• Go - cow, Karna - ear. The place got its name because the Lord is in the form of a cow's ear. It also has names like Rudrayoni, Varunavartham etc.
• Once, Ravana brought a Śiva Liṅga (Atmalinga) from Mount Kailasa with the intention of consecrating it in Lanka. Lord Śiva had granted him a boon that the Liṅga must be carried upon his head without placing it on the ground; if set down anywhere, it could not be lifted again. Carrying the sacred Prāṇa Liṅga upon his head, Ravana set forth towards Lanka.
  Indra, having learned of this through Sage Nārada, grew anxious. He reasoned that if Ravana successfully established the Prāṇa Liṅga, the demon-king could never be destroyed, and the Devas would never be freed from their suffering. Hence, accompanied by the other deities, Indra approached Lord Vinayaka on Mount Kailasa and sought his intervention.
  Accepting Indra’s request, Lord Vinayaka appeared in front of Ravana in the guise of a young boy. As evening had set in, Ravana wished to perform his Sandhyāvandanam (evening prayers). He entrusted the Liṅga to the boy, requesting him to hold it until he returned.
  The boy, who was in truth Vinayaka, told Ravana, “If I find the burden too heavy, I shall call you thrice. Should you fail to return by then, I will set the Liṅga down upon the earth.” Ravana agreed and went off to perform his rituals.
  Time passed, yet Ravana did not return. Calling out to him thrice in vain, Vinayaka placed the Liṅga firmly upon the ground. When Ravana came back, he strove with all his twenty arms to lift it, but the Lord made the Liṅga sink into the earth, as though melting like wax within a cow’s ear.
  Realizing the extraordinary power of this deity, Ravana grew enraged at the boy for deceiving him, and struck him on the head thrice. At once, Vinayaka revealed his true divine form, seized Ravana as though he were a mere ball, and tossed him about playfully. Humbled and fearful, Ravana begged forgiveness.
  Vinayaka declared, “Since you have struck me thrice upon the head, you too must do the same unto yourself in atonement.”
  Repenting for his folly, Ravana struck his own head thrice until it bled, and thereafter worshipped the Lord with devotion. Pleased, Vinayaka’s anger subsided, and he proclaimed that those who strike their own heads thrice in reverence to him would be granted the boons they desire. Forgiving Ravana’s misdeeds, the Lord blessed him with auspicious grace.
• Pancha Gokarnas: When Ravana tried to remove the Atma Linga from the earth, the places where the claddings  surrounding the Atma Linga fell are called Pancha Gokarnas.  They are: Mrudeshwar, Gunavanteshwar, Dhareshwar, Mahabaleshwar, and Sejjeshwar.
• Lord Rudra wanted to create the world with the highest qualities of Sattva. He was in penance for that. At that time, Brahma created the world with a mixture of Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas. Realizing that the world would not bear the wrath of Rudra, who had come from beneath in anger, Bhoomadevi bowed down to him and pleaded him to come out through her ear gently. She adored him and requested him to forgive Brahma's mistake and protect the created world. The place where Rudra emerged from the ear of mother earth is called Gokaranam. Hence, it is also called Rudrabhoomi.
• Once upon a time, many demons (Kalakeyas) entered the sea. They stayed in the water during the day, but came out at night and troubled people. Devas prayed to sage Agastya and asked him to drink all the water to drive away the demons. The sage did so, and the sea-bed dried up. Devas defeated the demons. Now Varuna, the lord of the ocean, was worried and prayed to sage Agastya to give him back his water. Agastya said that he had already digested it all and could not bring it back. Later, Varuna came to Gokarna, installed a Shiva Linga, and worshipped Lord Shiva. When Shankara asked him what boon he wanted, Varuna asked for his ocean water. Lord Shiva blessed Varuna that when the descendants of king Sagara of Ayodhya bring the Ganges to earth, the ocean would also get back its waters. Even today, the Sagareshwar Shivalinga can be seen outside the Mahabaleshwar temple.
• Parashurama is an incarnation of Vishnu. He was born to sage Jamadagni. As he pleased Lord Shiva with his penance, he was blessed with Parasu (axe). Hence he got the title "Parasu" Rama. There was a powerful king named Karthaviryarjuna. He wanted to forcibly take away Kamadhenu, who was under the care of sage Jamadagni. Kartaviryarjuna killed Jamadagni as the sage did not allow his cruel act. When Parashurama came to know about this, he realized how the ruling class misused power. So he fought with Karthaviryarjuna and killed him. He further cleansed the earth from the rulers who had misbehaved for 21 generations. Later, he did penance to calm his anger by worshipping Lord Shiva. He wanted to focus on penance. So, on the orders of Lord Shiva, he threw his axe into the sea to reclaim a new land as much as the axe had travelled. The land thus reclaimed is called Parasurama Kshetra. This land extends from Gokarna in the north to Suchindram in the south. Parashurama worshipped Lord Shiva at 108 places in this Parashurama Kshetram. Gokarana is the main place among them. (The Jamadagniswarar Shivalingam is inside the temple.)
• The Gokarna Purana or Gokarna khanda narrates the glories of Gokarna in 118 chapters. It belongs to the Sanatkumara Samhita of the Skanda Purana.
• The merits of this place are praised in texts such as the Brahmottra Kanda and the Upadesha Kanda.
• Kalidasa has mentioned Gokarneswara in the Raghuvamsa.

