Linda: Temple Cities – Jan 12-15

Linda: Temple Cities – Jan 12-15
Chidambaram, Tanjore, Madurai


The past 5 days have been an intense bit of travel as we meandered our way down Tami Nadu to the magnificient temple sites situated in south India. In retrospect, this was an excellent agenda to see these sites, as each one was built at a later period of time so one could see the progression of style, size, architectural, and sculptural detail. The sites at Chidambaraum and Madurai are very ancient sites where worship has been held before most written history. In fact, Madurai enjoyed frequent trade with ancient Greece, though the Hellenistic influence is seen more in the north through the influence of Alexander the Great and the cities established after his brief visit to India. In looking at the various sculptures, I wonder who influenced whom. I frequently saw lions as guardians of the temples, both at the base of the temples and in the capitals of the columns. These lions (at least to my memory) seem remarkably like the lions of the Alhambra, and thus of Europe, in style and detail. And some of the dragons looked remarkably Chinese. In coming to an old, old country like India, I can well imagine the fascination of studying precisely the movement of art, dance, medicine, and dress (etc.) as it passed along the caravan trails. That is a study that could last a lifetime, if one likes history, art, and culture.

And in traveling to these cities we had to travel on … Indian bus!! We were hoping to go by train, but they were working on the tracks between the cities we wished to visit, so we girded on our adventurous spirits and braved the bus. I had heard numerous stories of travel on Indian busses – most of them of the grueling, endurance type of story with hair pin turns, careening busses, people and babies piled on top of one another, people and packages on top, and people clambering in windows to get aboard. Admittedly, my stomach was feeling rather nervous as we wheeled our now 5 pieces of luggage (quite a spectacle –and many Indians seemed amazed to see such wealth dragging along the street. I suspect most people who have our kind of suitcases to not use the bus – at least we didn’t see anyone else)!! But, fortune was very much on our side, and I remain extremely grateful. At each place, we were the first stop of the bus. Every time, we happened to arrive just 15 minutes before the bus left – just enough to lug the luggage on board and choose our seats. The family tended to ride in the back with the luggage. I, however, chose to ride just in front of the axle – less bumpy – and next to a window where I could control the amount of air. In fact, the bus ride was fine. They have bars across the windows (just two, so you could still see out) which prevented any possibility of climbing through windows - so those days are over – AND – here is where there is a distinct advantage of being a woman in India. Because of the Indians respect for the privacy of women, men do not sit next to a woman that is not family,which I actually find this to be a rather agreeable custom. Also, more men travel than women. The net result was that on several occasions, I didn’t have to share a seat at all, while several men stood up. It didn’t last, but I rather enjoyed it for awhile. The bus rides varied, and there was certainly some careening, some jolting, some impressive bumps, and hairpin turns. The bus could also be completely full with people up the aisle – babies and children in hand, with food, containers of rice, baskets of produce, and the occasional small bag (nothing like ours) which fit neatly under the tiny seats. Having said all that, in having a window seat, I had as much room and comfort as I had in a taxi with all of our luggage and the four of us. All in all, the bus rides were just fine, although I would be singing a different song if we had to sling our bags on top and stand for 4 hours between stops.

