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There can be no doubt that the shikhara in the shape of a finial (kalasha) or an amalaka (a circular ribbed stone disk) was the most attractive features from a distance. But the hill temples could not possibly have a massive shikhara that we find in Orissa or in the South. Earthquakes and landslides are not uncommon. Jagatsukh temple near Manali and the rock-cut temple complex of Masrur in Kangra are, probably, the earliest of such temples and belong lo the early 8th century.
The Visheshwar or Basheshwar Mahadev temple at Bajaura in the Kulu valley was built probably a century or two later and is a good example of the shikhara temple. The Mani Mahes temple at Bharmaur in Chamba district is another example. Raja Shahil Varman (920---40 A.D.) built this.
The other examples are the temple of Baijnath (13th century) and a number of later temples of this type in Mandi in the 16th century and later. In Kulu we find pyramidal carved temples and examples are those at Mangalor, Bajaura, Manikaran, Jagatsukh and Nagar. The Baijnath temple in Kangra resembles the Orissa temple. It is not unlikely that some of the Orissan architects might have been brought to construct this temple.
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