Bhubaneswar, the capital of Orissa, is also popularly known as the "Temple City of India". Being the seat of Tribhubaneswar or 'Lord Lingaraj', Bhubaneswar is an important Hindu pilgrimage centre. Hundreds of temples dot the landscape of the Old Town, which once boasted of more than 2000 temples. Bhubaneswar is the place where temple building activities of Orissan style flowered from its very inception to its fullest culmination extending over a period of over one thousand years.

The Parsurameswara (c. 650 AD) is the earliest temple still standing in Bhubaneswar. The mid-seventh century date agreed on by most scholars is based on style, as well as on the eight planets which appear over the door to the inner sanctum. In later temples, there are nine. Although the Parsurameswara temple was repaired in 1903, with some ensuing changes in the roof of the inner sanctum, the structure is substantially intact in its original form. This small temple shows the early stages of development of the two main Orissan temple components: the beehive-shaped tower (generally referred to as the deul ) and the porch in front of the tower (generally called the Jagamohan). 

The small and elegant Mukteswara temple (c. AD 950) i s often referred to as the "miniature gem of Orissan architecture". The frequency with which the term 'gem' is employed will be immediately appreciated with the very first glimpse of this delicate, refined little structure.

In addition to its beauty, the Mukteswara is important as a transition point between the early and later phases of the Kalinga school of temple architecture. The builder has successfully combined many elements of the old with new designs and conceptions. Many of the innovations took root, and became essential features of all later temples. Because of this, one scholar has described the Mukteswara as "harbinger of the new culture".

The great Lingaraja Temple (eleventh century), which soars above the city of Bhubaneswar and dominates the landscape as far as 15 kms away, represents Orissan temple architecture at its most mature and fully developed stage. It has, in fact, been described as 'time quintessence of Orissan architecture'.

Although the temple as it now exists can be dated to the eleventh century, Sanskrit texts hold that there was a stone temple here as early as the seventh century AD, and fragments of this earlier structure do seem to appear in the extant building.

Unlike most of the other important temples in Bhubaneswar, the Lingaraja is very much in active worship, and entrance to the temple compound is prohibited to non-Hindus. There is a viewing  platform to one side, however, from which a good look at the compound and the main buildings can  be had.

The deul (tower) of the Lingaraja reaches a height of just over 180 feet (55 meters). It is completely curvilinear, and the extraordinary soaring tower can be seen  to incorporate miniature replicas of itself, in turrets inserted on the ribs of the spire. In addition to the deul and the jagmohana (porch), the Lingaraja adds two new structures: the natamandira (hall of dance) and the bhoga-mandapa (hall of offering). The former was undoubtedly associated with the rising prominence of the devadasi system. Many of the sculptures on the temple itself represent groups of people engaged in various religious and musical activities, and these perhaps relate to the increasing range of activities carried out at the temple, for instance in the two new structures.

By the time the Lingaraja temple was constructed, the Jagannath cult had become predominant  throughout Orissa. This is reflected in the fact that the temple deity here, the Svayambhu linga, is not, as in all other cases, strictly a Shiva linga. It is considered to be a 'hari-hara' linga, that is, half Shiva, half Vishnu. This and the variety of deities represented elsewhere on the temple, once again point out the basically syncretic nature of so much of Orissan religion.

There are 150 subsidiary shrines  within the immense Lingaraja complex, many of them extremely interesting in their own right. Unfortunately, they cannot be visited by non-Hindus.
The new Bhubaneswar with its modern buildings and extensive infrastructure perfectly complements its historic surroundings. With facilities to cater to every type of visitor, Bhubaneswar makes an ideal tourist destination.