The first temple we visited was the Sabhanayaka Nataraja Temple in Chidambaram. This is considered to be the most sacred temple in India for Shiva and reputedly it is on this location that Shiva divinely revealed the art form of dance as worship which is strictly adhered to and practiced to this day. The oldest part of the temple dates to the Chola dynasty in the 900’s AD. The temple is surrounded by a high wall and is three concentric circles. One makes one’s way in clockwise fashion to the centermost circle, passing many smaller shrines all along the way. The gopuras are covered with magnificent carvings and two of them show, in sculpture form, the 108 poses revealed in sacred scripture for dance as worship. The site dates from antiquity, and the tank (pool of water) comes from the joining of seven streams. The most sacred parts of the temple trifold. Interestingly, the center shrine is to Vishun, not Shiva, and is tended by a different branch of priestly devotees, as seen by the style of hair and clothing. In the central shrine are statues to Vishnus, the preserver, and the god one prays to for help in this world. But behind the first statue is an immense, reclining Vishnu with his consort, in silver – beautifully attired and sparkling. Just outside this shrine are two shrines to Shiva, one under a copper dome and one under a silver dome. The copper dome houses Shiva as a dancer, and it has a crystal relic said to come from the moon on the brow of Shiva and also a ruby Shiva as dancer. The gold roofed shrine contains Shiva with his consort, Shivakamasundari – but the special part of this shrine is hidden to the left of these statues. Here is where Shiva manifests as one of the 5 elements. Aranachula was Shiva as fire, and here, Shiva is as ether. Ether is invisible and in all things and is said to be God in the heart. The Shiva “statue” here is behind the leaves of this door and invisible. These shrines, as I said, have been here since the dawn of history. A king, in the 900’s, had leprosy and came to the tank of this temple whose sacred waters cured him of his disease. In gratitude, he began building the great temple and brought 3000 monks of the Dikshitar order to officiate – which they have ever since. Many Chola kings were crowned here and additions were made to the temple, including a magnificient 1000 pillared hall way (999 pillars, one being the leg of Shiva) built in the 1400’s. This hall was closed while we were there, but its vastness makes the Greek and Roman halls pale in comparison. We went to this temple twice, and I found it to be a very moving and intense place, helped in part by the chanting of prayers, the rituals observed at many shrines, and the piety of the devotees. Of all the temples we visited to date, this one had the most charge atmosphere, the most intense feeling of inwardness and an intense sort of peacefulness as well. The world seemed far away and God seemed near.
The second temple we visited on this little tour was in Tanjore. This was the seat of royal power of the Cholas for several centuries and the temple, the Brihadishwara Temple, was really built as a testament to the piety and magnificience of the kings. The sanctuaries in this temple date from the time of the Cholas and are not from antiquity, but has been a place of worship for 1000 years. The architecture is somewhat simpler in style, with a beautiful 13 story gopula in the center. The stone at the top of the gopula weighs over 80 tons and was once thought to be a single stone, but others say it is several stones fitted together. The temple is of beautiful sandstone, with the main shrine in a lovely building in the center (gopura on top) with an enormous Nanda bull facing the door. We were able to see the priests getting ready to anoint the bull with huge vats of ghee, perched high on platforms and siphoning the ghee on the bull. Many were gathered to see this particular blessing which was part of Pongal, the Harvest Festival, in Tamil Nadu. (The festival in Tiruvanamalai was a full moon festival, not a harvest festival as previously stated.) The temple grounds were large and open, surrounded by a large wall of colonnades and several buildings, all beautiful in detail and sculpture, surrounding the main shrine. The play of light on the sandstone was breathtaking, and the tone of the temple changed with the light of the day – golden in the afternoon and rosy, purple as the sun set. Its softness and open spaces were calming, and one could also see, in the 1000 pillared hall, the entrance to the royal dias which must have been very magnificient and imposing in its day.
As a sideline to this temple, we went to the palace of the princes and kings of Tamil Nadu, whose descendents still live in part of the palace. Most of the palace is in disrepair, but one could see the area of the royal audience chamber – also a hall of about 50 columns on one side of a courtyard and a royal walkway going up to the royal pavilion. Just walking up the steps, seeing the royal pavilion with its paint and mirrors, still glittering, was imposing. But it changed when one was inside the royal pavilion, looking out like the king would have done. Here, instead of the focus being on one impressive center, one’s gaze went out in widening arcs, taking in the area under roof and then the area of the courtyard. It was the center looking out on the whole, and again, I was impressed by how much one took in, how much one saw, and the responsibility and beneficence necessary to be sitting, truly sitting, in that place. The world in the hands of a king where much good could be done very quickly.
