Is a village about 13 kms north of Udupi. It has been mentioned as Brahmaputr, Brahmavuar and Brahmara in the inscription, which means ‘a settlement of Brahmins’. It is an ancient cultural centre of the region being adjacent to Barkur, which was the capital town; Brahmavar must have been a prosperous city. There are three main temples in Brahmavar (1) the Mahalinga temple (2) Gopinatha temple, (3) Janardhana shrine in the agrahara.
It is believed that the Mahalinga temple was constructed in the 9th century AD. The wall of the temple is built on the laterite stones. There is an image of Gaja-Gowri, which has been kept in navaranga, which perhaps belongs to the Hoysala period. It is holding Ankusha and Pasha in the upper hand and Padma (lotus) in right lower, and the left lower hand in the abhaya pose. Handadi was the settlement of the Hande family. The Gopinatha temple is mentioned in an inscription that it is the third temple; the image of the presiding deity is of Hoysala workmanship.