A hymn in praise of the Gokarna Kshetra:

गोकर्णं सा महाकाशी विश्वनाथो महाबलः । कोटितीर्थं तत्र गङ्गा समुद्रोऽयं विशिष्यते ॥ १॥ गुब्जामात्राधिकं काश्या गोकर्णमभिधीयते ॥ गोकर्णसदृशं क्षेत्रं नास्ति नास्ति जगत्रये ॥ २॥ सर्वेषां शिवलिङ्गानां सार्वभौमो महाबलः ॥ महावलसमं लिङ्गं न भूतं न भविष्यति ॥ ३ ॥ गङ्गादिसरितो यस्मात् सागरं प्रविशन्ति वै ॥ तस्मात् समुद्रो ह्यधिको गोकर्णे तद्विशिष्यते ॥ ४ ॥ आद्यं पशुपतेः स्थानं दर्शनादेव मुक्तिदं ।॥ यत्र पापोऽपि मनुजः प्राप्नोत्यभयदं पदम् ॥ पश्चिमाम्बुधितीरस्थम् गोकर्णं क्षेत्रमुत्तमम् ॥ महाबलसमं लिङ्गं नास्ति ब्रह्माण्डगोलके ॥ ६ ॥ पूर्वे मिडेश्वरं लिङ्ग दक्षिणे ह्यघनाशिनी ॥ उत्तरे शाल्मलीगङ्गा पश्चिमे लवणाम्बुधिः ॥ ७ ॥

gokarṇaṃ sā mahākāśī viśvanātho mahābalaḥ | koṭitīrthaṃ tatra gaṅgā samudro'yaṃ viśiṣyate || 1|| gubjāmātrādhikaṃ kāśyā gokarṇamabhidhīyate || gokarṇasadṛśaṃ kṣetraṃ nāsti nāsti jagatraye || 2|| sarveṣāṃ śivaliṅgānāṃ sārvabhaumo mahābalaḥ || mahāvalasamaṃ liṅgaṃ na bhūtaṃ na bhaviṣyati || 3 || gaṅgādisarito yasmāt sāgaraṃ praviśanti vai || tasmāt samudro hyadhiko gokarṇe tadviśiṣyate || 4 || ādyaṃ paśupateḥ sthānaṃ darśanādeva muktidaṃ ||| yatra pāpo'pi manujaḥ prāpnotyabhayadaṃ padam || paścimāmbudhitīrastham gokarṇaṃ kṣetramuttamam || mahābalasamaṃ liṅgaṃ nāsti brahmāṇḍagolake || 6 || pūrve miḍeśvaraṃ liṅga dakṣiṇe hyaghanāśinī || uttare śālmalīgaṅgā paścime lavaṇāmbudhiḥ || 7 ||

