Great Living Chola Temples : DARASURAM – Grandeur in Sculptures

Great Kings and Kingdoms  are not just remembered by their victories  and  territory maps. Their empires may be eroded away by time, but not the temples and forts built by them or the good administrative reforms and governing systems introduced by them.

A view of Temple Gopuram framed by outer pillars of  South West Corridor.

The Great Living Chola Temples: 

The Darasuram Airavatesvara  temple built by Rajaraja Chola II(1143-1173 CE) in the 12th century CE is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This Airavatesvara temple along with the Brihadeeswara Temple at Thanjavur, the Gangaikondacholisvaram Temple at Gangaikonda Cholapuram  are collectively referred  as the Great Living Chola Temples by UNESCO.

All these UNESCO World Heritage Site temples were built by the Cholas (A short glimpse of Chola History is at the bottom of this Post) between the 10th and 12th centuries CE and have a lot of similarities between them in their architecture.  

Darasuram Airavatesvara  Temple

While the 10th Century CE Thanjavur’s Brihadeeswarar temple, built by Raja Raja Chola I is known for its 216 feet tall tower and 80 ton single stone 'vimana'(tower above sanctum sanctoram) which covers a huge area symbolising bigness in grand size and proportions  (hence called the Big Temple/Periya Koil), the Darasuram’s Airavateswarar temple, built by Raja Raja Chola II, is a marvel and a standing example of the architectural expertise.

The Airavatesvara temple may be the smallest in size as compared to the other two Great Living Chola Temples, but the intricacy of carving  and the temple design are even better and more refined.

This temple is a storehouse of art and architecture with its intricate microscopic sculptures and minute sculptural niceties.

The Sun temple in Konark (13th Century CE) is believed to have taken inspiration from Darasuram’s architecture. 

Below :  Sun Temple, Konark is also in the form of Chariot with wheels pulled by Horses.

  Photo Credit : Souvik Burman - Wikimedia Commons

History

King Raja Raja II constructed this architectural and sculptural marvel temple in his name called Raja Rajechuram (at present Airavatheeswara)  in 1160 CE which took almost 2 decades to complete. This Raja Rajechuram  became Darasuram at present as a village on the outskirts of Kumbakonam en-route Thanjavur.

Mythology :

The Airavatesvara temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. Shiva here is known as Airavatesvara, because he was worshipped at this temple by Airavata, the white elephant of the king of the Devas, Indra. Legend is that, due to a curse from Sage Durvasa, Airavata suffered a change of colour. Then Airavata Elephant got  its colours back by bathing in the sacred waters of this temple. This legend is perpetuated by an image of Airavata with Indra seated in an inner shrine and due to the above legend,  the temple and the presiding deity derived its name -'Lord Airavatesvara'.

Yama (King of Death) also worshipped Shiva here. As Yama, suffered a burning sensation all over his body due to a Rishi's curse, he took bath in the sacred tank and after worshipping Shiva. Here he was cured, since then the tank got its name ‘Yamateertham’.

The main deity’s consort Periya Nayaki Amman temple is situated adjacent to Airavateshwarar temple. There is also a small Vinayagar shrine before the inner tower of the temple.

Inscriptions in the Temple

Most of the inscriptions (in Tamil - close to gopura and north wall) have lavish praises for the kings of the time for sponsoring grants for the temple’s upkeep activities.

One of these inscription records the renovation of the shrines by Kulottunga Chola III. An inscription close to the gopura, records  the defeat of the Western Chalukya king Someshwara by emperor Rajadhiraja Chola I.

Another inscription state that Pandyan king Maravarman gave grants for celebrating Shivaratri festival and undertaking repair of the temple.

Left : Lingothbavar at the Backside of the Sanctum    Right : Viswakarma - the Lord of Architecture

Construction

A temple is shaped like a chariot, drawn by horses and elephants and supported by a hundred monolith pillars carved exquisitely.

The Main gopuram (pyramidical temple tower) is 85 feet high with many sculptures of gods. The Vimana style is similar to that of Thanjavur Big Temple but much smaller in size.

This temple clearly shows the Knowledge, Wealth, Culture, Systematic Planning and Execution, Team work, Hard Work, Determination, Devotion, Power, Superiority, Expertise in construction and  Futuristic Visionary of the Cholas. Though this temple was built before almost 1000 years, the temple still stands majestic in spite of time and invasions.

