This is thirty-third in the series on the rich cultural heritage of temples in India. The ancient monuments of India are richly carved and they behold ones attention for their craftsmanship.
Beautiful craftsmanship on 10th century Varahi Temple at Chaurasi. One of the windows of the 14th century Rudbai Step-well at Adalaj which has been carved intricately on all corners with different motifs and animals.
The sanctum doorway of Harishchandra ni Chori at Shamalaji is adorned with bands comprising a creeper, lotus leaves and the vine. The two female figures at the base represent Ganga and Yamuna.
Rudabai Stepwell in Adalaj is one of the magnificent Step-well that is truly a architectural marvel. King Mahmud Begada had built this step-well in 1499 for his queen Rudabai. Once upon a time it provided water for drinking, washing and bathing.
It is an fine masterpiece of Indo-Islamic fusion. It was dug deep to access ground water at that level and it is five stories deep. The sandstone structure built on intricately carved large number of pillars is octagonal in plan at the top.
The air and light vents in the roofs at various floors and at the landing level are in the form of large openings. Built along a North-South axis, entrance is from the South, the three staircases are from the South, West and East directions leading to the landing, which is on the northern side of the well.
Four small rooms with oriel windows decorated with minutely carved brackets are provided at the landing level, at the four corners.
The motifs of flowers and graphics of Islamic architecture blend very well with the symbols of Hindu and Jain gods carved at various levels of the well.
Sun Temple at Modhera is the architectural marvel of the 11th century built by rulers of Solanki Dynasty. The temple is dedicated to Sun God and in front of the temple is a beautiful step well known as Surya Kund.
It is a rectangular step-well that approximately measures 1962 sq meters and a flight of steps through kirti-torana on the west leads to this step-well. This is primarily used for storing water and perform ceremonies for worshipping the Sun God.
The architecture showcases the symmetry in the layout and beautiful carvings. There are four terraces and recessed steps through which one can reach the bottom of the tank. The steps on each terrace are at right angle to steps on the next terrace. These steps are rectangular or square except the first step of each flight of steps which is semicircular.
There are numerous miniature shrines and niches in front of terrace-wall that have images gods. There are supposed to be 108 small shrines all throughout the steps in the tank. The gods and goddesses adorning the steps of the tank include Lord Ganesha, Lord Vishnu, and other locally worshipped forms.
Rani-Ki-Vav (the Queen's Step Well) at Patan is one of the most magnificent step-well in the World. It was added to the list of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites in the year 2014 and rightly so. It is a distinctive form of subterranean water resource and storage systems on the Indian subcontinent.
It was built in the last decades of 11th century by Queen Udayamati as a memorial to her husband King Bhimdevan 1 of Solanki Dynasty. Measuring more than 65 meters in length, it is designed inverted temple it is divided into seven levels of stairs with sculptural panels of high artistic quality.
At the ground level a free standing structure om two columns with an elaborate superstructure was built as a kind of ceremonial structure. The well is located at the westernmost end of the structure and consists of a shaft 10 m in diameter and 30 meters deep.
Beyond the entrance commences a stepped corridor marked at intervals by landings where multi-storyed pavilions were built; at the end of a corridor there is a reservoir, beyond which is the well.
Adorned with exquisitely carved sculptures arranged in paneled niches. Both walls of the corridor, and the well itself, besides the pavilions, were fully covered with large sculptures which must have numbered about eight hundred, and with many other carvings of a symbolic or decorative character.
There are more than 500 principle sculptures and over a thousand minor ones combine religious, mythological and secular imagery, often referencing literary works.
Sun Temple at Modhera is one of the architectural marvel in the state of Gujarat. The temple that was built in 1026 AD has a unique architecture is most important Sun Temple in the whole of Gujarat. The temple dedicated to Sun God was built by Rushabh Bhimdev I of Solanki Dynasty.
The whole structure standing on a basement consisted of the Garbhagrha, Guha Mandapa, Sabha Mandapa. In front of the temple is the sacred pond called the Surya Kunda.
The Guha Mandap is the main temple with sanctum is a rectangular structure, with its length inside the walls 51 feet that is almost double of its width of 25 feet. It was designed so that the rays of the rising and setting sun on the day of Summer solstice and not equinox falls on the idol of Sun. Unfortunately there is no idol in the temple as in the olden days it was plundered by Mahmud Gazni.
The Sabha Mandap is a magnificent pillared hall that has been carved ornately. It is open from all sides and has 52 intricately carved pillars.
The exterior of the temple walls has been carved exquisitely with 12 different postures of Sun God along with various other deities. Between the Sabha Mandapa and the Main Sanctum is a beautiful hall with exquisitely carved pillars and arches.
The Surya Kunda is a large rectangular stepped tank under the east face of the Sabha Mandapa is used to store pure water. Devotees were required to perform ceremonial ablutions here before worshipping the Sun God.
Hulikere is just 5 kms from the Halebid. This place is not as popular as other ancient archaeological sites of Belur and Halebid. This place one can see beautiful Pushkarini (sacred pool).
This pool is constructed below the ground level. There are stone stairs from top to the bottom on all the four sides. At the mid height level there are 12 sanctums with pinnacles. Apart from this there are also 15 sanctums without pinnacles at the same level.
The 12 sanctums most probably represented the twelve Zodiac constellations. The total number of sanctums may be standing for the 27 constellations. As this pool is filled with 75% water during the rainy season, its full architectural beauty is visible only during the summer season.
The base of the sanctum has two layer of beautiful carvings of elephants, horses, humans in war scenes. There is also a layer of beautiful motifs.
Around the Brihadeeswara Temple of Gangaikondacholapuram there are many shrines and structures which are built around the same time as the main temple in 1020-1029. One of them is Lion well.
The well in the temple premises is considered a sacred place and water from this was used for all the activities at the temple. The interesting aspect is entrance to the well is through a Lion sculpture which is close to the well. A flight of steps takes one to the bottom of the well.
The formidable 14th century Devgiri Fort is at Daulatabad, near Aurangabad has triple line of fort walls surrounded by moats preventing easy access to the summit. The space between the outer and the inner defenses contains many ruined palaces, temples, dargahs and mosques.
In this region there is a well known as Sarasvati Well which is about 100 feet square and 40 feet deep. Today this well is in ruined state. It is considered sacred and named after Goddess Sarasvati. The sides are paved with square blocks of stone, and have narrow flights of steps leading to the bottom.
The water in the well is filled by natural springs. There is used to be pipes that supplied water to it from the nearby reservoir.
Taj Bawdi constructed in 1620, is one of the interesting sights in Bijapur (State: Karnataka). Ruler Ibrahim Adil Shah built this well in honor of his queen Taj Sultana.
It measures 223 sq feet and 52 feet deep. The entrance to the well has a 35 feet span majestic arch and is flanked by two octagonal towers. On the eastern and western sides of the tower there were the rest houses for the tired travelers. Beyond the archway is a small platform and a flights of stairs on either sides of the platform leads one to the water.
This place is not maintained that well, and if not taken care soon will be ruins. The landscape of Bijapur is full of historic monuments. Every inch of a place here has a tale of its own to depict. It is impossible to maintain them, unless the people themselves take the initiative.
