Brihadeeswarar Temple, Thanjavur

The royal temples built by the Chola kings, (such as the Brihadeswara temple at Tanjore) were particularly magnificient..... The temple in the Chola kingdom became the centre of social activity. It was not merely a place of worship, but it was also a place where people gathered together....

It was in my Seventh Standard that I first read these lines. Though the history textbook didn't talk in detail about the Cholas as much as they did for Mughals and other empires that centred around Delhi, my teacher compensated for it. Even today, their influence is discernible in places beyond the Indian subcontinent. It was back then, I hoped to visit one of the wonders of the Chola Empire. The Brihadeswarar Temple at Tanjore built during the reign of Raja Raja Chola (r. 984 - 1014 AD) stands as a testimony showcasing the architectural might of the Imperial Cholas.

The Brihadeeswarar Temple, Thanjavur

Well, Tamil Nadu is a land of temples. You might be an atheist but these temples certainly draw your attention if you even have a slight interest in either history or architecture. Being posted in Tamilnadu, I wanted to make sure that I visited most of them. Atleast the prominent ones. Thanks to a friend's wedding that fell on a Friday, I decided to convert the weekend into a trip to Thanjavur. The scorching sun welcomed me on a Saturday afternoon to Thanjavur. I was glad I didn't plan this around summer. I proceeded to visit the Brihadeeswarar Temple in the evening. I made a visit the next morning as well to watch the sun rising over the cloistered mandapams.

The view from behind. The first shrine before the main temple is the Ganesha shrine

The temple sits on a vast area of land and has three arched gateways. The first one is built by the Marathas (Yes, you heard it right ! The same Marathas who once ruled upto Khyber Pakhtunkhwa). It is a simple arched gateway along with a boundary wall. Even the custodian of the temple is a Maratha descendant. I've heard that Thanjavur has it's own Marathi dialect and a significant Marathi populace. The second gateway is called the Keralathankan Thiruvasal. This was built to commemorate the victory of Raja Raja over the Cheras. The third one is the Rajarajan Thiruvasal. Double life sized figurines of Bhutaganas and Dwarapalas are seen on both sides of the gateways (gopurams) along with a few inscriptions and various avataras of Shiva.

Maratha Gateway and the Keralanthakan Thiruvasal. They are a few yards apart though the picture makes it look like one

The first thing after surpassing the gateways and the lawns in between is the Nandi Mandapam. This is built on a grid like base supported by 16 pillars lined 4x4. This Mandapam houses a huge Nandi measuring 3.65 metres in height and made out of a single granite stone that weighs a whooping 25 tonnes. The upper walls have paintings from the Maratha era and surprisingly look so vibrant even today.

The monolithic Nandi at Nandi Mandapam. The paintings on the ceilings can be seen that date back to the Maratha era

Just after the Nandi Mandapam is the main temple. The moment you see the temple, you'll be astonished at its size and all the claims of it's size no more seem to be mere exaggerations. The temple is adorned with sculptures, inscriptions and looks like a huge pyramid pointing to the sky.  Perched on the top of the 13 level high Vimana (Tower) is the Kalasam which is said to weigh 80 tonnes and is carved out of a single stone. Legend has it that, to place the Kalasam, a long ramp extending to 5 kilometres in length was built and almost 100 elephants were used to place it on the top. 108 different moves of Bharatanatyam are portrayed on the temple walls. The sculptors didn't leave any stone untouched. The rocks inside have neither seen the sun nor experienced the heat for over a millenium now and give a relaxing cold sensation compared to the ones outside. A 36 columned porch (mandapam) leads to the garbha griha (Sanctum Sanctorum) where Lord Shiva is worshipped in the form of a Linga. The Shivalinga is one of the biggest monolithic lingas in India measuring about 8 metres in height and has a snapana platform (for ritual bathing) within the ardhamandapam (portico) located inside the garbha griha. The Cholas spent a lot of money on the maintenance of the temple and also a dedicated staff for the same. 

The inscriptions in ancient Tamil script that line the entirety of the temple

The 216 ft Vimana (Tower) with the 80 ton Kalasam on the top

On all the four sides, there are cloistered mandapams and in between the temple and the mandapams, there are few shrines like the Ganesha, Nataraja, Subrahmanya, Amman, Varahi etc and a few of them were built by the later rulers like the Nayaks, Pandyas & the Marathas. The Nataraja shrine has a bronze figurine of Nataraja gifted by Raja Raja himself. A shrine dedicated to the mentor of Raja Raja named Karuvurar Devar Shrine (named after the mentor) is just behind the main temple. The Amman shrine is lined with intricately carved pillars juxtaposed with vibrantly coloured murals depicting scenes from the epics. Subrahmanya shrine is a feast to the eyes with the walls depicting stories from Ramayana and the flight of stairs leading to the shrine embellished with elephants and warhorses.

Subrahmanya shrine built in the 17th century by Sevappa Nayaka

A Dwarapala at one of the shrines

The Bronze Nataraja gifted by Raja Raja housed inside the Nataraja Shrine as the presiding deity

It took me a good 2 hours to visit the entire campus and I was in awe with the monument that has stood the test of time for over a 1000 years. Thanks to the low influx of people and devotees, there's no hustle bustle. I sat in the lawn and couldn't help but wonder how this masterpiece was created in a period of just 5 years (completed in 1010 AD). The time spent there transported me back in time. There is a feel associated with these towering structures and no words or pictures can aptly describe it. One must visit the place to marvel at its beauty.

Sun rising over the South Cloister Mandapam

I doubt if the monuments built in today's era with so much of technological advancement would actually last this long. I'm glad that this temple is unaffected by commercialization like a few other prominent temples having different types of darshan and offerings etc. Further, the efforts made by the Government of Tamil Nadu are noteworthy in preserving it. And thus, another solo trip comes to an end.