Poetry in Stone - 32

This is thirty second in the series on the rich cultural heritage of temples in India. The sculptural work in each of these temples are always admirable.

In the Chennakesava Temple of Belur there are several beautiful sculptures created in 1175 A.D. Here one can see a sculpture of Garuda as soon as one enters temple complex.

There are beautiful sculptures on the tower of the 10th century Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneshwar.

The pillar that has been carved from all the directions to tell stories from Hindu epics. This is inside the 15th century Ganesha Temple at Kurudumale.

Poetry in Stone - 31

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

In the Chennakesava Temple of Belur there are several beautiful sculptures created in 1175 A.D. Here one can see beautiful carving of Lord Vishnu in a reclining position over the Adi Sesha with Laksmi near the feet on the external wall of the temple. This pose is known as Vishnu Anathashayanam.

A beautiful sculpture in black stone at 12th century Airavateswarar Temple of Darasuram.

A sculpture of Lord Hanuman on the external wall of 13th century Lakshmi Narasimha Temple at Bhadravati. Not so elaborate carving of Vishnu Anathashayanam on a pillar at 
Panchalingeshwara Temple in Barkur. A simple carving of 2 people on a animal at Mallikarjuna Temple, Basaralu.

Poetry in Stone - 28

This is twenty-eight in the series on the rich cultural heritage of ancient temples in India. The ancient temples have beautiful carvings on them that are treat to the eyes.

A sculpture of Salabhanjika in the 12th century Hoysaleswara Temple at Halebid. She is setting her ear rings by looking into the mirror in another hand.

A sculpture of Yakshi in the 15th century Vittala Temple at Hampi. 

A sculpture of Brahma on the external wall of 12th century Chennakesava Temple of Belur.
Another beautiful sculpture on the external wall of Rajarani Temple at Bhubaneshwar.

Images of India - 120

A glimpse of heritage monument of India in black and white. Other posts will give you more details about this monument.

Sculpture at Chennakeshav Temple in Belur

Poetry in Stone - 24

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

In the Chennakesava Temple of Belur there are several pierced stone screens  created in 1175 A.D. through which sun light enters the temple. They have been pierced by squarish holes at intervals and interspaces are carved with ornamental designs and figure sculptures.

One such interesting sculpture is on the middle panel of first screen to the south of east doorway depicting a seated King Vishnuvardhana in durbar with long hair, trimmed bearsd, twirled moustaches and royal dress and ornamentation. 

To his left is seated is the Queen Santaladevi with her hair tied up in butterfly knot in addition to usual dress and ornamentation and heavily tasseled waist belt.  

Here is a beautiful sculpture of entwined snakes along with other beautiful sculptures on the external walls of Sun Temple at Konark.

In the above the first two one below the other are sculptures of Lord on the walls  underneath the Natataraja Temple at Chidambaram.  In the next set the top one is on the walls of Vishwanatha Temple at Khajuraho. The remaining two beautiful sculptures are from Kandariya Mahadev Temple at Khajuraho. There are many more such beautiful carvings, we will explore some other time.

Poetry in Stone - 23

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

Here is a beautiful sculpture on the exterior of the Lakshmana Temple at Khajuraho where a boys help a lady to remove thorn from her feet.

On the back side exterior wall of the Varhai Temple at Chaurasi is the beautiful sculpture of Sun God on a chariot pulled by 7 horses.

At Airavateswarar Temple of Darasuram there is a very unique sculpture of Ardhanareeswarar with three faces and eight arms. If one observes carefully the left half is man and the right half is woman.

In the above the first one is Lord Shiva on sitting pose with sword and shield in pair of hands. This is again from Airavateswarar Temple at Darasuram. The next two are from Chennakesava Temple of Belur. There are many more such beautiful carvings, we will explore some other time.

Kappe Channigraya Temple, Belur

In Belur, the Kappe Channigraya Temple is one of the beautiful temples in the Chennakesava Temple complex. This temple smaller than the Chennakesava Temple architecturally significant, though it lacks any sculptural features on the external walls. The construction of the temple was initiated by Shantaladevi, queen of famous King Vishnuvardhan in 1117 AD.

