Eternal India Encyclopedia

Eternal India encyclopedia

ARCHITECTURE

Although only the entrance hall has remained intact, this magnificent ruin has on its walls sculptures of beauty covering every aspect of life - scenes of love and war, trade and court transactions, hunting, catching of elephants, sages teaching, childbirth, amorous dalliances, dancers and mythical figures vie with each other for attention on the panels and niches of this immortal work of art. The architecture and iconographic programme show that it was built to facilitate worship of the Sun God, although daily sun rituals, monthly ceremonies, equinoxes and eclipses formed part of the basic functions. The concept of the temple as a chariot is used here, while the seven horses dragging the chariot is part of the design of 12 pairs of wheels of the massive plinth representing the 12 months, each wheel being 3 metres in diameter with 8 major and 8 minor spokes and carved in detail with decorative foliate motifs and figures. Manuscripts dealing with the temples tell us of the wheels being related to a sign of the zodiac. This Hindu temple architecture in Orissa is among the most clearly perceived development in Indian art. The art of the Rajput is commonly remembered for miniature painting but the monumental religious architecture and sculpture produced prior to the 16th century comprises an important chapter in the history of south Asian art. It fulfilled the major northern Indian style temple tradition. The art of the Gurjara Prathiharas (730- 1027) includes Gupta idiom and those under the Maitrakas as well as those from the Vakataka Kalachuri styles. Surviving sculptures, such as those from Bharatpur (the marriage of Shiva and Parvati), depict the female as full-bodied and fleshy but the facial features are hardened. The forms of Shiva sway into an angular Tribhanga posture, and his jewellery is overpowering and precisely depicted. The architecture of the period may be studied at Osian (near Jodhpur) where 116 remaining temples testify to its cultural emi- nence. KHAJURAHO The Chandellas of Bhundelkhand established their supremacy in Bundelkhand around Khajuraho where significant architecture re- mains are located. Traditionally over 80 temples are of Chandella construction, although only 20 remain. They represent a ho- mogenous group and were a product of royal patronage belonging to Shaivite, Vaishnavite and Jain religions. Their styles link them together distinguishing them from temples of the North Indian type at other sites in India. The temples such as the Chausath Yogini temple of ninth C A.D. constructed out of granite, is exceptional in subject matter. It is related to Hindu tantric practice particularly to kapalika practice in which the female was given great importance as the seat of the self whereby the realisation of the self was located in the yoni. Related to the tantric concept are the vulva and numerous mithunas on the exterior walls of the temple in mildly erotic, precoital and coital postures which often raises the question of erotic images on religious monuments. The Lakshmana temple is an example of active poses of figures in 3D and almost freed from the background. Researches (such as the one by Devangana De- sai) explain them as one commonly practised by royalty, as well as due to magical practices and securing the walls of the temples between joints where they are placed as motifs. In addition are the celestial beings, figures of gods and goddesses and decorative motifs. The Lakshmana temple typical of the period of A.D. 954 was erected by Yosovarman and dedicated to Vishnu caturmurti. The figure was said to be acquired by him as booty. The temple

like a coat of arms. It consists of an elaborate archway topped with a lion-head, with a dwarfish figure leaning against the arch on either side. There is the figure of a lion both above and below it. The intermediary ribs are decorated with small replicas of the tower, placed one above the other. On the top of the tower there is a big cushion-like structure and above this is a 'kalasa' topped by the trident of Shiva. The walls of the temple have niches houring various deities. The niches are separated by carvings of lion--, crouching on ele- phants or figures of maidens. Another temple, known as the Muktesvara at Bhubaneshwar is the gem of Orissan art, one of the highest achievements of Orissa art datable to the tenth C A.D., reign of Yayati I, king of Somavamsi dynasty. Its importance is -not only in its beauty and architectural perfection but also as a watershed in the development of Orissa architecture marking the transition between the ’early’ and ’late’ developments of style; the early structures consist of only two

main parts (deuls and jagmohan ) while the later structure is of four separate units. An unusual feature is the torana which is heavy, with an arch built out of a separate piece of stone, including makara ends, female figure pillars and niches. With the coming of the Gangas a number of Vaishnavite temples were erected (the former were Saivite) including the famous Jagannath temple at Puri which is in active worship and the great Lingaraja temple and the Ananta Vasudeva temple at Bhubaneshwar. The Sun temple at Konarak (with a lost sikhara) was built by Narasimhadeva in 1251 A.D., for the Sun God. This stands on a deserted stretch of coast in Orissa, overlooking the Bay of Bengal. The sailors navigating the shore called it the "Black Pagoda" to distinguish it from the "White Pagoda" - the famous Jagannatha temple twenty miles up the coast in Puri. The temple was built to commemorate Narasingha Deva’s victories over the Muslims, who were pushing into Orissa from the east. It was famous even during the time of Akbar. Abul Fazl, the court biographer of Emperor Akbar the Great, wrote: "Near Jagannath (Puri) is a temple dedicated to the Sun. Its cost was defrayed by twelve years' revenue of the province. Even those whose judgment is critical stand astonished at the sight.... Twenty- eight temples stand in its vicinity, six before the entrance and twenty two within the enclosure, each of which has its separate legend."