Common shapes are Square; Ayata is an expanded square or a rectangle; for Sayana Murtis you may have a rectangular Garba Graha. Vrtta – Circular, Gajaprastha and Vrittayata (rectangle and a circle). Also Kurmapitha (tortoise shaped). Kurmapitha is generally built for Gurus. Vidyashankara Devalaya in Sringeri is Kurmapitha structure.

Pushkarini is the tank or step well outside the Prakara. The devotees are able to clean themselves in the Pushkarini before entering the Devaalaya

Mahavishnu deity was gifted to Vibhishana by Srirama. He was not supposed to place it on the ground till he reached Sri Lanka but by mistake he did. That place is Srirangam. Vishnu fell in love with the place and refused to go to Sri Lanka with Vibhisnana. But he gave a  promise to Vibhishana that he would look over the kingdom. Since Sri Lanka is to the south of India, the reclining deity of Ranganathaswamy faces south in Srirangam.

Whole sacred zone of K?sh? is said to have a radius of five kroshas, about ten miles, and this zone is circled by a famous five-day pilgrimage called the panchakrosh?, with five stops along the way.

The Karanagama defines Poojas as the ultimate activity that leads us to realisation of soul. Pooja is the divine linkage between the purely material and purely spiritual

The foundation of the devalaya is only 5 feet. This demonstrated how advanced and experienced temple builders of the past were.

Kirti Mukha represents one who has eaten his own body. Kirti means popularity. Once a Rakshasa wanted to be the most popular one. He got a blessing from Brahma. He started overpowering everyone and in his greed he started eating his own body with unlimited power. So only the eyes and mouth are shown in the Keerti Mukha. Brahma recreated him eventually. As a sign of warning he granted him a position above all deities. This serves as a metaphor for greed and excessive consumption. It reminds the devotees to give up greed and avarice when visiting a temple.

The prominent Jagamohan is the only portion that is still intact. The walls of the Natya Mandapa are intact but the roof is missing. The Deul has totally collapsed.

28 stolen antiquities were recovered but are now stored in ASI warehouse. They are not in public display.

Upapitha is the part that is below Adhisthana. The rest are types of GrabhaGraha.

The Namaskara Mantapa is a feature that is unique to Kerala temples. This is a place for devotees to gather and offer prayers. This feature is not found in other regions of India

According to Manasara, there are four groups of guilds involved in temple costruction. The Sthapati is the chief architect and the master of all craftsmen. He must know several fields of work related to temple construction. Stha means existence. Sthapati means someone who has the knowledge of bringing things into existence. He is also the teacher and guide to others involved in temple construction.

The people who lived across the river Indus (Sindu) were called Hindus by invaders. This is the origin of the word Hindu.

Abhichara murtis were invoked approximately from the 10th/ 11th centuries when temples and societies had to be protected from invaders. Generally these were outside the city and facing the invaders. Prior to this period there was no cultural or religious dimension to warfare and thus protection of the citizens from outsiders was not a primary purpose of the deity.