Gokarna Tapestries

Drying saris on the beach at Gokarna, in the Indian state of Karnataka

Gokarna Mahadev Temple, believed to be built in 1582 rests on the banks of the holy Bagmati river in the Newari village of Gokarna. Gokarna Mahadev Temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The triple-roofed temple contains an important Shiva lingam (a common representation of the point of the creation of life) and some interesting wood carvings of which some are said to be over 1000 years old. The bull-vehicle of Shiva - Nandi, stands as ever next to the temple. In the northwestern corner of the courtyard, in a small shrine house, lies the finest of the Gokarna statuary. This an 8th-century sculpture of goddess Parvati. You are looking through a small shrine captured by a fig (Bhodi) tree that may have started life as a seed on the roof.

At the ritual bathing tank, Gokarna, India