Meaning:-

(1) Gokarna is Mahakasi, Mahabala is Lord Vishwanath, Koti Theertham is Ganga; the ocean is also there, which makes it even more special. (2) Gokarna is a share more than Kashi, there is no place equal to it in the three worlds. (3) Mahabala is the emperor of all Shivalingas: He has no equal today and will never be. (4) The Samudra Tirtha in Gokarna is great because all the Tirthas, including the Ganga, join the sea here. (5) Mahabaleshwarar is Adi murti: He gives moksha just through his darshan; He gives salvation even to the sinful. (6) On the western bank is situated the perfect Gokarna; in the vast Universe there is no equal to Mahabala Lingam. (7) Siddheshwara in the east, Aghanasini in the south, Salmali Ganga in the north; Salt Sea in the west.

Thevaram Songs : Patikams : Sambandhar   - 1. என்றுமரி யானயல வர்க் (3.79);                      Appar -     1. சந்திரனுந் தண்புனலுஞ் (6.49); Songs:    Appar -    கால்களாற் பயனென் (4.9.9),   செழுநீர்ப் புனற்கெடில (6.7.5),                                            குற்றாலங் கோகரணம் (6.43.2),                                            தில்லைச் சிற்றம்பலமுஞ் (6.70.1);            Kapiladeva Nayanar  -       பார்கால்வான் நீர்தீப் (11.23.79 & 80) சிவபெருமான் திருவந்தாதி;                    Sekkizhar -       கூற்றுதைத்தார் மகிழ்ந்த (12.28.1027) திருஞானசம்பந்தர் நாயனார் புராணம்,                                            அம் மருங்கு கடந்து (12.21.350) திருநாவுக்கரசு சுவாமிகள் புராணம்.

श्री गोकर्ण क्षेत्रपुराणम्

Just as Lord Shiva appears as a mountain in Kailash and Goddess Parvati as a body of water (Manasa Sarovaram), here too, the Lord appears as a mountain (Shatashrunga) and the Goddess as a river (Tamragauri River).

• In this temple, you can see a Shivalinga the size of a walnut embedded in the Gomukhi.
• According to the custom of this temple, people can worship the deity by touching It, bathing It, and offering flowers.
• The temple is located near the beach. The beach is shaped like Omkar.
• There are gates in the south and west. You can go to the beach through the west gate.
• The itinerary of the Gokarna pilgrimage given in the Sthalapuranam:
  First one should take a bath at Kotitirtha and in the ocean. After worshiping Lord Vighnesvara and worship Lord Mahabaleshwara. After bathing in the ādigokarṇa one should worship that deity. After worshiping the Lord Shastreshwara, one should bathe in the Guhatirtha. After worshiping Lord Guheśvara one should then go to Tāmragaurī. After bathing there, one should worship that goddess according to the prescribed rituals. After worshiping Lord Gautameshwara, one should worship Lord Brahmā with the mind.  After worshiping Lord Indreshwara, one should worship Lord Kubereshwara. After bathing in the sacred Mārkaṇḍeyahada, one should offer obeisances to Lord Mārkaṇḍeyeshwara. Thereafter take bath in the holy Suryatirtha and worship Lord Suryeshwara. After bathing in the river which destroys all sins (Papavinashini) one should worship Lord Dharmeshwara. After taking a good bath in the holy Samvartatirtha, one should worship Lord Samvarteshwara. After bathing in the holy Dattatreyatirtha one should worship Lord Śambhu there. Then one should bow down to the goddess Mahākālī and worship Lord Vyṅkaṭeśa. After offering obeisances to Lord Viśvakarmeshwara, one should also offer obeisances to Elaputra. Thereafter take bath at Vyasatirtha and at Śukatirtha. Then one should take a bath in the Unmajjini and offer obeisances to Kapardin. Thereafter, one should bow down to Lord Kāmeśvara and worship the Harihara. Bow down to the three mantapas and worship Lord Vinayaka. After bathing in Agastyatirtha one should worship Lord Varadeshwara. One should worship Lord Kṛṣṇa and Lord Narasimha. Then one should worship Lord Hanumadishwara and the Ksetrapala. Thereafter one should bathe in Durgakunda and worship Nandini.  After bathing in the holy Nāgatirtha, one should worship Lord Nāgeśa. Then bow down to Lord Rāvaṇeshwara and other Ishwaras and worship Lord Vedeshwara.  After that one should take a bath in the holy Gāyatrītirhta and then in Savitritirtha. Then one should bathe in the  Sarasvatītirtha and worship Shivalinga there. Thereafter, one should bathe in a holy place known as Brahmatirtha and worship Lord Brahmeshwara.  Thereafter take  bath in Viswamitratirtha and worship Lord Vishvamitreshwara. Then one should bow down to Manibhadra and go to see Lord Brahmā.  After immersing oneself in the Pitṛsthālī, one should worship the Lord Pitṛsthālīshwara. After bathing in Vidhutapāpasthāli, one should worship Lord Amriteshwara. Then worship Lord Mahabaleshwara and complete the pilgrimage.
• Apart from this, the Dakshina Yatra and the Uttara Yatra are also mentioned in the Kshetra Purana.

