Sunday, December 14, 2014

Poetry in Stone - 25

This is twenty-fifth in the series on the rich cultural heritage of ancient temples in India. The ancient temples are richly carved and each of the carvings surpass each other in their mastery. One of the prominent carvings are the war scenes from various epics.



Above is the two warriors fighting in a battle carved at the 12th century Hoysaleswara Temple at Halebid. At the same temple there is a intricate rock carving showing, Abhimanyu entering the Chakra vyuha as seen below.




The epic Mahabarath depicts the battle between Karavas and Pandavas. In this battle Abhimanyu, son of Arjun penetrates the Chakravyūha a special formation. As he had no knowledge of how to come out of it, he was trapped upon entry and fought alone. Once he penetrated the sixth tier of the formation, all the Kauravas commanders attacked him simultaneously and killed him.



A band of battle scene on the external wall of Mallikarjuna Temple, BasaraluIn the below the top image is that of band of various battle scenes from Lakshminarayana Temple at Hosaholalu. 



The Jalakanteshwar Temple in Vellore Fort at Vellore has beautiful Kalayana Mandapam. The pillars here have beautiful carvings of warriors on the horse. The 10th century  Ranganathswamy Temple at Srirangam also has beautiful sculptures of warriors on the horse. One of the Hero Stone at A.S.I Museum in Shimoga created in memory of brave warrior  who lost his life in the battle field.

36 comments:

George said...

These intricate carvings are absolutely magnificent. I'm glad they have survived so long in such good condition.

Kenneth Cole Schneider said...

It is wonderful that such intricate work has been preserved for all to enjoy!

Amila said...

very beautiful photos of carvings.These shows the rich heritage of the country.Also these remind me those carvings of Sri Lankan temples....

Budget Travel Talk said...

Love the carving of the warrior on horseback.

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

These carvings are really fascinating, Rajesh. It is impressive that they ahve survived so many centuries in such perfect condition.

Mary Howell Cromer said...

My favorite is the mom and baby horse~

eileeninmd said...

Hello Rajesh, wonderful carvings! The pillars are amazing. Thanks for sharing, have a great day!

R Niranjan Das said...

Beautiful sculptures!

Ramakrishnan said...

Truly amazing skills possessed by architects and sculptors in golden era of glorious South Indian history.

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

I always enjoy your posts of the temples showing the amazing architecture, but I think I love this series even more. It is lovely to see and admire these intricate carvings up close. "Poetry in Stone" is exactly the right title for your series. It really is.

Donna said...

I love looking at these carvings from far away and then when you show them up close each carving is a work of art....I still am savoring each one. I love coming to see what new beauties you will have for us each week.

betty-NZ said...

The details in these carvings make my head spin! How they did that with no modern tools impresses me!

Photo Cache said...

the carvings are what makes the temple experience complete.

Worth a Thousand Words

Sylvia K said...

These are so amazing and beautiful, and fascinating as well, Rajesh!! Thank you so much for sharing!!

krishna said...

marvelous creations..!

Jeevan said...

Very interesting post on this series! Impressive collection and information on these storytelling rock works.

Teamgsquare said...

The temples you mentioned are pretty beautiful and are classical representative of Hoysala architecture.

MaR said...

Wonderful carvings! love the details.

w is for

http://joshidaniel.com/ said...

they are great :)

Trubes said...

Some Wonderful Work in the intricate carvings in the masonry

best wishes,

Di,

ABCW team,





Reader Wil said...

India has a lot to offer the world! Have a great week full of joy and happiness.
Wil, A BCW Team

Roger Owen Green said...

Warriors - always with us.

ROG, ABCW

Leovi said...

Wonderful pictures, I love how you have managed to capture the beauty of these sculptures !!

alicesg said...

Great to have the craftings preserved to have history passed down to the next generation. Nice post.

Linda said...

Very impressive carvings!

Meoww said...

Intricate and exquisite!

Rhonda Albom said...

These carvings are beautiful. I would love to see them someday.
(Visiting from Travel Photos Monday)

Priyashi said...

Wonderful photos...:)

Gillena Cox said...

luv the photos and the info given

i posted late this week
Flower Of The Blessed Night

much love...

fredamans said...

The first action scenes. :-)

Lmkazmierczak said...

Such battles!...am glad those wars are in the past. The intricate art work is amazing♪ http://lauriekazmierczak.com/woodlands/

Unknown said...

Nice stone work. Amazing that the temple depicts people warring rather than praying.

Yogi Saraswat said...

Wonderful photos !!

Sri Kri said...

Lovely carvings.:)

Cheers,
Sriram & Krithiga

Shrinidhi Hande said...

nice

D.Nambiar said...

Looks like I missed the Chakra vyuh. :( Thank you for the picture, Rajesh.
But both Belur and Halebeedu are simply amazing!!