The prime highlight in the construction of this granite temple is that the raw material (the granite) source cannot be found in 80km radius as there is no mountain or rock available. In Hampi, the temples were constructed in the middle of rocky boulders and hills - allowing the sculptors to make use of every rock for sculpture. But here it was not the case as every rock had to be transported from distant locations.

Architecture

The Pallava, Chola and Pandya rulers who ruled the state in different times, have contributed much to the evolution of Dravidian style of architecture which is admired even now. The Dravidian order of temples attained its zenith under the Cholas and ultimately under Rajaraja I.

Unlike many other temples of  Dravidian architecture, here the sanctum of the temple is without a circumambulatory path.

The front mandapa ‘Rajagambhira Thirumandapam’ as it was mentioned in the inscriptions contains ornate pillars. 

Every inch of space on each of the one hundred monolithic pillars is carved with miniature sculptures of Hindu mythology.   One’s mind will be  fascinated by the accuracy and perfection of finely chiseled work in each pillar.

Chariot Shaped Raja Gambhira Mandapam

Entering the temple, two Dwarapalakas - Sankhanidhi and Padmanidhi in their vivid anatomical poses welcome us.

Left : Sankhanidhi                                                                          Right : Sage Agasthiya

The main Raja Gambhira Mandapam is in the form of a chariot driven by Horses on both the sides. The chariot and its wheel are so finely sculpted with minute  details. 

The uniqueness and complexity of this wheel, horse and elephant sculptures is that they were NOT sculpted on a single stone. Instead they were sculpted as different pieces and joined as stacks. This makes the sculpture more complicated and we wonder about the technical aspects of skillfully crafting these joints.

Inside this mandapa are 108 pillars, each one with exquisite sculptures depicting a historical event or a dancing moment.

Be it - Shiva’s marriage attended by Vishnu and Brahma, the entire sequence of Marriage of Muruga,  Yoga Posture of Saraswathi, Annapoorani - with sharp and realistic nails that has been crafted exquisitely























Or the breathtaking one inch miniatures of Ganesha, Shiva, Parvathi, Muruga  - one will be definitely enthralled.

But if one gets inside the Raja Gambira Mandapam and on way to the sanctum of Iravateswarar, pillars are very simple and plain without any artistic work - one should not be diverted while praying to the Lord might be the reason.

Sculptures

The Cholas were patrons of music and dance and the temple, like many others, is a veritable gallery of art forms.  Most of the pillars depict the mythology of Lord Shiva and all dancing poses of Bharatanatyam.

The gods were sculpted with various expressions and emotions as multi headed and multi armed. Angry Agora Virabhadra with four arms, a peaceful Agasthya, exotic Rathi-Manmatha,  a snake hooded Nagaraja with four arms, Ardhanarishwar (composite  form of the Shiva and his consort Parvati ) with three faces and eight arms, Makhishasa Mardhini  standing on the severed head of a buffalo are notable. One will be astonished by the acuteness of the sculptures in black basalt stones.

Shiva and Periya Puranam

Periya Puranam, a poetic classical literature of Tamil which accounts the lives of the 63 Nayanmars, is depicted in miniature forms.

The miracles in the lives of saints such as Appar, Markandya, Kannappanayanar and Sambanda, tales from  Shiva Purana and Periya Purana are depicted in detail.

This is not a large sculpture. Its maximum height is just one foot !

Various moods and forms of Shiva enrich the temple. So you see an angry Shiva burning Manmatha - the God of love, while another sculpture describes his fight with Tripurasura. The beauty of the facial expressions is unbelievable in handsome form of the lord watched over by women.

and this one too...

Yaali

When welcomed by the the mythological animal Yaali, one will always wonder at the sculptor’s effort in minute detailing. 

We cannot escape the stared look of yaalis which look down on us from the pillars as our mind thinks about the years they stood still.

Look  for the male  and  female - clearly sculpted!

Acrobats and Gymnastics of 12th Century AD

The carvings contain different poses of gymnastic feats  with gymnasts keeping their head at the centre with legs and hands interwoven in such a skillful way to form a circle. 



Across the entire stretch, there are also several carvings of ladies exhibiting their acrobatic skills which are comparable today's circus.

