TERRA COTTA OF 'RARH' BENGAL - FROM MY TRAVEL DIARY - IX

GAUR- PANDUA-BARONAGAR -SRIBATI

When I re-visited my Blog written after a trip to the above places in 2012, I noticed several photos are just not opening.I worked for an hour trying to  re-insert the photos which were part of the blog. Yet , it was found corrupted. Hence, I have re-produced that blog under a fresh title.

A friend of mine  requested me to post 15 best photographs from the ones we have taken during our trip to 'Rarh' Bengal in flickr/kodak/picassa. It is a difficult choice to make.Besides, I am slow about editing and often I work with writing blogs as a target.

Anyway, as I was progressing with listing and PSing the photos, I  picked up a few from our albums for sharing the same with my friends and relatives.I started with  a mosque , which I thought is the best among the Muslim terra cotta architecture we saw.

Among the  work in  Muslim terra cotta architecture of medieval Bengal at Gaur , I have selected two as the most representative ones :

Lottan Masjid. 1475 AD ( 500+ years old !) 

Built @ the behest of a courtesan.

Attributed to Sultan Yusuf Shah.

Slope of the roof domes,extension on the far end and terra cotta motifs very impressive.

( Photo by RC )

Pillars & Arch in a monument under restoration @ Gaur.

( In absence of notice from ASI , no details were available.)

Grand view of such displays, when all the coloured tiles were intact 

can be imagined by the viewers.

Terra cotta decoration on Western wall @ Adina Masjid built by 

Sultan Sikandar Shah between 1364-74 AD,

supposedly the largest in Asia.

Simply majestic !

The history of construction of this huge Masjid stares at your eyes as you come across scores of Hindu deities abounding the structure ! But, this subject can be basis of another blog. Here we  celebrate the great work of the artisans of the medieval Bengal who contributed to aesthetics of our architecture.

No caption needed . 

From one of the pillars of the gate to the Nave.

Terra cotta and other temples of Baronagar were overwhelming .'Char Bangla' - the complex with four temples - demonstrate the height of aesthetics this region reached during tenure of Rani Bhavani.These temples are maintained by ASI. Gangeswar temple, a little away from the Ganges is a small 'JorBangla' temple with intricate details. This one is maintained by CAST. Besides these five, which are well-known , there are a few dilapidated temples which have  remarkable stucco work.

  

LH - Krsna kills Kansaraj as Balaram looks on & cheers. RH - Krsna kills the 'mahut' of Kubalayapeerh while Balaram tackes the elephant. Later, Krsna would kill the elephant.

Baronagar. 1755 AD . ( Photo by RC)

Ravan had a special place in the heart of the person/s who decided on depiction of Ramayana scenes in Charbangla and Gangeswar temples. Those who are interested in more on this aspect may pl open : http://www.flickr.com/photos/maulindu/4054539545/in/set-72157622562648829/. View this Ravan, placed separately, armed and dressed regally.

Those at Sribati can be called cute. I must add that villagers of Sribati were very bitter about indifference of Govt regd. support to the maintenance efforts . They do not get even 1 rupee for removal of growth after every monsoon. These temples have panels with lots of stories to tell . Let us try to contribute to the preservation of these temples .

This panel, placed centrally above one of the arches of octagonal panel, has no figure of mythology !

The eternal battle between Shakti & Asura.

TRAVEL THROUGH RAJASTHAN - NOVEMBER,2014

 FROM MY TRAVEL DIARY - 1

 This map shows the path we covered.

 The traditional way of capturing Qutb Minar's photograph.

For a fortnight since 6/11/14, Ruby and I traveled from New Delhi to various places in Rajasthan , driving partly in cars , partly in buses through   cities, villages, desert  and valleys  to visit Mandawa and Nawalgarh in Shekhawati region, Ajmer, Udaipur, Srinathjiu's temple @  Nathdwara, Ranakpur, Osian and  .Jodhpur.

 View of Fateh sagar from top of Maharana Pratap Memorial , Udaipur.

Full view of the fountain , Fateh sagar, Udaipur.

