The unfinished materials abandoned at the site, the architectural drawings carved on the rocks, and the mason's marks have helped scholars understand the temple construction techniques of 11th-century India.

Archaeology professor Kirit Mankodi dates the temple to the later part of Bhoja's reign, around mid-11th century.

[3] The Udaipur Prashasti inscription of the later Paramara rulers states that Bhoja "covered the earth with temples" dedicated to the various aspects of Shiva, including Kedareshvara, Rameshwara, Somanatha, Kala, and Rudra.

The Jain writer Merutunga, in his Prabandha-Chintamani, states that Bhoja constructed 104 temples in his capital city of Dhara alone.

[4] According to a legend in Merutunga's Prabandha-Chintamani, when Bhoja visited Srimala, he told the poet Magha about the "Bhojasvāmin" temple that he was about to build, and then left for Malwa (the region in which Bhojpur is located).

[1] The Bhojpur temple features several peculiar elements, including the omission of a mandapa connected to the garbhagriha (sanctum), and the rectilinear roof instead of the typical curvilinear shikhara (dome tower).

Based on these peculiarities, researcher Shri Krishna Deva proposed that the temple was a funerary monument.

This fragmentary text describes the construction of memorial temples erected over the remains of a dead person, conceived of as vehicles for ascent to the heaven.

He speculates that Bhoja may have started the construction of this shrine for the peace of soul of his father Sindhuraja or of his uncle Munja, who suffered a humiliating death in enemy territory.

[9] The reasons are not known, but historians speculate that the abandonment may have been triggered by a sudden natural disaster, a lack of resources, or a war.

Based on this, archaeologist KK Muhammed theorizes that the roof could have collapsed due to a mathematical error made while calculating the load; subsequently, circumstances might have prevented Bhoja from rebuilding it.

[10] The evidence from the abandoned site has helped the scholars understand the mechanics and organisation of 11th century temple construction.

[11] To the north and the east of the temple, there are several quarry sites, where unfinished architectural fragments in various stages of carving were found.

Also present are the remains of a large sloping ramp erected for carrying the carved slabs from the quarries to the temple site.

These marks were meant to identify the amount of work completed by individuals, families or guilds involved in the construction.

[13] In 1951, the site was handed over to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) for conservation, in accordance with the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act 1904.

The monolith was procured from the area near Agra after a nationwide search for material matching the stone originally used in the temple.

To further prevent the rainwater from getting in, the ASI also closed the portion between the wall and the superstructure by placing slanting stone slabs.

In addition, the ASI placed new stone veneers matching the original ones on the northern, southern and western exterior walls of the temple.

According to Kirit Mankodi, the shikhara was intended to be a low pyramid-shaped samvarana roof, usually featured in the mandapas.

[24][25] The Government of Madhya Pradesh organises the Bhojpur Utsav cultural event at the site every year around Maha Shivaratri.

[26] Past performers at the event include Kailash Kher,[27] Richa Sharma, Ganna Smirnova,[26] and Sonu Nigam.