• The main sanctum is small in size; there is a round pedestal on a square platform in the middle, and there is a crack in the southeast part of this pedestal; this is a golden-lined salagram pedestal. In the middle of this white palm-sized crater, a walnut-sized Mahabaleshwara Shivalinga is visible. We can touch and feel It. The sacred sight, which looks like a cow's ear, fills us with joy.
• "Dvibhuja" Vinayaka - His hair has a ridge on both sides and a hollow in the middle, like the head of an elephant. This is said to be the hollow caused by Ravana's bite.
• The Ambal shrine faces east - there is a pond called Tamrakunda on the side.
• Adi gokarneswara appears in a large Shivalinga formation in the water below ground level on the north side outside the temple walls.
• There are many Shivalinga temples in Gokarna that were worshipped by many devas and sages. The Kshetra Purana mentions 33 of them as the most important. They are: 1. brahmeśvaraṃ  2. kāmeśaṃ 3. saṃvartaṃ  4. kal̤aṃkal̤am 5. sanatkumāraṃ 6. kaumāraṃ 7. kauveryaṃ 8. sūryanāyakam 9. mārkaṇḍeyaṃ 10. dharmaśikhaṃ 11. śāstraṃ 12. vedeśvaraṃ 13. rasaliṅgaṃ  14. nāgaliṅgaṃ 15. sāvitraṃ 16. vāruṇaṃ  17. kauśikaṃ 18. kāmadahanaṃ 19. nādeśvara  20. bhāradvājaṃ 21. bhaumaṃ 22. saumitraṃ  23. gaṇeśvaram   24. agastyaṃ 25. nāradīyaṃ  26. sauparṇaṃ  27. vihāyasam 28. māhendraṃ 29. madhuparkaṃ 30. nārāyaṇaṃ 31. sthāneśvaraṃ 32. pañcabhūtaṃ 33. mahābalam
• The Gogarbha Cave in this temple is worth seeing.
• Visitors to this temple should first bathe in the Koti Theertham, then bathe in the sea, perform Pinda Tarpanam, bathe again, and then worship Mahabaleshwara.
• A ritual called Pishachaa Moksha is performed daily for the deceased.
• It is said that if one bathes in the Tamra Gauri river on a full moon day and worship Lord Shiva, the Brahmahatti dosha will be removed.
• The Tripura Dahana festival is held on the full moon day of Kartika month.
• The Atmalinga Puja is held once every 40 years. At that time, the pedestal is removed, the Puja is performed, and devotees are also allowed to have darshan.
• The 9-day Brahmotsava is held on the occasion of Maha Shivratri.
• On the evening of Deepavali, the wedding procession of Lord Mahabaleshwar arrives at Gangavalli.
• There are 18 inscriptions.
• There is an inscription of Kadamba Chakravarthy at the Kameswara Mutt near Koti tirtha. The king's two sons built the Kameshwara Mutt and gave grants for religious services to be held there. The inscription also mentions the nearby Hariardha (Harihara) Murthy.
• During the reign of the Kadamba king Kāvadevarāsa, a mutt (monastic establishment) was constructed at the Dhāreśvara kṣetra in Gokarṇa and was granted to the king’s preceptor, Puruṣottamapuri Srīpāda.
• There is an inscription of Vijayanagara Bukkaraya.
• Another inscription states that Harihara Raya's son built a charity house here and provided grants.
• An inscription dated to Śaka year 1315 records that, during the reign of Harihara Mahārāya, when Mahāpradhāna Mallappa Udaiyār was administering this region, certain shettys made a donation before Mahābaleśvara for the maintenance of the anna satra (charitable feeding house).
• There exists an inscription which records that, in the Śaka year 1326, on the day of a lunar eclipse, during the reign of the Vijayanagara ruler Virapratāpa Harihara Mahārāya, one Icchappa Vādeya, the great minister (Karnāṭa Mahāpradhāna) from Goa, granted the village of Heppārūvana Taṭṭakāra to Sarvajña Sarasvatī of the Ādityeśvara Svāmī temple at Gokarṇa.
