Pataleshwar, Rock-cut cave temple in Shivajinagar, India.

Pataleshwar is a temple carved from a single rock mass and contains three sanctums with enormous pillars and a circular Nandi mandapa. The entire complex features carefully carved chambers designed for different religious functions.

The temple dates from the 8th century during the Rashtrakuta period and was carved from a single rock mass near where the Mula and Mutha rivers meet. This era saw extensive rock-cut temple construction across the region.

The temple displays carved representations of Hindu deities within its rock chambers where visitors come to pray and leave offerings. These figures remain central to the spiritual practices of worshippers who visit regularly.

The cave temple lies in Shivajinagar, immediately west of the Mula and Mutha confluence, with the Archaeological Survey of India office on the adjacent property. The sanctums sit at a lower level than the open court, reached by steps flanked by two carved stone tigers. The 19th-century drainage system once flooded the caves for months each year; the ASI has since attempted repairs.

The sanctums sit at a lower level than the pillared hall, cut deeper into the basalt, and this sunken position gives the site its name: Pataleshwar, the lord of the underworld. Behind the shrines part of the rock face is left rough and unfinished, showing how the shilpins worked inward.