Bull and an Elephant

In this 'Rishaba Kunjaram' sculpture, the conjoined heads  and faces of Bull and Elephant are carved as intermingled but having their own bodies.

Other Notable Sculptures

Lion hunting an elephant  : This is sculpted on the stacking granites on the side of the steps.

A hiding Rama striking Vali in the Sugreeva-Vali fight is another interesting artistic work seen at the Thiru Maligai Mandapam.

Another  artistic sculpture that keeps you mesmerized is a flute playing Radha Krishna in the northern side of the temple.

Mahishasura Mardhini                                                             Radha Krishna

On the North Eastern side, Vishnu is seen as playing drums in the Nataraja Dance Mandapam.

Ventilation :

When an edifice of this size is built, architects have to plan for good ventilation and drainage of rain water accumulating in the premises and Darasuram is no exception. This aspect was given prime importance apart from natural lighting entering the temple premises.

The windows are artistically sculpted some in a single store and some with crafty joints whose design challenge modern day grill works.

Socio- economic conditions of the period in the Sculptures :

The side walls contain friezes depicting miniature dancing figures with musical accompaniments that existed during that period. You can also witness  marvellous  sculptures depicting day to day activities of people.

The carvings in the inside wall of the outer prakaram (about a foot higher from floor level) depict vignettes of social life through the acrobatic and dance poses of artists.

There is even a sculpture where a fat woman who  violently strikes at her husband's head by pulling his hair  and the crying expression of her husband in pain was sculpted with style. This clearly depicts the thousand year long tradition of husbands beaten up by their wives!

There is a carving showing Delivery of baby sculpture, helped by attendants in standing posture. The pregnant woman has both her hands on the shoulders of the two attendant ladies, who are pressing their hands and the abdomen of the lady to help her deliver which gives a glimpse into the social conditions of the past.

The  Nandi and Musical  Staircase

The placement of Nandi was of prime importance in Chola architecture, at Darasuram Nandi is enclosed in a small mantap which can be reached by three steps in the form of a ladder. The steps are stones, which give different musical sounds when tapped. All the seven swaras can be heard at different points.

See the Fencing for Musical Staircase at the Right

Now these stone steps have been completely covered by a secured enclosure by ASI  to protect them from deterioration.

Cholas vs Nayaks

While the base of the temple was built by the Cholas with granite construction, the top structure was later renovated by the Nayak Kings using Red Bricks and Lime mortar.

Paintings 

During Nayak period, vegetable colour paintings on Shiva purana and mythological stories were artistically painted in the inner walls of the mandapa. Now they are all in various stages of destruction due to seepage of water and sunlight.

Guide

Knowledge of Hindu mythology helps in understanding  the sculptures much better. A guide at the temple provided us lot of information about the sculptures and explained the detailing in each pillar.

Right : Guide demonstrated by inserting a stick in the hole pierced in Valli sculpture's nose.
Without  Guide's help we may not be able locate these minute sculptural wonders.

Foreign Visitors

It seems to be a rather less visited place too by the locals as one can see a minimal local visitors.  But I was thrilled to see foreign visitors who came in many buses who were astonished by this temple’s grandeur in carvings. Some of the visitors from USA and Canada were in perfect Indian attires to escape from the heat. 

A Last word...

This easily accessible, sparsely crowded, must visited ancient temple should not  be rushed  through. One has to spend at least few hours here otherwise it will be an injustice to the great sculptors. 

Be you are an architectural enthusiast or even a photography amateur- it is really a wonderful experience to see  the expertise of the sculptors  who crafted every inch with dedication and devotion and of course the interest of the rulers who promoted and patronized them.

Dravidian artisans' sculptures  gain more reputation than any other sculpting styles in the world due to the fact that  sculpting  was  done on granite and basalt stones. Sculpting, crafting, polishing on hard granite and basalt stones need more  expertise, improvised tool design¹, better knowledge in stone selection and craftsmanship than to do it with soft limestone, marble stones or soap stones.

Even the ceilings were not spared !

One has to keep in mind that all these artistic, magnificent  sculptures  that stand for almost 1000 years were carved just with a chisel and ten fingers only and no mechanized modern machinery with high speed steel / alloy, tungsten carbide tipped tools used for cutting, grinding and polishing as now-a-days.

