Sri Mahabaleshwar Temple is located in Gokarna, Uttara Kannda district in Karnataka, South India. The main deity of this temple is Sri Mahabaleshwar (Lord Shiva) and his consort is Tambra Gouri.
The holy tree of this temple is none. The holy water of this temple is Krupa Theertham. The agamam or pooja of this temple is known as Kameeyam. This temple is nearly 1000-2000 years old in this region. The historical name of this place is Tirukokarnam.
Gnanasambandar is the poet who is greatly associated with this temple. The festivals that are associated with this temple are 9 day Mahasivarathri, on the Poornima-full moon day, Tripuradhahana festival in Karthikai (November-December), Shivarathri day, Vaikunta Ekadashi, Amavasya, pournima and other Lord Shiva associated important occasions and auspicious days. In this temple, Lord is a swayambu murthy.
The temple is open for devotees and pilgrims from 6.00 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. and 5.00 p.m. to 8.30 p.m.
According to the local legends, “As the Lord is in the form of mount as in Kailash and the Goddess in the form of River, it is believed that She flows here as a river. The mount and the river are adjacent to each other here. Girivalam is very famous in places where Lord Shiva is in hill form. Here, Girivalam is not possible due to the river flowing. This is a salvation sthala – place.” It is an important temple in this region and south India that is visited by far and near devotees and pilgrims.