| Specifications |
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Publisher: Shubhi Publications, Gurgaon |
| Author J. M. Somasundaram Pillai | |
| Language: English | |
| Pages: 94 (with B/W Illustrations) | |
| Cover: HARDCOVER | |
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10.0x7.5 Inch |
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Weight 450 gm |
| Edition: 2025 | |
| ISBN: 9788182905221 | |
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HBQ784 |
| Delivery and Return Policies |
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Usually ships in 5 days |
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Returns and Exchanges accepted within 7 days |
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Free Delivery |
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.
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.
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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