The village Chezerla, surrounded by a low range of rocky hills, is situated 32 kilometers north –east of Narasaraopet part of the way is approachable by jeep only in fair weather. The Kapotesvara temple here is a structural chaitya hall, originally Buddhist and later converted into Hindu usage.
The deity is called Kapotesvara, after the well –known story of King Sibi mentioned not only in the Mahabharata but also in the Buddhist Sibi Jataka, where he is said to have offered his own flesh to an eagle which was pursuing a pigeon or a kapota.
The architecture of the temple is built on an apsidal plan and a barrel-vaulted structure. On the north –east side of the temple, there is an excellent specimen of the sahasralinga (thousand Shiva lingas) and on the other side of the temple is a sculpture representing Saptamatrikas or the seven mothers. This is perhaps the only temple in existence in India dedicated to Lord Shiva at Kapotesvara, datable to AD 4th century.
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