• An inscription dated to Śaka year 1339, located in the front maṇḍapa of the temple, records that during the period when the son of Mahāpradhāna Paṅgarāsa Wodeyar governed this region from Honnavar, land was granted for the maintenance of the dharmaśālā (charitable rest-house) and for providing food to ascetics.
• A 14th-century inscription records that lands in four villages were granted by Mādarasa Wodeyar to provide food for the Brāhmaṇas serving in the Mahābaleśvara and Amṛteśvara temples, to be maintained at the Pāsannodēya Maṭha.
• A 14th-century inscription from the reign of Vijayanagara ruler Bukkarāya records that, in accordance with Bukkarāya’s command, Basaveya Dhanāyaka granted lands in the village of Huppanakerē as a tax-free endowment (sarvamānya) to Paramahaṁsa Parivrājaka Ācārya Śrī Vedasāgara Srīpāda, for the purposes of offerings (nivedana) and for keeping the sacred lamps burning in the temple of Vedēśvara Svāmī at Gokarṇa.
• An inscription dated to Śaka year 1475, from the reign of the Vijayanagara ruler Sadāśivarāya, records that Paṭṭakala Gaṇapaṇa Jōyiṣa and several others granted lands to the Vaiśravaṇeśvara temple at Gokarṇa for charitable purposes.
• It records the voluntary donation of lands in Ashtagrama in the Goa region by Saluva Krishnadevaraya Wodeyar, son of Vijayanagara king Sadashiva Raya.
• A 15th-century inscription, found on the wall of the Tāmragauri temple, records that Mahāpradhāna Manju Nāyaka granted the village of Hosa Ūru to Mābala Liṅga Bhaṭṭa for the upkeep of the satra (charitable feeding house) within the temple of Goddess Tāmragauri. It further states that Rāghavendra Srīpāda of the Hampi Devarāya Maṭha was appointed to oversee this charitable endowment.
• A 15th-century inscription records that Vittaladevī, the queen of Vīra Bukkarāya, made a donation for the anna satra (charitable feeding house) at Gokarṇa, in the presence of the royal preceptor Īśvara Bhaṭṭa.
• Another 15th-century inscription records that Honnādevī, the queen of Vīra Bukkarāya, made a donation for the anna satra (charitable feeding house) at Gokarṇa, in the presence of Mahābaleśvara.
• In Śaka year 1608, during the reign of Sōmasekhara Nāyaka, various endowments were made from multiple sources of revenue for conducting diverse rituals and services in honour of Mahābaleśvara at Gokarṇa.
• An inscription dated to Śaka year 1771, found at the entrance of the Amṛteśvara temple, records that renovation works were carried out in the temple by Lakṣmayya of Haradi.
• An inscription situated above the western entrance of the Rangamaṇḍapa in the Mahābaleśvara temple records that the Rangamaṇḍapa was completed in the 18th century under the supervision of Visveśvarayya of Malasu-nāḍu.
• Several other inscriptions of this kind also record donations made in support of the anna satra (charitable feeding house).
• At this site, four copper-plate charters bearing seals have been discovered. One Kannada charter records that in the year 1256 CE, on the day of a lunar eclipse in the month of Māsi, during the reign of the Kadamba king Vīra Kāvadevarāsa (also called Kāmadeva), a devotee of Madhukeśvara, lands were granted as a tax-free endowment (sarvamānya) in the presence of Mahābaleśvara to Āhitāgni Maheśvara Bhaṭṭa of the Viśvāmitra gotra and others.