 We visited Qutb Complex and Humayun's Tomb to after decades to savour Muslim architecture, excellent sculptures' Galleries at Ajmer  and New Delhi ( National Museum), scores of temples and best of the examples of Shekhawati paintings. And... the architecture of Yashawant Thada, Jodhpur.

Pillars of  Hindu temples used widely in Quawaat-ul-Islam Mosque, Qutb Complex, New Delhi.

Varaha Incarnation of Vishnu. 10 -11th Century. DUngarpur,Rajasthan.

Akbari Fort Museum, Ajmer.

There were glitches, time over-run, misses - specially @ Ranakpur , opportunities not utilised as time slipped through a couple of lazy mornings.Worst was the ban on photography in the most important zone of the main temple.  There were unexpected rewards too - e.g. Sound&Light show @ Akabari Fort, Ajmer and the three nearly deserted temples @ entrance of Osian village with astounding iconography !

 Exterior Wall of Hotel Shekhawati, Mandwa.

View from the entrance of one of the many Havelis we covered 
@ Mandawa and near-by areas.

We came across helpful people in buses, trains - the hotel owner @ Mandawa, the guide and some of the Haveli owners @ both Mandawa and Nawalgarh, Shekhawati artist Devnarayanji, Gulabjisa - the young security guard , fashionably dressed in dhoti-kurta - shop-keepers at Udaipur and Ajmer....... Remarkable were the S- and U-curves in the bus-route between Sikar and Ajmer and the reticent car-driver who tool us from Udaipur to Jodhpur via Ranakpur !

View from interior of  Jasawant Thada, Jodhpur.

Ruby poses with 'Gulabjisa' , Security Guard-cum-guide of Jaswanat Thada, Jodhpur.

 Why people visit monuments - a sizable section visits to absorb details with aid of guides as well as  to worship if the monument is a live temple. A miniscule section  take photographs for reference and later viewing. Yet, a large section walk in for a stroll and taking their own photographs.  With   camera-equipped mobile phone in almost every palm, 'phataphat' photo sessions on the court-yards of historical monuments has become very common -- a trend very common in Durga Puja pandals or Millennium Park at the shore of the Ganges !

Ranakpur is proud of this Jain temple,with so well crafted interior & exterior.

One of the four small temples at the entrance of Osian.

 It will be my endevour to share a section of the photos and notes with my friends in this page as well as facebook page.  I end this blog thanking my friends and relatives whose hospitality enlivened this trip and Ruby who has taken gigabytes of photos to enrich my collection.

A matter of choice - Photographers engaged 

in capturing the monument as well as the moment !

( at Qutb Complex)

Silence !

Humayun's Tomb, New Delhi.

SAVOURING 'ART' OF HOYSALA TEMPLES

CREATIONS EXTRAORDINARY - II

'Built from the wealth amassed from the sword' 

- King Vishnuvardhana, 

in context with his having built ChennaKesava temple,Belur.

To enjoy the temple art of Hoysala dynasty, homework before the trip is a MUST. There are lots of articles in Internet, giving history/timeline and photographs of the  more popular temples around Hassan and Mysore. I  even found a suggestion about a guide  of Belur temple - though  I could not locate him when we were  there during November,12.  Please search for Prof S Settar  and do not miss his interview in Frontline,April,2003.

Trikuta Kesava temple at Somnathpura.

Simply stated, Hoysala temples have a complex building plan with artistic projections aplenty, a 'scroll' of wall-reliefs of deities and other characters unfurling on the 'parikrama' , dazzling female dancers and musicians together with mythical animals staring down at you, rows of  human figures on animals and chariots fighting mythological and real battles. These temples are virtually a  gallery created to educate viewers of  Hindu Iconography and 'naba-rasa' as well as dance   plus music .

Rich wall frieze of Kedareswar temple of Halebid.

Kirat-Arjuna &  Bali-Sugriva duels, Hoysaleswara temple,Halebid.

Vishnu rests on Seshanaga - Lakshmi 'serves' at his feet, Yogamaya sitting near his head. He rests within  a pavilion, with roaring vertical waves filled with fish and tortoise - Vishnu's incarnations.
Kesava temple,Somnathpura.

Note : Interesting to watch one small part in each of the last two panels - Sugriva's right leg & Sheshnaga's tail - sneak out of the frame ! Typical Hoysala style .

