File:Chennakesava temples group, Pushpagiri Andhra Pradesh.jpg

Object location	14° 35′ 39.69″ N, 78° 45′ 38.97″ E	View this and other nearby images on: OpenStreetMap	14.594358; 78.760824

Pushpagiri, now a village in Kadapa district Andhra Pradesh, was in its history a major city, religious and education center near the banks of river Pennar (Pinakini in Sanskrit texts). The earliest inscriptions found here date from the 4th-century CE, but texts dated to pre-2nd century BCE mention it as an important center for monasteries. Pushpagiri and nearby locations were one of the focal points of an important economic and populated region through the 16th-century. It is one of the places where Adi Sankara is reputed to have visited and supported an Advaita Matha (monastery for Advaita Vedanta studies). Many major Hindu and Jain temples were built in and near Pushpagiri, and it came to be known as the second Hampi.

The village of Pushpagiri in Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh is about 20 kilometers northwest of Kadapa city, Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the important religious center in a valley region to the west of Nallamala hills of Eastern ghats are naturally protected by a hilly terrain and gifted with several significant rivers. The Mauryas, Vishnukundins, Pallavas, Chalukyas of Badami, Cholas, Rashtrakutas, Kakatiyas and Vijaynagara dynasties helped build, expand and renovate major temples and infrastructure in Pushpagiri and nearby region. Many of these temples and monasteries were damaged or destroyed during the Deccan wars of expansion by Deccan Sultanates. Ruins were re-discovered by British colonial era archaeologists and historians, with sections restored in the recent decades.

• The Chennakesava temples group is located on the east bank of the Pennar river, across from the Pushpagiri village and its temples and monasteries.
• The date of construction of the original Chennakesava temples is unclear, though many layers of construction and expansion can be dated. The earliest inscriptions are from the 10th-century Rashtrakuta dynasty, where the temples at this site are mentioned in the context of a Hindu pilgrimage site named Joti. A series of inscriptions in 12th through 15th century including those by Vijayanagara Empire era mention expansion, land grants, repairs and other gifts to these group of temples. Thus, the extant temples show a blend of architectural and religious arts.
• It has many temples, of which six are located inside a prakara (compound). A notable feature of this temple group is the co-location of a major Shiva and a major Vishnu temple of the same size next to each other, instead of the typical Hindu tradition of having a major shrine for one tradition – either Shaiva, Vaishnava and Shakti – with minor shrines dedicated to the other two.
• The major temples are Chennakesava, Umamahesvara, Santana Mallesvara, Lakshmi, Ganesha (Anjaneya), and Sakshi Mallesvara temples. Other important shrines here include those for Rudrapada, Devi, Pushpesvara, another Chenakesava temple and a four-temple shrines cluster. These are from different centuries, the oldest traceable to the 10th century or perhaps earlier.
• A west-facing towering gopura is a landmark that identifies this temples group to pilgrims walking towards the temples. This entrance overlooks the Pushpagiri village and its monasteries.
• The temples are all square plan set with circular symmetries. The largest two – one for Shiva and one for Vishnu – have a square maha-mandapa and a square garbhagriya (sanctum).
• The temples complex is provided with covered mandapas near the prakara for pilgrims to rest (choultries).
• The Ganesha shrine is next to the entrance gopura.
• The Vishnu shrine (Chennakesava) is aligned to the gopura, and features all the typical Vishnu temple architectural features. On one side to it is the Lakshmi shrine, on the other side is the Shiva shrine with a linked shrine to Uma Devi (Parvati).
• The prakara (compound) is a much later addition and sort of rectangle. This was likely added in the 15th or later century as looting, temple defacement and destruction swept this region during the wars between the Deccan sultanates and the Hindu kingdoms. The geological and terrain limitations determined the reach of the prakara, and it does not enclose all the small temples of the group.
• The architectural style of these temples is Dravidian.