It is a dual structure temple with the later addition of a shrine to its original plan. The original shrine has a star-shaped plan while the additional shrine is a simple square. The temple built on an elevated platform has perforated side walls. The image inside the temple is Lord Keshva.

The doorway is beautifully executed with a figure of Lakshminarayana flanked by makaras on the lintel. 

Inside the temple there are exquisite sculptures of Lakshminarayana, Ganesha, Saraswati and Mahishamardini. 

Poetry in Stone - 17

This is seventeenth in the series on the rich cultural heritage of ancient temples in India. There are various intricate sculptures in each of these temples where each one of them is better than the other.

Chennakesava Temple at Belur is renowned for its sculptural marvel. Here are some of the sculptures that are present on the exterior of the temple on the south-west wall.

Harihara (Lord Vishnu) standing with a bull on the right and Garuda on the left.

Lord Shiva overcoming the demon Jalandhara whom he lifts up with the point of his trident.

Saint Parasurama with battle axe. We will explore more of this sculptural heritage soon.

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Chennakesava Temple, Belur

The Chennakesava Temple at Belur is the main shrine in the temple complex. I have been to this temple several times and still there is so much to discover new here every time I visit this place.

This temple was commissioned by King Vishnuvardhana of the Hoysala Empire in 1117 AD. Within the complex, this temple is at the center  facing east, and is flanked by other sub-shrines in the sides. The pillar facing the main temple, the Garuda sthambha was erected in the Vijayanagar period while the pillar on the right, the Deepa sthambha dates from the Hoysala period. 

The temple is built on a platform using soapstone i.e., five feet high, which runs around the temple closely following its contour. The sanctum has beautifully designed star shape, while the hall is like a cross. This plan gives temple tastefully broken font-ages  The outer walls of the navaranga consisting of basement, railing and pierced screens are ornamented with numerous freezes of sculptures.

Each of the basement friezes has its own artistic merit. The lowest contains hundreds of elephants on the march in various moods and postures. There are ornamental scroll bands running around the temple. There are bands of gods, men and animals in various poses; dancers, hunters, musicians and others are carved on a miniature scale.

The temple has three entrances and their doorways have beautifully crafted with various sculptures and are guarded by decorated sculptures called dvarapalaka on either side. 

There are various sculptures all around the temple of various sizes and shapes. The temple is known for the temple plan and exceptional craftsmanship. We will see more of this temple in other post as one post will not do the justice.

Veeranarayna Temple, Belur

Within the Channakeshva Temple complex at Belur there are more than a score of structures of varying importance. There are important sub shrines which have been carved beautifully.

Veeranarayna Temple is towards east of main temple. The temple is built in 1117 A.D on a platform. Even though temple is a small, it is definitely a Hoysala structure of considerable artistic importance.

On the outer walls of the temple there are a number of beautiful images, some of which are really fine condition. There is a carving of a warrior fighting with another warrior on the elephant. Each part of the sculpture is carved intricately.

Poetry in Stone - 11

This is eleventh in the series on the rich cultural heritage of ancient temples in India. Today we move to South India for exploring the sculptural marvels at two ancient temples at Belur and Halebid. On the walls of the temple the stories from Hindu epics have been carved with great detail with attention to every minute aspect.


At Belur, there is a 12th century Chennakesava Temple beautifully carved out of soapstone as various sculptures on its walls. 

At Halebid there is a 12th century Hoysaleswara Temple beautifully carved out of soapstone. 


Once upon a time in the forests there lived a king of elephants named Gajendra. One day he went to the lake with his herd to cool off in its fresh waters. Suddenly a crocodile living in the lake attacked Gajendra and caught him by the leg. Gajendra tried in vain to escape from the crocodile's clutches. When there was no hope he prays Lord Vishnu to save him, holding a lotus up in the air as an offering. This act of rescue has been carved very intricately covering all details.



There are many more sculptures all around on the walls of the temple. Some of them are shown here above. In the rightmost image one can see a man in the Western getup - dress, hairstyle.


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Belur, the Dakshina Varanasi

Historic place Belur is a small village 222 kms from Bangalore. Nearest town to this place is at at distance of 40 kms is Hassan. This village on the on banks of Yagachi river was known by name Velapuri in the olden days. During 11th and 13th century it was the capital of Hoysala Kingdom.

