OCEAN IN HINDU MYTHOLOGY

OCEAN IN  HINDU TEMPLE ART - 

Three tales from Hindu Mythology

' Anantashayane Vishnu - Lord Vishnu resting on Ananta the Snake'  :

Painting exhibited in a Calcutta Gallery during February,2008 . 

Apologies to the painter from Andhra whose name I forgot to record.

From North to South , East to West ,  Lord Vishnu sleeping  - Yogonidra - on turbulent sea - pralaya jaladhi - on coiled snake Ananta , his hood providing shade to His head ,Devi Lakshmi  at His feet and Lord Brahma rising from his navel : this imagery has been the inspiration of sculptors and painters through centuries.

Above , we find a 21st century interpretation where white lotus blooms in the ocean ! And, Lord Brahma is not offering His obeisance to Lord Vishnu !! Colourful and decorative the imagery is - quite a traditional interpretation.

 Lord Vishnu rests with His head on His left hand,

holds none of His usual  attributes. 

Lord Brahma does not rise from His navel either.

Acknowledgement - Sourced from  Internet.

 The most famous  of the reliefs of this imagery is  the one from  Vishnu temple of Deogarh , UP.  According to Wikipedia, this temple is the 1st one built in India with a 'shikhar' . It was built between 4th and 7th centuries........ I have seen this imagery in many other  temples too - both on wall-reliefs as well as wall-paintings. A beautiful example is from   Radheshyam temple of Bishnupur , 1000 years younger than the Vishnu temple of Deogarh.

Stucco-on-stone work - among the few @ Bishnupur.

'Samudra Manthan - Churning of the Ocean of Milk'

 A collaboration  between gods and (so-called) demons ...... brought out from ocean's depth treasures  most which was usurped by the gods.  The world got Lakshmi - goddess of wealth , powerful horse and elephant , Parijaat - the beautiful flowering tree among others .... and elixir of immortality ! Lord Vishnu - incognito -  fooled the demons and let gods have the elixir .

Snake Vasuki , which was used as the chord for churning , spewed out poison when exhausted . Lord Siva saved the world by drinking this poison which turned His throat blue.Siva was subsequently revered as Neel-kantha - the god with blue throat.

This mythological tale has been cited in our great epics and Puranas. Also, featured in Temple art and Patas .  I have come across  wall-reliefs of Samudra Manthan in temples  built during both Badami Chalukya as well as Hoysala regimes.

 

Wall relief in a temple of Pattadakal complex.

 A lot of details has been squeezed into this small-sized wall-relief  found in a temple of Pattadakal complex. The gods and demons  - four in each of the groups -  engaged in churning, Vasuki and mountain Mandar as well as the finds. The painting of Wikipedia is the best to view the details of the finds which is being copied here : 

Painting in Wikipedia page - Lots of details regarding  what emerged !

Wall-relief  , Kedareshwar temple, Halebid. 

Here also we find four representatives from ods and demons.

'Setu-bandhan from Ramayana - bridge across to Lanka'

Rama and Lakshana got a bridge constructed by banara-sena  - army of monkeys - to cross over to  Lanka with this army . The effort was not easy. God of ocean did not co-operate with banara-sena in the beginning. The bulk of stones deposited on the bed of the ocean was washed away.Then, Lord Rama picked up his bow and arrows and threatened the god of ocean with dire consequences.God of ocean then wilted and allowed construction work go uninterrupted.

 Wall-relief from Kedareshwar temple, Halebid.

In this context, I shall mention that in depictions of 'Ananata-sayana Vishnu', the ocean has  often not been given enough importance ! A notable exception is this one wall-relief of the Somnathpura temple :

FIERCE MANIFESTATIONS OF SIVA & SHAKTI FROM HOYSALESWAEA TEMPLE, HALEBID

 HAVE YOU MISSED THESE WALL-RELIEFS

 IN YOUR 'parikrama' ?

 Siva's fierce manifestation . He has three eyes, fangs out,

carries a severed head in his lower left arm. 

Noticeable : his earrings are identical, 

Ganas are normal people - no skeletal figure here.

Sculptor could not manage the shape of Siva's right leg !

