This small, yet important town is found in Karnataka. Its origins are lost in time but it is said that in Dvapara-yuga the Yadava clan came here on a retreat. Lord Balarama was so enamored by the beauty of this place that He presented the town with the Deity of Sri Sampat Kumara. Later in history, Ramanujacarya came here from Tamil Nadu when the Saivite king Krimikanta was persecuting the Sri Vaisnavas.

Ramanuja stayed here for about 18 years. During that time he discovered the Deity of Lord Tirunarayana hidden in an ant-hill and also established a Deity of himself for his devotees to worship.

Melkote also has a temple of Sri Yoga-Narasingha which is said to have manifested from a salagrama-sila that was worshipped by Prahlada Maharaja when he came here in Satya-yuga.

With its temples of Sri Sampat Kumara and Yoga Narasinghadeva, its Sanskrit Academy and traditional Sri Vaisnava residents, Melkote remains an important center of Sri Vaisnavism.