Hampi is a village in northern Karnataka state, India. The name is derived from Pampa, which is the old name of the Tungabhadra River on whose banks the city is built. Hampi is located within the ruins of Vijayanagara, the former capital of the Vijayanagara empire. The village of Hampi contains several other monuments belonging to the old city. It extends into some of the old ceremonial streets of Vijayanagara.

Hampi is well known for the historical Kishkindha, the Vanara (monkey) kingdom which finds mention in the Ramayana.

Hampi is situated on the banks of the Tungabhadra river. It is 353 km from Bangalore, 254 km from Bijapur and 74 km away from Bellary. Hosapete, 13 km away, is the nearest taluka headquarters. The chief language spoken is Kannada. The principal industries of the village are agriculture, the support of the Virupaksha temple and some other local holy places in the vicinity, and tourism. The annual Vijayanagar Festival is organized by the Government of Karnataka in November.

Hampi has a divine culture with a number of beautiful historical temples. These temples bestow in them, the heritage of the village. Their architectural beauty is ecstatic. Some of the well known temples of Hampi are:

Virupaksha Temple Also known as the Pampapathi temple, it is a Shiva temple situated in the Hampi Bazaar. It predates the founding of the Vijayanagar empire. The temple has a 160 foot high tower at its entrance. Apart from Shiva, the temple complex also contains shrines of the Hindu goddesses Bhuvaneshwari and Pampa.

AchyutaRaya Temple Achyutaraya Temple is a large complex built by an officer of the King Achyutaraya, Salakaraju Tirumaladeva. This temple is better known as Achyutaraya temple, in whose period it was built rather than the name of the deity "Tiruvengalanatha" or Lord Venkateshwara.

Shri Vijayavitthala Temple This temple signifies the competition between man and Vishwakarma (the Architect God of Hindus). This wonderful monument is dedicated to Lord Vitthala or Lord Vishnu. Legend has it that Lord Vishnu found it too grand to live in and thus returned to his own humble home. The Stone Chariot is situated to the east of the temple hall. This is the most amazing monument in Hampi and is portrayed as the icon for Hampi.

Hazari Rama Temple This temple for Lord Rama is popularly called "Hazari Rama Temple" or "Hazara Rama Temple" because of the large number of Ramayana panels on the walls. This temple is believed to have been the private place of worship of the Royal family. This is the only temple in Hampi where the exterior walls have boldly chiseled bas-reliefs.

These bas-reliefs are narrative in nature. The Ramayana is carved in detail. Incidents in the story like the birth of Rama, his exile into the forest, the abduction of Sita and the ultimate fight between Rama and Ravana are all carved in a vibrant manner. In these panels, the story of Rama and through it the triumph of good over evil is brought out.

Balakrishna Temple Krishnadevaraya built this temple in 1513 A.D. to commemorate his victory over Prataparudra Gajapati, the ruler of Orissa. During the battle he seized an image of child Krishna and brought it to Vijayanagara as war trophy. He then built this temple to sanctify the image. An inscription describing the invasion and the sanctification of this temple on 16 February 1515 by Krishnadevaraya is found on a slab in front of this temple. Built in the centre of a courtyard, the temple possesses a chamber, an antechamber, an ardha mantapa, a circumambulatory passage, a pillared hall with three entrances and an open pillared mantapa, in addition to a number of other shrines for the attendant deities.

Pattabhirama Temple The temple contains two inscriptions of King Achyuta Raya. The various parts of the temple complex are contained within a large rectangular enclosure. The God's sanctum with its axial mantapas is situated in the centre of the courtyard. A pillared colonnade runs along the inside of the wall round the courtyard. The tall five storeyed east gopura is in a bad state of preservation.

The divinity of Hampi, is the utmost reason why tourists should visit this village. The purity of God’s blessings along with scenic beauty is what the village has in store for visitors.