Murudeshwara temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, lies in the holy beach town in the Bhatkal Taluk of Uttara Kannada district in the state of Karnataka, India

Murudeshwara temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, lies in the holy beach town in the Bhatkal Taluk of Uttara Kannada district in the state of Karnataka, India. Situated between the Honnavar and Bhatkal town, The statue of Shiva here is the worlds tallest and it lies on the coast of the Arabian Sea. The name “Murudeshwara” means Shiva or Eeshwara. Origin of the name "Murudeshwara" dates to the time of Ramayana. It is believed that one gets immortality and invincibility by worshipping a divine Lingam called the Atma-Linga. Ravana wanted to attain immortality by obtaining the Atma-Linga, Soul of Shiva. Since the Atma-Linga belonged to Lord Shiva, Ravana worshipped Shiva with devotion, requests the AtmaLinga as his boon. Shiva gives Linga with a condition that it should never be placed on the ground. If it was then all the powers would return to Shiva again. Narada plays a trick and seeks Ganesha help. ‪They plan to dislodge the AtmaLinga from Ravana. Ravana was tricked and Lingam was placed on the ground. Ravana tried to uproot and destroy the Linga . Due to the force exerted by Ravana, some pieces were scattered. One such piece from the head of the linga is said to have fallen in present day Surathkal .The famous Sadashiva temple is said to be built around that piece of linga. Then he decided to destroy the covering of the AtmaLinga, and threw the case covering it to a place called Sajjeshwara. Then he threw the lid of the case to a place called Guneshwara (now Gunavanthe) and Dhareshwara. Finally, he threw the cloth covering the AtmaLinga to a place called Mrideshwara in Kanduka-Giri (Kanduka Hill). Mrideshwara has been renamed to Murudeshwara.
Har Har Mahadev ~ Om Namah Shivaya!!