
Enjoy the quiet
Brahmeswara is a little off the main circuit and rarely crowded — a good place to sit in the garden and sketch or simply rest.
How to get to Brahmeswara Temple
- Location: about 1 km east of Rajarani, at the eastern edge of the Old Town.
- Getting there: a short auto ride from Rajarani or Mukteswar, or a 15-minute walk.
- Tours: ask your guide on a city tour to include it — many skip it unless asked.
Insider tips
- Free to enter; open daily from around sunrise to sunset.
- Combine it with Rajarani, which is on the way.
- Bring water: there are few shops right beside the temple.
Best tours & tickets for Brahmeswara Temple
These experiences are the easiest way to see Brahmeswara Temple with a guide and transport sorted:
City tour from US$102 Mystical Bhubaneswar: Temples, Caves and Dhauli Hills Tour
Everything inside the city limits in one well-paced day: the Old Town temples, the rock-cut Jain monasteries on Udayagiri and Khandagiri hills, and the white peace pagoda at Dhauli above the battlefield of the Kalinga War. Hotel pickup included.
- Lingaraj, Mukteswar and Rajarani temples
- The 2,000-year-old Jain caves of Udayagiri and Khandagiri
- Dhauli Shanti Stupa and the Ashokan rock edict
Private day trip from US$132 Architectural Wonders of Odisha Tour
A long, architecture-first day for people who want the story of the Kalinga temple style from its early experiments in Bhubaneswar to its peak at Konark, with a guide who can read the carving on the walls.
- Kalinga-style temples from the 7th to 13th centuries
- Rock-cut caves and temple sculpture explained
- A long private day with pickup