We  would have missed them if we did not decide to look for interesting wall-reliefs on the Nandi Pavilions. The circumbulatory path of this sprawling temple with two 'garbhagrihas' and its  interior offer  such an oeuvre of photographer's delight !  Only on 2nd thought, we decided to venture this side. As such , I was bogged down with a weak battery and my enthusiasm level was low. Ruby covered  more than I could with my sleepy camera.

 A close of the severed head, being carried by Siva Bhairava.

 Hoysaleswara temple - those who have  visited this temple physically know this well - had several problems of  the curator function.  Wall-reliefs of same nature were  'created' by several top sculptors and all had be be accommodated on the temple's walls , leaving no recess inbetween. If at all a relief was to be provided, wall-reliefs of musicians were inserted . The wall-reliefs with apparent defects were banished to Nandi Pavilions.

MahisasuraMardini. A perfect study of attributes.

She  is about to pierce a demon mounted on the lion's shoulder - strange & uncommon  imagery.

Sculptor could not manage buffalo's shape & size.

I have picked up two wall reliefs of fierce manifestations of  Siva and Shakti   as proof of my 'theory'. Let me see  if comments come forth !

NOTE - Ruby Chatterji has suggested that the demon/lion  corner is not at all clear ! Here is an exploded view :

THOSE ASTOUNDING HOYSALA TEMPLES : JOURNEY BEGINS

BLACK-OUTS AT CHENNAKESAVA TEMPLE, BELUR.

Closed door of Gopuram at 7.25 am. Thin crowd started gathering 

on the steps to attend to early morning prayer. 

ChennaKesava temple, Belur.

 During my early days in school, I used to  be teased  as a 'char-chokho' ( person with 4 eyes) , a common term for boys/girls with specs. By an extension of that logic , Ruby and I can be called 'paanch-chokho' (person with 5 eyes) during our travel, the '5th eye' being our camera.

On our 1st day out  at ChennaKesava temple, Belur, both our '5th eyes' went blank , due to  mal-functioning of batteries , though fortunately not at the same time.

 Ruby and her '5th eye', sitting near

 'Swarga Dwara' of ChennaKesava temple, Belur.

 I use a square battery for my DSLR.Ruby uses 4 pencil batteries for Powershot - a Canon s3is. I carried no spare battery. Ruby had  4 spare Duracell  batteries in her suitcase . After 6 clicks, her camera stopped functioning. We were stuck at the Gopuram. We had 2 choices - walk back to the Hotel ( Mayur Velapuri) and collect the Duracell batteries or buy fresh ones from one of few the  shops just opposite to the Gopuram.

 The shop which helped to keep our '5th eye'  functioning !

Opposite ChennaKesava temple, Belur.

I took the easier option - purchased 4 nos of 2100mAH Kodak batteries for Ruby's Powershot. Well, this move saved our day.Not only Ruby  could keep on clicking till the day-end, this shop-keeper came to my rescue when my camera's battery got discharged and gave me successive shocks.

1st shock came after I clicked only 102 shots. It was around 9.30 am. We decided to return to the Hotel for break-fast and charging the battery. On our way back to the Hotel, we found Canon's LP-E5 battery will have no supplier at Belur. I rang our photographer friend Mr Swaminathan Natarajan of Bangalore who confirmed that for  such a battery , I may have to go to Chickmagalur - 90+ km away !

  Coitus ! 
 'Performers'  shed their ornaments away ! 

1st level of Gopuram ,ChennaKesava  temple,Belur.

 Well  - I managed the day with multiple charging. The Kodak batteries did fine with their pre-charge plus 2 hours charging in the morning while we had our break-fast and freshened up. But, I had a difficult day. Twice - during lunch-break ( we had just a fruit-juice each) and once more after that, I sought help from the shop-keeper  from whom we bought the Kodak pencil batteries to bail my camera out. ChennaKesava knows what I would have done without help from from this guy !

 Nataraja Siva , with all his attributes and in his full glory, 

dances on a lotus . Ganas, Bhringee and worshipers around . 

Hoysaleswar temple, Halebid.

