Jyeshthesa Temple is one of the ancient shrines in the Kashmir area. The temple is situated at
Wangath and is smaller than the
Martand temple. Dating back to the 7th-8th century, both these temples were built by King Lalitaditya.
The temple is similar in structure with other Kashmiri temples and has a domical ceiling. The external roof is pyramidal in shape. The ceiling, built of circular courses of kanjur stone, is crowned by a full-blown lotus at the apex. The core of the roof consists of rubble-stone masonry in lime. The specialty of the temple is its entrance. There are two entrances which are opposite to each other in the north-east and south-west directions.
Nearby are the Bhuteshwara temple and other small shrines. Due to age and neglect, most of the small shrines are in a dilapidated state. These small temples have flat ceilings of rectangular stone slabs resting on transverse stone beams that are supported by columns.
By road, Jyeshthesa temple can be accessed from Srinagar – the capital of Jammu and Kashmir. The nearest railway station is at Jammu and the nearest airport is Srinagar Airport.
