Dharmasthala Temple is an 800-year-old Hindu religious institution in the temple town of Dharmasthala in Dakshina Kannada, Karnataka, India. The deities of the temple are Hindu god Shiva, who is referred to as Mañjunatha, Hindu goddess Ammanavaru(meaning mother), the Tirthankara Chandraprabha and the protective gods of Jainism, Kalarahu, Kalarkayi, Kumarasvami and Kanyakumari. The temple was reconsecrated in 16th century by Hindu Dvaita saint Vadiraja Tirtha by the request of the then administrator of the temple, Devaraja Heggade. The temple is considered unique, since the priests in the temple are Madhwa Brahmins, who are Vaishnava, and the administration is run by a Jain Bunt family called the Pergades.
The Dharmasthala temple, long revered as a center of faith and social upliftment in Karnataka, now finds itself at the heart of a..