At Halebid on 12/11, I stayed cautious - and therefore, selective .I  faced 2 'black-outs'. 1st one was when I was about to complete round-one and ready to embark on a 'cover-the-ones I -missed'. I focused on one of the many 'Dwarpals' and it was a black-out ! I borrowed Ruby's Powershot for the time being, completed round-one and returned to hotel for lunch, though with great disappointment.

  'Ananta-sayane Vishnu'. 

Wall -frieze  at Hoysaleswar temple,Halebid. 

Captured in mobile's camera after 1st black-out .

At the Hotel Mayur Shantala , after my hard prayer, power-cut was restored  while lunch was served. At Kedareswar temple, I chose only the best wall-reliefs and friezes for clicking. In any case , scope for photography was limited as the 'Garbhagriha' was shut and the northern face was almost inaccessible with bamboo scaffolding. Here, the black-out came when I aimed my camera at an interesting frieze !

  Nataraj dances on 'Apasmara' - one of my last shots 

at Kedareswar temple,Halebid.

After I reached Mysore on 12th evening, I breathed a sigh of relief  sensing that in a town like this a squre battery will not be difficult to get. Well, I missed my heart-beat, when on the morning of 13/11, 2 shops turned me away.It was the 3rd shop which gave me an equivalent make with at least Rs 300/- premium or 'opportunity profit' !

SPECIALTY ARTWORK OF BRAHMESWAR TEMPLE , BHUBANESWAR

TEMPLES EXTRA-ORDINARY - OUR TRIP TO TEMPLES OF ORISSA  - VI.

  View of  Brahmeswar Temple Complex - to observe similarity of Jagmohan-Deul here with that of Lingaraja Temple.

Zodiac signs in 'pabhaga' section of Brahmeswar Temple. 

Laced with female figures  meant for attracting viewers' notice !

Brahmeswar temple  is  somewhat  away from the core area of  temple sites of  Bhubaneswar, often missed out by tourists who are  pressed for time. A tidy courtyard , Jagmohan and Deul at its centre, four smaller temples in four corners of the courtyard and a green patch   at the entrance  - maintained by ASI.  Here are another two small temples along the pathway to the courtyard.

A section of the temple wall. Abstract design,erotica,people - 

positioned one above the other as well as  side-by-side, 

in a very aesthetic manner.

Those who have visited  Mukteswar Temple of  Bhubaneswar are familiar with its famous 'Bho'. Shall we call the wall-relief below the 'Bho' for this temple ? Before you decide . please look at the photo above - this wall-relief is certainly not at the centre of the wall ! Was it  moved from its designated place at  some point during renovation ? Or a deliberate positioning as an omen   or just for attracting notice ?

A 'Bho'-like display. Human figures,arabesque,snakes,bells 

- it has all the intriguing ingredients !

This temple was  built by Kolavati Devi, mother of King Udyotkeshari. Probably around 1050 AD. The architecture has  similarity with the gem of Bhubaneshswar - Lingaraja temple. Some of the wall-reliefs are exquisite. I noted a few which appeared to be precursor of  a good nos of  wall-reliefs  we find in Surya temple, Konark - specially those of royalty, seers and erotica.

Royalty  and seers. In court and private chambers. 

We shall see more of them in Surya Temple,Konark.

Amid the usual wall-reliefs of deities and erotica, what attracted my notice are : abstract designs, zodiac signs, a series of unfolding love scenes and on closer scrutiny, swans and flowers. I have  mentioned in one of my  earlier posts about  a wall-relief of 'Veenadhara Siva' (*1) - this is not so common in Orissan temples. I shall also mention a wall-relief of 'Ekapada Siva' - another special manifestation of Siva , not commonly known and a Gajalakshmi with a special attribute.

'Ekapada' Siva with all his attributes, straddling  'Apasmara' 

who is also pierced by Siva's trident.

Gajalakshmi in lalitasana, holding two large full-bloomed lotuses. 

Was the sculptor influenced by Surya's iconography? 

The designs around are interesting too !

 In at least one of the four smaller temples of Brahmeswar temple's courtyard, there is a series of erotic scenes, showing a couple in conflict - the story-line is clear. But, neither the the execution is artistically good nor the story-line is  in good taste. Perhaps, the wall-reliefs were 'banished' to   a smaller temple instead of according them  prominent display.But, the ones below stand out among the whole lot !