॥श्रीः॥
नमस्तुंग शिरस्तुंग चन्द्रचामर चारवे ।
त्रैलोक्यनगरारम्भ मूलस्तम्भाय शम्भवे ॥
स्वस्ति श्रीमज्जयाभ्युदय नृपशालीवाहनशकवर्ष १३१३ प्रवर्तमान प्रजापति नाम संवत्सरे उत्तरायणे वसन्त ऋतौ वैशाखमासे कृष्णेपक्षे अमायां सौम्य वासरे सूर्योपरागे भार्गव श्वामित्रां‍ऽगिरस :वासिष्ठेभ्यो महद्भ्यो ब्राह्मणेभ्यो श्रीमन्माधवाचार्यैर्दत्त ताम्रलेखन पत्रवर्णन पत्रिका इयम् ॥

इतः पूर्वं श्री मयूरवर्माख्यो राजा यात्रालुः श्री मद्गोकर्ण क्षेत्रमगात् । तत्र तावदाभीराभिः व्याप्तं महाबलं दृष्ट्वा अब्राह्मण्यं मन्वानो व्याकुल चित्तः सन् स्वविषयं प्रत्याजगाम । तदा कतिपयाहस्सु गतेषु ब्राह्मण्याधिष्ठितं पाञ्चालदेशमभिययौ । तत्र साग्निमतो विप्रानाहूय बहुशो द्रव्यवितरेण सन्तोष्य श्रीगोकर्णक्षेत्र निवासाय स्थितये च पर्यालोच्य तैः साकमागत्य तत्र स्थापयां चक्रे । ते वै शत शृंगोपत्यकासु निवसन्तः श्री महाबलेश्वरार्चनं बहुकालं निन्युः । ततश्चोरभीताः पलायनपराः सन्तो ब्रह्मदेशमेवाऽभिसेदुः । पुनस्तदब्राह्मण्यमासीत् । स एव चक्रवर्ती निशम्य छद्मना नैपथ्यान्तरं दधानो झटिति तमेव दक्षिण पांचालदेशमधिगम्य भूसुराणां वास्तुनि पृथक् पृथक् सुवर्णमेकैकं निधाय हायनं निन्ये । किमेतदिति सन्दिग्धास्तमन्वेषमाणाः स्युः । द्वित्रिदिने दृक्पथम् गतो मयूरवर्माऽपि ब्रह्मनिष्ठान् वशीकृत्य चतुर्विंशति संख्याकान् यजनशीलान् समादाय तेष्वष्टौ भार्गव प्रभृति चतुष्टय गोत्र प्रवरान् संगृह्य परिशिष्ट षोडश संस्कार युतेभ्यः महतः अग्रहार प्रवृत्ति प्रदानेन दक्षिण प्रान्तदेशे स्थापयित्वा पुनः पूर्ववत् गोकर्णे स्थापयांचक्रे । मुहुर्मुहुः क्षेत्रं हित्वा स्वदेशगतान् तान् देशीय वेष भाषाभ्यां च विनिमय्य तेभ्यो वृत्तिस्वाम्यं अदात् । वृत्तिस्तु- श्रीताम्रगौरीसमेतश्रीमन्महाबलेश्वरस्य त्रिषवणेषु महापूजोपचारं अग्रिम मान्यत्वं च भार्गव गोत्रोद्भवाय सर्वतन्त्रस्वतन्त्रत्वं,नियन्तृत्वं च, विश्वामित्र गोत्रोद्भवाय आचार्यत्वं दण्डनेतृत्वं च, अंगीरसगोत्रोद्भवाय समय निर्णेतृत्वं, वासिष्ठगोत्रोद्भवाय श्री सन्निधौ क्षेत्रवाशिनां चातुर्वर्ण्यानां नियोज्य