Dedicated to Lord Ganesha, Idagunji is a highly popular and revered site that receives more than a million pilgrims every year. The temple, built around the 4-5th century is at the heart of many religious legends and beliefs of the region. A mythological legend suggests that this was where Lord Ganesha had descended on earth. This was at the end of the dwapara-yuga and at the beginning of the kali-yuga. Because of the transition period between the two ages, the saints in the region were not able to perform rituals.

They appealed to sage Narada, who formed the link between the gods and the humans and suggested that Lord Ganesha, who is the remover of all obstacles, was the only one who could come to their rescue. Lord Ganesha heeded Naradas request and descended to this spot near the Sharavati river. The temple is supposed to have been built by these sages as a mark of their gratitude towards Lord Ganesha for removing the obstacles and safeguarding their rituals.

One of the interesting features of this temple is that Lord Ganesh is seen in his rare Dvibhuja avatar, a standing pose in which he holds a modak (sweet) in one hand and a lotus bud in the other. Locals believe that visiting six temples in the region, Idagunji being one of the prominent among these, within the span of one day, between sunrise and sunset, brings great luck and blessings from Lord Ganesha.