 Her music, his desire !

Watch the man's body language & gestures by  hands.

Indian sculptors have pictured 'Kama' on the walls of Hindu temples - photographers have published thousands of photos of erotica on Hindu temples.Ruby and I have collected many such photos over the years , some which can be subjects of serious viewing and discussion. Brahmeswar Temple Complex has at least 3 series - is not that an uncommon practice , one of which is presented here.

Row of swans and an elephant used for adornment of  space

 above a ledge.

 Writers  have mentioned several specialties of this temple  , like the pavilion -'chandratapa' - within Jagmohan, use of Iron beams in a Bhubaneswar temple for the 1st time, adornment with birds and animals  etc. To me, the wall-reliefs of Royalty/seers and string of erotica scenes - proliferation of which happened  during the Konark years are important for studies.

NOTE :
*1 -  Please view - http://przmm.blogspot.in/2012/06/look-alikes-in-architecture.html

'NAGAS' IN OUR TEMPLE ART - I

SNAKES IN INDIAN MYTHOLOGY

 Motif of a pair of snakes chasing a hare - do not know what it signifies !

Lintel of Eastern gate, Krishna temple, Hampi.

Snake - known as 'Naga' in Sanskrit - holds a strange position in Hindu mythology.  They are associated with the greatest among Hindu deities, a few 'Naga' character play a big role, but, never gets a central role in any  'event'. 'Naga' characters have been widely depicted in our temple art -  it is not clear whether just as sacred motifs or representation of clans who worshiped 'Nagas' as totem !

 'Samudra Manthan - 'Churning of ocean .

'Vishnutala' Cave, Badami, Karnataka.

Let me recount here some of the well-known mythological tales  connected with 'Nagas' :

• Sheshanaga  supports the earth on his numerous hoods.
• Vishnu rests on coiled Sheshanaga in cataclysmic ocean. This is his famous posture known as 'Ananatashayane Vishnu'.
• Milky ocean was churned  by gods and demons ( Devas & asuras) - mountain Mandar was the shaft and  Vasuki naga allowed himself to be the coiled on the mountain for churning.  This is when elixir of immortality surfaced which gods did not share with demons creating ever-lasting enmity between these two races. Exhausted Vasuki threw up poison which Siva drank to save the universe from its effects - Siva's throat thus turned blue & he came to be known as 'Neelkantha' - 'One with blue throat'.
• Siva wears a snake  around his arm, throat or shoulder. Also a 'sarpakundala' on one of his ears. Garuda,  Vishnu's mount   also wears snakes on his arms - details in a long tale - as a token of his supremacy over the clan of snakes after a fight involving his mother .  
• Krsna tamed Kaliya during his Vrindavan years. 
• Mahabharata records  King Janmejay's wrath against snakes. 

 Siva with 'sarpakundala in his right ear and a snake across his 

left shoulder to his right arm as his armlet.

'Siva' cave, Badami, Karnataka.

 There are a few more points  I would like to bring out which are connected with stature of snakes in Indian society - but after  we discuss a few photos.1st among the ones I want to present is of snakes in union which a section of Indians believes to be a very good omen. Here is a photo of a stone-relief I found at Mahakuta temple complex,Karnataka :

A seven-hooded snake  in union with a single-hooded snake.

 Sun temple of Konark has a huge display of 'Nagas' -  a researcher might have already counted how many - but, I  do not have the figure as yet. Here, what we find are half-snake-half-human figures. Following is one wall-relief  almost identical to the above theme - but both the male and female 'Nagas' have numerous hoods.

 Please do not miss out the small figure at the base with 5-hoods !

Aggression and subsequent domination of 'Nagas'  have remained a subject of temple art across India - I have come across  many depictions of 'Kaliyadaman'  - subjugation of Kaliya ( not a literary translation) in my limited exposure to temple art. I have viewed them in terra cotta temples of Bengal, pata chitra, fresco @ SriKurmam temple (*), Hampi. Here is a portion from a 'Torana' of Krishna temple, Hampi :

 As Krsna dances on Kaliya's hood and holds his tail in his left hand, two 'Naginis'  prays for  his forgiveness .

