Preface
This little book on the Sri Brihadisvara temple at Tanjore, owes its origin to a wish to supply the long-felt want of a con-nected account of a great Chola edifice, considered to be " by far the grandest in India". The monumental archeological series of Hultzsch and Venkayya, and the literature that has gathered round the temple during the last 40 years and more would form a life study for one interested in the beginnings of South Indian History and Temple architecture. An attempt, however, is here made to place within a small compass what all that might interest a casual visitor. If the book would help him to a better understanding of, and a further search for knowledge about the temple than what he finds on a mere visit to this great House of God, the author would be more than content. Among the many friends who have kindly helped me in this task my special thanks are due to Dr. M. Krishnamachariar, M.A., M.L., Ph. D., etc., Madras Judicial Service, whose first suggestion to me for a Monograph and to contribute articles on these subjects to the Press was encouraging; to Messrs. C. Vedachalam, B.A., B.L., and T. N. Ramachandran, i for much valuable criticisms and suggestions which have been of great assistance to me; to Mr. Richard Chinnathambi, M.A., for com-piling the Index; to Dr. A. J. Pandyan for his generous contri-bution of many valuable photographs which illustrates this book; and to the Director-General of Archæology in India for kind permission to reproduce some of the departmental series.
Foreword
When the Pallava kings of Conjeevaram, the makers of the earliest surviving temples of the Tamil country, were finally subjugated by the Cholas of the Cauvery delta, marked changes occurred in architectural decoration. Some of these changes were due to developments already noticeable in later Pallava times, but others such as that found in the corbel are so abrupt as to suggest that they may have originated in the Chola kingdom during Pallava times, in buildings which have failed to stand the ravages of time. The Cholas were great temple builders and the architecture of the Tamil country underwent such development during their supremacy of about five hundred years (roughly 850-1350 A.D.) that it has been found convenient to differentiate between an Earlier and Later Chola architectural period of about 250 years each. The temples of Tanjore and Gangai-Konda Cholapuram belong to the former and those of Chidambaram and Tiruvanna-malai to the latter The Early Cholas, like the Pallavas before them, planned and built entirely new temples on such sites as seemed most suitable, whereas the Later Cholas seem to have preferred to enlarge temples already existing on ancient sacred sites. In Early Chola temples, therefore, the vimana or shrine with its square-based pyramidal tower was naturally made to dominate all other parts of the building, but in Later Chola temples vimana towers are apt to be quite inconspicuous, pre-sumably retaining very much their original size, while the gopuras or gateway towers come to be much larger, and are often immense. Sculptural decoration, too, is much simpler and more restrained in Early Chola temples than in Late Chola ones, which form a natural transition from the former to the still more elaborately decorated temples of the 250 years of the Vijayanagar empire and of the Modern architectural period which begins with the fall of the Vijayanagar empire in about 1600 A. D. The Rajarajesvara or Sri Brihadisvara temple of Tanjore was erected by Rajaraja the Great (985-1014 A D.) and, being still in excellent preservation, remains as the most magnificent monument of the power and ability of the early Cholas. But, as will be seen from Mr. Somasundaram's interesting descrip-tion, some of the structures now associated with it are of more recent origin, enabling one, without leaving the temple enclo-sure, to study not only the style of the Early Cholas but also something of the more ornate style of the Modern architectural period to which it was destined eventually to give rise. The excessive elaboration characteristic of this latter period is apt to be tiring and bewildering rather than beautiful; but the Subrahmanya shrine of the Tanjore temple, in which we see it at its best, cannot but be admired. And this little shrine is not only a gem in itself, but forms a most interesting and instructive contrast to the great temple beside which it stands. South Indian temples deserve to be better known and more widely understood than they are, and to appreciate them adequately some knowledge of their history, etc., is necessary. In preparing this account of the Tanjore temple Mr. Soma-sundaram has put into convenient form for visitors and others the chief historical and traditional points of interest relating to it. Such guides are still badly needed for nearly all the more important places of interest in South India, and I heartily recommend this one to all who want to know something about Tanjore.
About The Book
One of the main attractions of the temple is a big statue of Nandi, the sacred bull of Lord Shiva. 13 ft high and 16 ft wide, the statue is sculpted out of a single rock. Fortified walls rich in elaborate rock art works surround the temple and give a grand look to the entire complex. The main temple tower is 216 ft high and the tallest of its kind in the world. The complete structure of the temple is made out of granite. The main "Gopurams' or gateways to the temple are splendid structures with detailed sculptures. The temple's inscriptions and frescoes narrate the tale of the rise and decline of the city's fortunes. The Shiva lingam or the idol is covered by the tower and is built with stones that are bonded without the use of mortar. Yet another wonder can be seen above - the stone at the top which weighs nearly 80 tons.
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Shiva (370)
Journal (187)
Fiction (60)
Vedanta (362)
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