And .... not-to-miss the exceptionally carefully executed  layout and 'art-work' in the  interiors of temples.Some of the secular ceiling art , round and serrated ends  of load-bearing columns, female bodies serving as brackets on  top-ends of columns almost hidden in the darkness of 'Mantapa' will not fail to mesmerise discerning viewers. Topping the list are the principal deities wherever we can view their splendour not hidden under silk robes and garlands.

Venugopala, one of the three deities of

Somnathpura temple.

Dancer on one of the four pillars within 'Garbhagriha' of 

ChennaKesava temple, Belur.

Hundreds of figures and motifs curved on famous 'Narasimha' pillar within'Garbhagriha' of 

ChennaKesava temple, Belur.

Notes :1.  It  is said  that this pillar used to revolve on its vertical axis.  

2. Comparable are stone pillars of Vitthala and Hazara Rama temples, Hampi.

Once  a person spends time among the temples built by Hoysala dynasty, it becomes clear that a martial spirit had worked in bringing these temples into being. The name  king Vishnubardhana chose for his lineage and also the symbol are result of this military spirit. We all know, 'Hoysala' means 'Kill Sala', reportedly the uttering of  a sage whose life Sala, a tribal leader and ancestor of the king , saved by slaying a pouncing lion.

My favourite 'Sala slaying the lion'. Sala is in pain , yet he pierces right ear of the beast with his long dagger, held in his left hand !

Wall-reliefs of Vishnu and Kamadeva in the background.

ChennaKesava temple, Belur.

This may be a myth,established  firmly by king Vishnubardhana , while adopting the 'Sala' symbol and sculptures of  'Sala and the lion' in the entries to ChennaKesava temple's 'Mantapa'.


While working within the limitations of 'canon', some of the artists broke ground in their efforts to stand apart among the 'many'.Collectively, the following characteristics will immediately draw attention of the viewer :

Krsna tames 'Kaliya-the-snake'. One of his wives asks for forgiveness 

on behalf of her husband.

Kedareswar temple, Halebid.

• the decorative features of the wall-reliefs, e.g. the dresses , ornaments and other attributes are carved so meticulously that one feels s/he is viewing a wood, and not a stone-carving.
• a toe here, a finger there overflow  the frame , just to add drama to the 'scene'.
• the fierce manifestations of Siva and Shakti are often  not stiff, but in smooth postures of dance.

I end here with ten. nos of photos . More will follow.

DOWN MY MEMORY LANE TO HOYSALA TEMPLES

RECOLLECTION OF  BELUR, HALEBID ... AUGUST 1977.......

NOTE - These scanned  1977 photos have been retrieved  from my wife Ruby's album.Please do not copy.

Kedareshar temple (?), Halebid.

UMA-MAHESHASHWARA.

HOYSALESHWAR TEMPLE , HALEBID.

'Those who have  not seen the temple of Belur have not seen one of the finest in India'  : advised me  Pritish Ghosh, an erstwhile colleague of mine in August ,1977, when I was planning our visit to Bangalore, Mysore and Ooty .On his advise, I added Belur, Halebid and Sravanabelgola to my itinerary. The visits were indeed very rewarding. My wife Ruby and I were charmed by the beauty of the bracketed figures of  the main temple of Belur and the wall-reliefs of Hoysaleshwar temple of Halebid.

SIVA AS  NATARAJA ,DANCING ON APASMARA  & BHAIRAVA. 

HOYSALESHWAR TEMPLE , HALEBID.

I am not a person who  remembers small details of a trip decades ago - the smaller impressions are lost. I recollect that we  started from Bangalore early, reached Hassan and Belur around lunch-time and hung around  till sun-set. We reached Halebid  couple of hours after  sun-set. The only food-stall of Halebid was closed for the night and we could not have even  a cup of coffee. Next morning , we started our day early. We reached the temple before eight 8 AM, after a decent break-fast of tea and toasts. The morning was just crisp! There were very few visitors around. And ... the splendour of Hoysala architecture was in front of us , almost taking our breath away.