'Anantashayane Vishnu'  - Vishnu resting in cataclysmic ocean - is a theme pursued by numerous temple artists. But, the famous 'Vishnutala' cave at Badami has Vishnu in a seated posture on coiled snakes and 'Anantashayane Vishnu'  is depicted in a high-elevation and smaller wall-relief  in this cave (photo not posted in this blog) !

 Vishnu  seated on  throne of a coil of 'Naga'. Its hoods spread over Vishnu's head like a canopy.

Manasa , Siva's daughter, destroyed Chand Merchant's life . A reluctant Chand's offer initiated her 'puja' in Bengal.

Terra cotta Manasa at Bighna, WB.

 Beyond the Brahminical mythology of India, 'Naga' holds a position of reverence in local levels among Hindus too -  'Naga Panchami' , worship of Manasa the snake goddess being the examples. I can extend this discussion to other countries and cultures, but,   shall stop here with one last reference to Jainism. Parsvanatha  has snake as his symbol and those of his Yaksha and Yakshini too. There are other Naga motifs in Jainism too, e.g. one of the 'sixteen dreams' etc But, this aspect may be discussed later in a different post, after I understand  elementary Jain Iconography. It is a deep subject.

NOTE :
1. * Pl view  http://przmm.blogspot.in/2012/05/sri-kurmam-temple-at-srikakulamap-ii.html.

FACES OF SIVA - 1

KIRAT-ARJUNA

  Painting by Ravi Verma

(Source - Internet)

During last week, I came across two discussions on one wall-relief of Kirat-Arjuna  at  Kanchipuram temple. The  artist has been very clever in  making the characters almost look-alike - the discussions were  about who is Kirat-the-Siva and who is Arjuna. The photographer/writer are quite well-known in the internet circuit as discerning  ones so far as  South Indian temples are concerned. Therefore,  I shall not bring out the links of the photos shot by them or the discussions/comments in their respective spheres and  would rather come to the subject directly.

 Kirat-Arjuna, Kailashanatha temple, Kanchipuram.

(Source - Internet- posted by Diablitos & Gallery of tektrader49 @ flickr.com)

Here, both the figures on the left and right-hand, as I have mentioned above, are quite similar. The  hair-dos are different, so  are the choices of weapons. Deliberately,  a 'teaser' has been crafted. Which one is Kirat-the-Siva ?

I  referred to Gopinatha Rao - he has described this manifestation in page 315-316, volume 2  of his book on Iconography. But,  GR professed that Kirat-the-Siva should be depicted with four arms, three eyes, jatamukuta and stand in samabhanga posture ! These and other details are not applicable in this case !

Kirat-Arjuna of Virupaksha temple, Pattadakal, Karnataka.

Far more explicit is the Kirat-Arjuna of Virupaksha temple, Pattadakal. The postures, attires and the physiques are near equal, but, not identical. The figure on the right-side is a little more stout, has a longer jatamukuta and clearly over-powering  the other. So,  one may deduce that he is Kirat-the-Siva. I also felt, Arjuna, after long uncomfortable stay in the forest, would be  leaner than Kirat. Therefore, one may deduce that the figure in the left is Arjuna.

Top - Siva, Below -  A blow-up of the upper portion of the  wall-relief.

Mahakuta temple, Karnataka

But, what about  the wall-relief from Kanchipuram ? In my opinion, one of the keys to Siva's identification lies in his dissimilar ear-rings. Here is a photo of a sculpture from Mahakuta temple, Karnataka. Here we have a simple 2-arm Siva and a blow-up of the upper part of his body.We can see 'sankhapatra' on Siva's left ear,  'sarpa(snake)kundala' on his right and a skull in his 'Jatamukuta'. We can apply these criteria on the two faces of Kanchipuram's wall-relief we are discussing about and reach a conclusion. Unfortunately, I have no access to such blow-ups for this Kanchipuram
wall-relief ! May be  my friends/readers who have  photos of this wall-relief can help.