योजकत्वं युष्मानेवाभिसरतु, इत्याज्ञापयित्वाऽगात् । अथ कस्मिंश्चित् समये हुब्बाइकाह्वयेन केनचित्सामन्तः चाण्डालेन बीबत्सवो भूत्वा भ्रष्टयाजनपरा निर्गत्य श्रीभट्टभास्कर पण्डित धुरीणं प्राप्य ते तु स्वोदन्तं व्यजिज्ञपुः- (तत्कथा वर्ण्यते)-नर्मदा दक्षिणस्यां कर्नाटकदेशे तुंगभद्रानदीतीरे पंपानामसरः क्षेत्रं चास्ति अदावस्य विजयानगर इति । तत्र वैदिकमार्गप्रवर्तको बुक्क भूपालः सार्वभौमो बोभवीतिस्म । तत्कुलगुरुः मन्त्री राजकार्य दुरन्धरः माधवाचार्यः यः शास्त्रे लौकिके व्यवहारे च तस्य महती प्रतिष्ठाऽऽसीत् । तस्य जन्म, शा.शके १३००-१३१३? सूक्तकाले साक्षतोदक पूर्वकं मयूर वर्मप्रभृति लोकादित्य शास्त्रानुसारेणैव भुक्क भूपति समक्षं -वृत्तिं ताम्रशासनं च दत्तवान् । स्वयम् श्रीमत्सकल साम्राज्य दुरन्धरेण बुक्कभूपतिसूनोः हरिहरस्य मन्त्रीभूत्वा, अन्ते ऐहिक सुखनिरपेक्षेण माधवाचार्येण अपरस्मिन् वयसि चतुर्थाश्रमः स्वीकृतः । तस्मिन्नाश्रमेऽपि श्रीमद्भगवतः शंकराचार्यस्य शारदापीठे शृंगबेरपुरे तत्पट्टाधिकारमुररीकृत्य शंकराचार्यात् षड्विंशतितमो विद्यारण्यभारतिरासीत् । श्रीमच्छंकराचार्य भगवत्पादपूज्य शंकरानन्दभारति स्थिति समये भट्टभास्कर संज्ञको महापण्डितवर्यः शाक्तोऽभूत् । अथ तान् मिलित्वा श्री भास्करपण्डितवर्योऽपि श्री गॊकर्णमण्डलवासिनां-इक्केरि, बेळगि, सिद्धापुर, (बुधापुर) सोदापुर, मल्लापुरान्तवर्तिनां तद्राजाधिराजप्रभृतिभ्यः सामन्तेभ्यो दापितताम्रसाधनेन संगृहीत श्रीमन्महाबलेश्वर प्रसाद प्रसन्नानां प्रतिवर्षं वर्तमान वर्तिष्यमाण वर्षाशन भूस्वास्थ्यं सर्वकर्मसु बहुमान्यं च दत्तवान् । अद्य प्रभृति अविच्छिन्न सन्तति पारम्पर्य धर्मनिष्ठाः श्री गोकर्णक्षेत्रे आचन्द्रार्कं निवसन्तु । अलं पल्लवितैः अत्र साक्षिणः-आदित्य चन्द्रावनिलोऽनलश्च द्यौर्भूमिरापो हृदयं यमश्च ।
अहश्च रात्रिश्च उभेच सन्ध्ये धर्मोऽपि जानाति नरस्य वृत्तम् ॥
॥ श्री रस्तु ॥
इदं- दत्तात्रेयेश्वरस्य पूर्वस्यां द्वादशधनुष्प्रमाणे शिलालेखनमस्ति ॥ शा.शके-१७९५ लब्धमेतत् ॥
॥ शुभमस्तु ॥

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