Intricate carvings in the ceilings

I am sure that there would be a great experience for everyone who visits this temple as one will be awestruck with its grandeur.

HOW TO REACH

By Air: The nearest airport is Trichy (85 Kms).

By Rail: It is accessible by train from most cities of Tamil Nadu and falls on the Chennai-Thanjavur line.

By Road: It is 380 Kms from Chennai and about 35 kms from Thanjavur.

Admission is free.  No fee for still photography/ videography with handheld cameras.

Hours of opening: 06.30 am to 08.30 pm on all days. Closed between 01.00pm to 04:00pm but you can still tour the temple except Lord Siva Sannadhi.

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A Short Glimpse on Cholas:

The Chola dynasty was one of longest ruling dynasties in the History of Southern India.

The earliest datable references to this Tamil dynasty² are in inscriptions from the 3rd century BCE left by Ashoka, of the Maurya Empire and in the ancient Sangam literature.

Though Imperial Cholas primarily ruled in the south of India from the 9th to 13th Century CE, they conquered not just the South India but also extended their empire³  over the sea and ruled the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

Their trade relations with West Asia, China and Southeast Asia attributed for an enormous economic development during the 11th century. It is no wonder that art and architecture was at its peak during the reign.

The Chola Territory and their Sub-ordinates * Map Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rajendra_Chola_I

Rajendra Chola I was the first ever Indian Emperor who had extended the empire beyond Indian sub-continent. No other Indian Dynasty had their naval strength as Cholas by which they dominated the entire South East Asian Sea.

They aggrandized their vessels with the then state of the art weaponry, both indigenous and imported from China. At their peak, Chola Navy⁴ consisted of about 1000-1500 battle ships divided into several fleets placed in strategic locations like Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Kaveripoompatinam in Tamil Nadu.

Rajendra Chola I's conquest⁵  of South East Asia was mainly to protect the Tamil traders⁶  from the pirates of the South Asian sea.  Fragmentary Tamil inscription (1088 CE) found in Sumatra cites the name of a merchant guild 'Nanadesa Tisaiyayirattu Ainnutruvar' (literally, "the five hundred from the four countries and the thousand directions"), a famous merchant guild in the Chola country.

In ancient Tamil verses, one can get details about types of ships, their proportionate measurements and ship building technology.

The local self governance and administration system of the Cholas was amazing and remind us of the today’s Panchayati raj and one’s eyebrow would raise to know that modern day democratic voting system was used in Gram panchayats  during the Great Rajaraja’s period. Popularly described as ‘Kudavolai⁷  system ' (In Tamil, ‘Kudam’ - means pot – assume it as a ballot box where the voter secretly writes his choice in ‘volai’ - means leaf – and puts it inside the Kudam, hence the name ‘Kudavolai’)  in ancient Tamil inscriptions, which not only gives details about the voting system but also define the rules and qualification norms for an electoral candidate and a voter.

The Chola history and their impact on India’s social, cultural, political, economic and administrative systems cannot be written off easily. It is always a pity that due importance was not always given to Cholas in Indian History by both national and international Historians.

As Mr.Tarun Vijay, Member of Parliament (BJP, Uttarkhand) aptly pointed in a recent meeting (18^th Oct 2014) at New Delhi organized by Delhi Tamil Sangam, that 'Indian History has always given prominence for the  North Indian Emperors like Ashoka, Chandra Gupta Maurya and Akbar  and  it  always  ignored  the  greatness  of  Raja Raja  Chola, Rajendra Chola  and  KrishnaDeva Raya from the South, who have also made more impressive footprints in the Indian History'.

REFERENCES :
1. Stone carving considerations - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_carving 
2. 'A History of South India', K.A. Nilakanta Sastri
3. 'The Military History of south Asia',  Col. Peter Stanford, 1932.
4. 'Military Leadership in India: Vedic Period to Indo-Pak Wars' By Rajendra Nath,
5. 'Power and Plenty: Trade, War, and the World Economy in the Second Millennium' 

        by Ronald Findlay,Kevin  H. O'Rourke
6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South-East_Asia_campaign_of_Rajendra_Chola_I
7. 'Uthiramerur, the Historic Village in Tamil Nadu', Dr. Nagaswamy, Tamil Arts Academy, Chennai.