The last temple in the series, and the latest, is the famous Meenashki Temple in Madurai. Most of the temple was constructed in the 16th-17th century, but again, the site is a very ancient site. The story is that a king in legendary times wanted a son and had prayed fervently. One day a 3 year old child appeared in a sacrificial fire - the answer to the king’s prayer. But much to his dismay, the child was a girl and … had three breasts! Otherwise, she was immensely beautiful, the “fish-eyed goddess” and a manifestation of Parvati. The king was reassured that the child would grow and flourish and that the third breast would fall off when she met her husband. Meenaskshi succeeded her father, leading battles with an aim to world domination, culminating in the defeat of Shiva’s armies! Shiva then appeared on the battlefield and, Meenakshi lost the third breast. Thus, the prophecy was fulfilled and Meeankshi marries Shiva and both have a dual role, first as the king and queen of a worldly realm, and then as the presiding deities of the Meenakshi Temple – into which they subsequently disappeared. The temple has 5 stunning gopuras, covered with statues painted in many, many colors. Unfortunately, the gopuras were covered due to renovations, so we were unable to see any of them. The inside of the temple is like a mandala, and one makes one’s way around and around like a maze. There is a magnificent 1000 pillared hallway – again with a throne room – that also housed many brightly lit stalls of vendors. There was a small museum with a wonderful collection of old bronze statues – ones of immense beauty of form and detail, and with faces that were delicately crafted with a strong personality. It was wonderful to see these old statues, especially after seeing more modern ones, and noting the difference in detail and artistry. Many of the columns of the 1000 pillared hall were also large statues, very detailed, of the many deities. Most were traditional, and it also included kings and even one European on a horse (at least one).
Now is the time of the Aryayyapa pilgrimage. The Aryayyapa is a very large religious sect in India, ancient in origins but taking on a huge following in recent times. Their main pilgrimage site is in Kerala, just 4 km from where I now sit. The story is that an ancient king again wished for a son, and was granted this wish in the form of a boy Aryayyapa. After being given this son, the queen conceived of a son (then another) and wanted the kingdom to go to her children rather than the god. She then feigned illness and told her doctors to tell the king (who was a very good king) that she needed tiger’s milk or she would die. Well, no one in the kingdom was able to get tiger’s milk ( of course) so the first born son from heaven undertakes the mission. He goes in the jungle and comes back … with a battalion of tigers! Both king and queen are humbled and give him the kingdom, which he refuses. He then shoots his arrow into the heart of the jungle and tells the king and queen to build a temple where the arrow falls and to worship there at least once a year. The present sect arises from this legend, dress in black dohti and shawl, and go on a pilgrammage to this site – to the tune of (we’re told) 25 million a year in the months of December-January! One million come on January 14th – and their numbers were very evident at the Meenakshi Temple. The area was swarming, absolutely swarming with devotees – combined with some political rally that was going on in the city, blasting speeches and loud music on many street blocks- a common practice we are told. “Politics, India style” – combined with the fact that the temple was covered and the grounds difficult to understand. It was an impressive place, but I didn’t find it particularly uplifting. We were, however, in a very nice hotel after several, shall we say, less hospitable experiences. If the city had been more hospitable, we may have rested here for a few days, but none of us wanted to stay, despite the nice accommodation.
Back on the bus!! And, up, up, up, winding through the Western Ghat mountains. The city gives way to well tended fruit and vegetable plantation. The dirtiness and clamor of the city gives way to the quiet and relative cleanliness of the country, and the air gets fresher and crisper as we ascend into the mountains. Several hair pin turns and grinding gears later, and we come to a nice little town. A man on a motorcycle takes us under wing, as the accommodation we hoped for was booked, and showed us a place he was associated with. We’re always a bit nervous about “help”, but this man was a real gem and the place he showed us was a home stay and absololutely lovely. We were served tea and have a beautiful room at the edge of the jungle. This is the edge of the Periyar Tiger Preserve, where the tigers and elephants roam free. Like all cats, tigers are very difficult to locate, but they are very much here. We will stay for 3 nights, going on treks and raft trips to see the animals, ride and elephant, see a Kerelan style of dance and martial arts, and enjoy the beauty and peace of a side of India we have not yet seen. So – we leave Tamil Nadu to enter the province of Kerela – and the quiet side of India.