Sunday, August 14, 2011

Poetry in Stone - 6

This is sixth in the series on the rich cultural heritage of temples in India. The ancient temples are richly carved and they behold ones attention for their craftsmanship.

One such architectural gem is Kailashnath Temple of Kanchipuram. This temple dedicated to Lord Shiva is surrounded by 64 small sub-shrines. They adorned with the sculptures of the Lord Shiva in different poses, representing a picture of different aspects of mythology.

Here below Lord Shiva and Parvati can be seen sitting position. Behind them we can also see traces of red and green paint.

Another architectural gem Ekambareshvara Temple of Kanchipuram. It is one of the largest temple and dates back to sometime between 16th to 17th centuries.

As one enter the temple there is a beautiful carvings on the pillar. It looks like a throne ceremony of Lord Rama.

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51 comments:

Zuzana said...

I have always been fascinated by carvings in stone, those that adorn beautiful temples, churches, cathedrals or even simple homes. Stone has such a hard surface and yet it can give rise to true "poetry".
xoxo

Sridharan said...

I have visited this temple a number of times.. Wonderful temple.. Nice to recollect it through this beautiful post.!

Ash said...

Marvellous sculptures, well-captured!

Travel France Online said...

I prefer all these superb sculptures without paintings. We used to have our churches and cathedral painted as well and the excess of colours is overwhelming and refrains you from admiring the detail of the sculpture work (well, it's my point of view anyway!!)

SG said...

Beautiful pictures. I'm curious, are these photos of the exterior? Are you allowed to click pictures in the temple?

nishaslifestyle.blogspot.com said...

this post is stunning with its importance...

Anonymous said...

Poetry yes - and history in stone too!

Indrani said...

Great framings.

Anonymous said...

always a lovely post.

Carver said...

I like the variety in the carvings.

Sylvia K said...

Gorgeous temples and terrific captures as always, Rajesh! Fascinating history, I've been reading quite a bit about Lord Shiva recently! Great post for the day!

Sylvia

alicesg said...

Nice to see such beautiful designs on the temple. We learn much of ancient history from them.

magiceye said...

splendid!

Leovi said...

Beautiful poetry in stone these masterpieces.

Bob Bushell said...

I love the temples of India, they are beautiful.

Kim, USA said...

The green and red is very prominent in color I love it!

RT

Magical Mystical Teacher said...

The little hints of red in these photos accentuate the carvings.

ENAMORED OF RED

Enamored of red
I lie in my bed,
Dreaming of cherry-filled crèmes;

For red is the shade,
The prettiest made,
That gives me the sweetest of dreams.


© 2011 by Magical Mystical Teacher

Red and Yellow Rooftops

Lowell said...

You do have an extremely rich cultural heritage. Fascinating sculptures!

Cheryl said...

Imagine how long it took to carve!

Anonymous said...

Absolutely beautiful!!

Roger Owen Green said...

excellent design.
ROG, ABC Wednesday team

Nanka said...

It's like the sound of music in stone!! Beautifully carved!!

Jeevan said...

The images represent the phrase well - architectural gem! Great capture rajesh

Leslie: said...

Gorgeous temples and intricately carved!

Leslie
abcw team

George said...

The carvings on all of these temples is simply marvelous. You're showing a rich cultural heritage indeed.

The Poet said...

Hello.
Indeed, these are poetry in stone.

Thanks for the tour & history.

I appreciate the visit too.

Evening Wind

Anonymous said...

Fascinating architecture! You live amongst a lot of a fabulous temples.

Chubskulit Rose said...

Beautiful work of arts!

Epcot's Spaceship Earth, please come and see.

LifeRamblings said...

love the intricate details. thanks for sharing your world.

amrendra "amar" said...

♥ nice work ♥

Shooting Parrots said...

They are beautiful sculptures. I wondered if the number 64 is significant for the number of sub-shrines?

RIZALENIO said...

64 sub shrines - fascinating. Glad that this generation can still see these beautiful craftsmanships.

Urmi said...

Very beautiful picture. Marvellous sculpture.
You are welcome at my new posts-
http://urmi-z-unique.blogspot.com/
http://amazing-shot.blogspot.com

Hazel said...

I wonder how is a throne ceremony done in places like that and during times like the 17th and 18th centuries in India.

Joy said...

The 64 sub-shrines intrigued me. I discovered the number has much significance but am guessing that in this context its possible meaning is karmic final liberation. Whatever its significance so many sculptures must be an amazing sight.

Magia da Inês said...

°º♫
°º✿
º° ✿♥ Olá, amigo!
Seu país é misterioso, exótico... maravilhoso...
Arquitetura e esculturas ímpares e seculares... muita beleza.
Beijinhos.
Brasil°º♫
°º✿
º° ✿♥ ♫°

Rajesh said...

Thank you all for appreciating this sculptural marvel.

Pietro Brosio said...

Fabulous carvings, I like them very much.

Ms. Becky said...

I'm in awe of the work that went into this and how long it most likely took to create. magical and mystical. happy SSS to you.

genie said...

These stone carving are magnificent and in wonderful condition for their age. Love the bit of red. Like Ms. Becky, I cannot even begin to imagine how long it must have taken the carvers and workers to complete these ancient works of art. genie

Anonymous said...

Yes, a beautiful craft they had.
Always interesting!

Tes said...

beautiful work of art -such intricate carvings! :)

Rajesh said...

Thank you all for appreciating this wonderful carvings.

Tatjana Parkacheva said...

Very interesting carvings in stones.
Nice title of your post.

Regards!

Cassie said...

Wow! Great carvings. Have a wonderful week.

Shashidhar Sharma said...

Its a beautiful post and lovely images... thanks for sharing...

Shashi
ॐ नमः शिवाय
Om Namah Shivaya
http://shadowdancingwithmind.blogspot.com/
At Twitter @VerseEveryDay

Arti said...

Very ancient temple, intricate carvings and superb architecture!

Anonymous said...

Wow! Thanks for sharing them. Brilliant work :)

Deepa Gopal said...

Nice work Rajesh...great to see such amazing places and architecture thru ur blog.
64 shrines...my God!

Rajesh said...

Thank you all for appreciating this wonderful carvings.

Ranj said...

I've been to this temples a few times. Simply awesome. Majestic.