TEMPLES EXTRA-ORDINARY : OUR VISIT TO TEMPLES OF ORISSA -PART V

IN THE TOWN OF TEMPLES : 

 A FORGOTTEN TEMPLE : SWARNAJALESWAR

SwarnaJaleswar temple . 

A portion of the  wall around the tiny court-yard is seen as well as the  empty ground from where  some photography is possible.

This temple will not be in the list of regular tourists cris-crossing Bhubaneswar. It does appear   in the list of temples of this town -  but it does not at all figure among the  well-known ones. I could not trace one photo of this temple in the Internet ! Well -  Internet  dates this temple to 7th century AD , mentions its resemblance to that of Parasuramaswar temple and added that Kotitirtheswar temple is in its neighbourhood. Someone told me while I was planning my trip to Bhubaneswar that it is best approached through a narrow lane opposite to  Parasuramaswar temple - a tenacious auto-rickshaw driver did take us to the right spot through a winding lane and not without several misses. You must not quite believe the simplicity of ' Bhubaneswar Heritage Walk : Route 2' of http://www.orissatourism.gov.in/heritagewalk.htm.

 Fragment of a beautiful 'Mithuna Murti' . 

One of the finest amorous couple in my collection.

This temple's height would be that of Parasuramaswar temple, but there is no Jagmohana here. Maintenance must have been much worse than that of Parasuramaswar temple. It must have been neglected for quite a  long stretch . Now, with reconstruction, some of the wall-reliefs are noticeable to the occasional visitors. It is tucked away in a court-yard beyond a cluster of houses and photography of at least two sides is possible from a large empty ground on the side of the court-yard, in spite a tree in the vicinity. If a large building comes up in this large tract of land, this temple will be hidden from public view for ever.

 

 Wall-relief of Ganesha and the smaller version on  its top (above). 

A bowl of fruits in front of the stool makes it interesting.

Pious  persons are both on the top and central depictions  

may be the ones who built this temple.

 I found a wall-relief of Ganesha , badly mutilated, sitting on a pedestal with lions as its legs . There is another small Ganesha, quite intact, just above the head of this mutilated one. I found a bust of a Nagdevata too - much like the one I found  @ the main temple of SriMukhalingam. I have noted  Nagdevata is a regular feature of  Orissa temples, but often without the status of a  'Parshadevata'.

 NagaDevata

The  broken and damaged wall-reliefs in the front of the temple are the ones which  deserve special mention.There is a wonderful Nataraja here - most of it is lost - but  one can imagine how beautiful it was when intact. Nataraja is in tribhanga posture. Only a small part of the 'dola hasta'  rsurvived the vandals and ravage of time. It has similarity  with the 10-handed Nataraja above the Jagomohana of Parasurameswar temple , but more attractive . The influence is evident from the headless person playing drum in the left-hand corner.

  Nataraja exquisite. Ithyphallic ,with his head tilting towards left, 

finely chiseled face,eyes and matted hair. 

We see a small portion of Siva's 'dola hasta' and 

 delicately crafted fingers and nails ! 

The simple waist-band and the hangings  and index finger touching  his own left thigh create an irresistible image.

 I have taken  some more photos which include a three-headed manifestation of Siva, several grotesque figures - human and animals, a four-armed god in 'yogasana', a two-armed 'Nataraja' or a dancer in the centre of a 'Bho' during reconstruction. Strangely, during reconstruction, someone has put the mutilated figures of  a 3-persons amorous scene in two parts - one part each at two ends ( !) , only a pot-bellied short character intact. More such examples can be a subject of academic discussion, but what is intriguing is a 'Uma-Maheswar' reconstructed in such a manner that it becomes an interesting  subject of discussion.

 A jigsaw puzzle  for all of us . 

1 - Siva or Sivani with a trident in his/her right-arm, question - relevant in this depiction , 

2a - Siva/'Maheswar's face, 2 - part of his body,

3 - Uma's left arm, 3a -Uma's right leg,

 4 - Ganesha, 5 -bull, 6 - Lion, 7 - a 'yogini',8 - a very fine and intact 'Bhringee'. There are many more figures in this wall-relief.

I invite readers of this blog, trained in Photoshop, to reconstruct this panel. My very 1st attempt is here :