The rulers of Hoysala were patrons or art and architecture and they built numerous temples and monuments. Belur is known as "Dakshina Varanasi" for its temples. Chennakesava Temple Complex at containing the Chennakesava Temple is the masterpiece of the Hoysala creation. The main entrance to the Chennakesava Temple Complex is crowned by an ornate Vijayanagara style tower.



Within the complex, the main temple of Chennakesava lies in the centre, facing east. On its right is the Kappe Chennigaraya shrine, and a small Saummyanayaki (Lakshmi) shrine. On its left is an Andal shrine and Veer Narayana shrine. Apart from these shrines, there are two graceful Garuda sthambhas, or pillars, in the main courtyard. There is also what is known as "Gravity Pillar" here.



There is also a big tank known as Vishnu Samudra in the temple complex. Each and every corner of the temple is magnificently carved. Each of the carvings big or small is master pieces here. The intricate carvings and sculpture show how much Hoysalas rulers loved music and dance.

We shall explore this place more soon.

Poetry in Stone - 9

This is ninth in the series on the rich cultural heritage of ancient temples in India. Today we will see how the elephants have been carved from stone in various temples through the centuries.

At the 12th century Chennakesava Temple of Belur there are intricate sculptures and friezes. They include elephants, lions, horses, episodes from the Indian mythological epics. What interested me is the chain of elephants at the base of the temple.

Watch them carefully and you can see two elephants as if they are interacting with each other. The elephant in the front is turning back and questioning "Why are you pushing me so hard?" See it for yourself below.



In contrast to the red color of 16th century Aghoreshwara Temple of Ikkeri there are two small black stone elephant sculptures at the entrance. Around its neck is a there is intricately carved chain of stone bells.

There are two beautifully carved stone elephants on either side of the entrance of the 9th century Ranganathswamy Temple at Srirangapatana. The carvings on the body of elephant are awesome. 

At the ancient white marble Jain Temple, Ranakpur one can see huge elephant carved in white marble.



In Mahablaipuram at the site of Panch Rathas one can see life-size rock cut elephant. There are many more such beautiful carvings in each of the ancient heritage sites which always mesmerize us.

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Poetry in Stone - 8

This is eight in the series on the rich cultural heritage of ancient temples in India. 2o kms apart twin towns of Belur and Halebid are home for temples known for their exquisite Hoysala architecture. The temples at both these places are built by renowned architect Jakkanna Acharya in the 12th century.

Both the Hoysaleswara Temple of Halebid and the Chennakesava Temple of Belur have intricate sculptures and friezes. They include elephants, lions, horses, episodes from the Indian mythological epics, and sensuous dancers. Inside the temple are a number of ornate pillars.

As some of these sculptures represent scenes from Hindu epics, some of the sculptures in these temple look similar. One such sculpture is daemon King Ravana lifting Kailasa mountain. Atop the mountain is Lord Shiva with Parvati. This is based on Hindu epic Ramayana.

Another sculpture is Arjuna hitting the eye of fish using his bow and arrow looking at its reflection in the water near his feet. This scene is carved beautifully with some minor differences. This is based on Hindu epic Mahabarath.

There intricate sculptures at two different temples are carved very similar to each other. How could they achieve these in the ancient times? Were the ancient civilization so advanced that they knew techniques of photography and photocopying. There are more than thousand sculptures in each of these temples. It is possible that some of them are similar to each other and we may be able to identify them if observed them with interest.

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What is Real Beauty?

What does beauty means to you? Is there anything real and unreal about the beauty? Beauty means different things to everyone. There is no one common agreed answer for this.

Is it the innocence on the face of young kids playing in a old temple premises?

Is is the scenic winding route in the countryside?

Is it the famous sculpture of lady looking into the mirror in the temple of the Belur?


Is it this flower?


Is it the scenic view of the Kapu beach with the palm trees on its shore?

To me it is innocent smile on the face of the kids who are engrossed in their own world? This beauty one can only seen in the kids who are still untempered by this cunning ways of this World.

What about you?