Manyakheta, village in Karnataka, India
Manyakheta is an ancient village in the Kalaburgi district of India, home to a Jain temple with detailed stone carvings. The village lies along the Kagina River and has ruins and monuments scattered around it that point to its past as a major center of power and religion.
The village served as the capital of the Rashtrakuta empire during the 9th and 10th centuries, making it one of the most powerful seats of rule in India at the time. After the empire fell, different dynasties took control in turn, and the settlement gradually lost its political role while keeping its religious one.
The site is also called Malkheda, a name still used by people in the region today. Visitors can watch worshippers gather at the temple for ceremonies and rituals that have been passed down over many generations.
Visiting outside the monsoon season is generally more comfortable, as the paths around the ruins can become slippery when wet. There are no hotels in the village itself, so most visitors base themselves in a nearby town and come for the day.
During the Rashtrakuta period, the village was home to the scholar Acharya Jinasena, who wrote the Mahapurana, and to the mathematician Mahaviracharya, who composed the Ganita Sara Sangraha. The latter is considered one of the earliest known works to treat mathematics in a systematic way for everyday and commercial use.
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