Melukote in Pandavapura taluk of Mandya district, Karnataka, in southern India, is one of the sacred places in Karnataka. It is built on rocky hills, known as Yadugiri, Yaadavagiri or Yadushaila, overlooking the Cauvery valley. Melukote is about 51 km (32 miles) from Mysore and 133 km (83 mi) from Bangalore.

Melukote is the location of the Cheluvanarayana Swamy Temple, with a collection of crowns and jewels which are brought to the temple for the annual celebration. On the top of the hill is the temple of Yoganarasimha. Many more shrines and ponds are located in the town. Melukote is home to the academy of Sanskrit Research, which has collected thousands of Vedic and Sanskrit manuscripts.

Early in the 12th century, the famous Sri Vaishnava saint Sri Ramanujacharya, who hailed from present day Tamil Nadu, stayed at Melukote for about 12 years. It has thus become a prominent centre of the Sri Vaishnava sect.

Melukote has very dark history of Tipu Sultan's soldiers attacked a temple while diwali puja was going. 1500 Mandyam Iyengars were massacred .After the attack and massacre, people of Melukote stopped celebrating diwali since 1790.

Melukote is a village and a historic place of the same name, situated at a distance of 36 km (22 miles) north-west of Mandya, and 51 km (32 miles) north of Mysore.

According to mythological account, this place was known as Narayanadri, Vedadri, Yadavadri, Yathishaila and Tirunarayanapuram.

The name of the place is derived from the temple of Narayanaswamy which is built on the hillock, surrounded by a fort. It is built on a rocky hill-range named Yadugiri, which is 3,589 feet (1,094 m) high above sea level. The village is the only settlement in Mandya district, located above 1000 metres.

In the 12th century, the Sri Vaishnava saint Ramanujacharya took up his residence in this location for about 14 years. As a result, it became a prominent centre of Sri Vaishnavism. Large numbers of Iyengar Brahmins migrated and settled in the region, forming the Mandyam Iyengar community.