 SIVA AS NATARAJA. CLEARLY DIFFERENT FROM THE ONE ABOVE. HE IS  DANCING ON A LOTUS , WITH GANAs JOINING HIM IN REVELRY !

HOYSALESHWAR TEMPLE , HALEBID.

Though I carried my SLR  camera and the accompanying lenses with us, I could not locate any photo of Belur temple in our album ! But thankfully, a few photos of Halebid has survived. I have scanned these photos of my 1977 trip . Surely these will  compliment our future collection during the forthcoming trip of November,12.

VAIRAVA

HOYSALESHWAR TEMPLE , HALEBID.

During 1970s, within the 1st few years of our marriage, we visited temples of Puri, Bhubaneswar, Konark, Belur and Halebid. Those days, we  had no formal or informal exposure to temple art , yet, we realised that  temple art of RajaRani temple,Konark and , Belur  and Halebid need re-visits. I recollect  having visited temples of Belur and Halebid 2nd time  during February,2003. I had a day free from official work while on tour in Bangalore which I utilised  in paying a visit to these great sites. But, I had  no camera and could not bring back anything but memory with me.

 A SECTION OF THE FAMOUS STAR OF

HOYSALESHWAR TEMPLE , HALEBID.

 Our February,12 visit to Bhubaneshwar and Konark was really very enjoyable. We had  good amount of time - but, more studies for preparation and thrice the time we spent at each of the temples would have satisfied me.During the coming visit to Karnataka, I would like to return with a good collection from Kedareshwar temple of Halebid and Keshava temple, Somnathpura.

SAGES AMONG THE EROTICA OF SUN TEMPLE, KONARK

MAJESTIC SUN TEMPLE OF KONARK - V

NOTE - Those have aversion to erotica of Indian temples and are below 18years of age are requested to stay from this post.

A holy  man and his disciple.

After I posted  photos from our collection on King NarasimhaDev I , as depicted on the walls of Surya temple, Konark, I started to look for depictions of  holy men  . I found quite a few of them - male sages with shaven head, matted hair , old and middle-aged.  I found one photo where he is instructing a disciple - not a very delicate work.  There is one among existing work in  'chlorite' - sages in meditation. Rest are so very different !

Sages in meditation with disciples in attendance.

Male sages on this temple's wall covers many sects - naming my guesses will be somewhat delicate.  Quite a few are shown in grotesque postures. A  good number of them have been shown in active or passive acts of coitus and various stages of excitement . Blow-ups of the faces and torsos make interesting viewing.

Here I start with a bald holy man who has - not one or two - but three companions . He holds a  bag in his left hand, lifted beyond the reaches of  women around him - glee on his face, sculpted centuries ago still make this wall-relief  stand out.

This wall-relief tells us a tale !

(The 3rd woman, kneeling in front of this holy man, not in this frame).

 A holy man with shaven head !

 I shall cite one specific example which is a large  composite. Two questions regarding this sculpture : First - Does this signify  ritual of slaughter of  some  sect ? The composite here has a man's face.Round eyes, matted hair, glimpse of fangs. His lower portion is that of a lion. He tramples a hunter, smaller in size . The hunter's features,ornaments and hair style have  similarity with those of the composite. He holds a hunting knife and shield. Specially noticeable is the chain around the waist of the hunter. Second - Is this at all a face of a holy man ? We  find identical waist-chain in another sage, being coaxed by a courtesan.

Man-lion Composite,attacking a hunter on an ornate pedestal . 
A camouflaged secret practice of sacrifice or a scene from a drama ?

Sage with matted curly hair and beard - noticeable similarity between this figure and the ones above.

Watch the waist band.

The artisans of Surya temple have depicted holy men of various sects without reverence.  I have seen  not-so-serious depictions elsewhere, but not so noticeable as Konark !   In some areas , we find grotesque figures - I would guess that the artisans chose appearances of some of these figures  based on holy men moving around those days  ! Anthropologists and Sociologists who are expert in Kalinga's social situation of 12th century AD can throw more light on this fact. But, in whatever literature I have come across, I did not find any reason of this irreverence.

I have  here photos of one wall of the famous 'Nata Mandira' and a couple of blown-up figures .

