Surathkal

Surathkal is a locality under Mangalore City Corporation located in the Dakshina Kannada district, Karnataka.

Surathkal is home to one of India's best technical institutes - The National Institute of Technology Karnataka (NITK), formerly known as Karnataka Regional Engineering College (KREC). Surathkal is a suburb of Mangalore city located on National highway 17. Surathkal also houses Vidyadayanee High School and Govindadasa College run by Hindu Vidyadayanee Sangha, Surathkal, which has provided education to thousands of students since pre-independence period. The host petrochemical companies and a port. The nearest airport is Mangalore (Bajpe), 15 kilometres from Surathkal.The New Mangalore sea port is 6 km away. The railway station at Surathkal, on Konkan railway, is an important one due to the presence of several educational institutes,sea port,air port and industries.



Surathkal town can be easily accessed by various bus services from Mangalore City by both city buses and the Mangalore-Udupi Express buses.

Surathkal was once a Grama panchayat, then town panchayat, municipality now merged with Mangalore city corporation. According to legend, the name Surathkal is derived from "shiratakal" meaning "headstone" in Tulu When Lord Ganapathi kept a shiva linga belonging to Ravana on ground, Ravana tried to pull the linga from the ground but could not. The place where the linga is supposed to have been is now known as Gokarna. Due to the force exerted by Ravana, some pieces were scattered. One such piece from the head of the linga is said to have fallen in present day Suratkal. The famous Sadashiva temple is said to be built around that piece of linga.

Industry And Education
Some of the major industries in and around Surathkal are MRPL, BASF and MCF.The Baikampady Industrial Estate is located at around 6 kilometres from Surathkal and houses many small and medium sized industries. The raw materials to these industries are imported through the Mangalore port and goods produced here are exported to several places in India and abroad through this port. Many educational institutions like NITK (formerly KREC), Vidyadayanee High School and Govindadasa College are all nearby or within Surathkal. Apart from these there are several small schools like Mahalingeshwara School and Sacred Heart school in the heart of the town.

Sadashiva temple, Surathkal

Sadashiva temple is located close to the surathkal beach. The architecture of the temple offers a perfect blend of spirituality and architectural finesse. Built in the Tulunadu style, the temple faces the East, to welcome the rising sun. It is estimated that the temple was constructed in the Tulunadu period. The Sadashiva temple is site of historical importance.

The Sadashiva temple has a legendary mythological story associated with it. It is believed that the top portion of the famed 'atma-linga' fell here when Ravana tried to destroy the Linga. In the Hindu mythology, the story goes that the 'atma-linga' had the power to make the gods immortal. This atma-linga was in the custody of Lord Shiva. Ravana, the asura king, and the reigning king of Lanka desired to attain immortality. In a bid to do so, he conducted diligent prayers to the lord Shiva and was successful in pleasing the lord. Having been pleased by Ravana, Lord Shiva offered him a boon. Ravana asked for the custody of the Atma-linga and Shiva relented on the condition that it should not be put down on the ground or anywhere else till the time he reached Lanka. Narada gauged the ominosity of the situation wherein Ravana would be immortal. He sought for the help of Ganesh in the matter. Lord Ganesh came up with a plan to make Ravana set down the Linga before he reached Lanka. With the help of lord Vishnu's illusion, Ganesh, in the disguise of a Brahmin boy, succeeded in making Ravana set down the linga. On losing his hold on the atma-linga, Ravana tried to uproot it from the ground. On striking the linga, parts of it broke and the top-most part is said to have fallen at Surathkal where the Sadashiva temple is located.Special prayers are performed during the Shivaratri festival in the temple. The temple is visited by numerous devotees and tourists all-round the year to seek the blessings of the Lord Shiva.

Idya Shree Mahalingeshwara temple

Idya Shree Mahalingeshwara temple is an very ancient temple with Lord Shiva being the main deity and Lord Ganapathi, Lord Naga and Vyagra Chamundi being the sub deities. It is believed that the region in front of "Naga Bana" in the temple complex is "Tapo Bhoomi" of "Vidhyadara Maharshi". This is the place where Vidhyadhara Maharshi propitiated Lord Shiva and appeared in the form of "Swyambhu Linga" . It is belived that present Linga in the temple worshipped by Vidhyadhara Maharshi.

Idya Shree Mahalingeshwara Temple,
Idya, Surathkal, Mangaluru Taluk,
Dakshina Kannada District - 575 014
Phone Number: 0824 2476400

Temple Pooja timings:
Morning : 05:30 AM to 10:30 AM
Evening : 05:30 PM to 08:00 PM

Hotels, Accomodation at Surathkal