The Hoysaleswara Hindu temple is dedicated to Shiva. It was built in the first half of 12th century in Halebid (previously called Dwarasamudra, Hale bidu means "old capital"), sponsored by King Vishnuvardhana of the Hoysala Empire. During the early 14th century, Halebidu temple site along with others were sacked, looted and much artwork damaged (particularly nose/face, hands) by Muslim invaders from northern India (Khilji dynasty and Tughlaq dynasty of Delhi Sultanate).

The temple belongs to the Shaivism tradition of Hinduism, yet reverentially presents its Vaishnavism and Shaktism tradition legends and ideas.

The relief panels present legends from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, the Puranas. Vedic deities such as Agni, Indra and Surya, various avatars of Vishnu, the Hindu goddesses such as Saraswati, Lakshmi avatars, Durga, Kali among others are presented. The carving is three dimensional where reliefs often emerge as statues with depth. Panels are continuous, with one perspective showing one part of the legend, a perpendicular perspective of the same column or wall or corner showing another part of the same legend. The carving material was soapstone.