 Dancers and sages as grotesque abandon the walls of 'Natamandir'

 

 Grotesque figures of holy men standing on decorated pedestals.
While one is skeletal, others are well-fed. One is stark naked, wearing different ear-rings. Does that point to a specific sect ?

I have  in my HDD   many more photos to convey to the readers of what we found at the Sun temple at Konark. But, one has to stop somewhere. I shall end with one full-frame of erotica with a holy man at the the centre of activity.  As  persons familiar with this temple are aware of,there are numerous wall-reliefs with erotica of sages - but closer scrutiny will lead a discerning viewer to categorisation.

 A holy man, with his matted hair placed high on his head,in accompaniment of two women, one tall and other short, standing a crude pedestal, under the near-mandatory tree of life.

MYTHICAL & REAL-LIFE ANIMALS OF KONARK

 CONTINUATION OF MY SERIES ON 'THE MAJESTIC SUN-TEMPLE OF KONARK' - IV

Mythical lion on southern side - lit up during the evening.

Closer view of mythical lions on northern side. 
Looks like those from a film by Spielberg !
Elephants trampled & mauled not in this view.

Surya temple of Konark is an enormous gallery of sculpture and wall-reliefs. Deities & mythology, royalty, various moods and moments of life , floral designs and arabesque ..... and animals - both mythical and real. The variations are enormous. It takes days to chronicle the same -  and no matter how hard I try - how can I translate the wonder that these creations evoke - in photos and words ! Planning, execution, display and restoration - all are in such  large scales that on any of these topics, one can write a book .

 'Brihadashwa' rides out to horizon  !

 Surya on the western side of the temple.

 Very recently, a friend of mine who enjoys photography visited Surya temple together with his family. On his return, he sat with us and  shared his  album and stories of his visit  with us. He narrated how his young son was very much impressed -  may be we call him 'beholden' - by the abundance of animals' depictions  in this Surya temple  - then I thought : why not write a 'post' on photos from our album on this subject - in line with the one I wrote about  those from Lakundi temples !

Konark, even Orissa, is often represented by  the famous war stallions near the eastern edge of the temple compound.  I read a comparison between these war stallions and that of  the statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni. The war stallion of  Colleoni  (Venice, Italy) is famous , but apart from the  exposure, in artistic merit, are not the stallions of Konark   superior to that of  Colleni's statue ?

  Horse is the central  figure in this composition where Man without his sandals or the one getting trampled under the horse's hoofs 

add to its statement on a battle scene.

 What we have are enormous mythical lions mauling elephants - perhaps denoting power of one religious group above another -  horses,mythical horses and horses , rows of  elephants on temple wall as well as elephants on pedestals. And a lone giraffe brought to king's court as a gift !! On strength of this wall-relief , Historians believe that travelers from Africa visited King NarasimhaDev's court. 

Tier - I  : King on elephant where a  delegation meets him 

with gifts including a giraffe.

Tier - II : A hunting scene.

Elephants are everywhere : the lowest row has elephants as if they are carrying the load of the temple.There are  elephants high above giving company to 'chlorite' musicians. One cannot see them from ground level - need a pair of binoculars.Elephants are parts of war and hunting scenes. The most forceful are the sculptures of a pair of elephants mauling humans  placed near the western  edge of the temple compound. 
Note - This location, according to an opinion I have read, is not the original one and decided upon during reconstruction and start of landscaping. I believe that two stallions on the eastern edge and two elephants on the western look quite pleasing.

The Mighty  &  the Hapless .

In contrast to the above, we have several scenarios where mythical lions , hunters on lions, horses and composites are crushing elephants. Symbolic  scenes as these are, the vigour exuded hit a viewer hard. The choice is very difficult  - just one representative wall-relief  is here.

 Unbelievable as  this wall-relief is - lion fitted with bridle. 

Rider makes the lion pounce upon a cowering elephant.

Note - This has an underlying social  meaning - left out without elaboration.

 I shall end with a scene of procession , a 'must' for wall reliefs in Indian temples.  These procession scenes are not often  noticed or analysed seriously. Perhaps visitors feel that these are work of not-so-skilled artisans.Here, what is noticeable are the effort on creating variations.