[1] The temple is dedicated to Shiva, who is also known as "Vishvanatha" (IAST: Viśvanātha), meaning "Lord of the Universe".

It features several sculptures of various deities, surasundaris (celestial maidens), couples making love, and mythical creatures.

This suggests that Dhanga built the temple after attaining a high political status as a sovereign.

[19] The base of the temple has several niches with sculptures of the Saptamatrikas (seven goddesses), Shiva's consort Parvati and a dancing Ganesha.

[15][19] The exterior portion above the base has three bands featuring sculptures of various deities, surasundaris (female figures) such as apsaras, and mythical creatures.

The surasundaris are shown performing various day-to-day activities, such as applying sindoor (vermilion powder) to their foreheads and kohl to their eyes, wringing their hair after bathing, playing flute, plucking thorn from their feet, dancing, admiring themselves in a mirror, dressing or simply posing provocatively.

[15][19] The parikrama passage in the sanctum features what Ali Javid and Tabassum Javeed call the "most striking carvings of females in Khajuraho".

[15][20] The junction of the vestibule and the sanctum features a variation of the famous "acrobatic sex" sculpture at the newer Kandariya Mahadeva temple.

Colonial arts administrator Ernest B. Havell considered these as a product of a decadent phase in the Hindu society.

[21] Vidya Dehejia, a professor of South Asian Art at Columbia University, states that these sculptures depict the rites of the Kaula and Kapalika sects.

Thus, these sects provided a theological excuse for the over-indulgent Chandela rulers to engage in "the most debased practices".

[22] According to the Indian art historian Devangana Desai, the erotic sculptures at Vishvanatha and Kandariya Mahadeva Temples served the following functions:[23] Fred Kleiner, a professor of art and architecture at Columbia University, believes these sculptures symbolise "fertility and propagation of life and serve as auspicious protectors" of the sacred temple.

This depiction is based on the belief that the universe is a result of the "cosmic union of male and female elements".