Sirpur: A forgotten medieval cosmopolis
A report on how archeological research is changing some of our fundamental ideas and mis-conceptions about the history and prosperity of medieval Bharat:
From Finding Sirpur, by Chitra Ramaswamy, some excerpts:
“…Standing on the banks of the Mahanadi in Mahasamund district, Sirpur or Shreepur was once the capital of Dakshin Kosala (as Chhattisgarh was then known).
….An intriguing aspect of the findings relates to the presence of statues belonging to Vaishnavite, Shaivite, Buddhist and Jain religions at one place. This is believed to be one of the biggest temple towns of the sixth and seventh centuries discovered anywhere so far.
…Having heard so much about the ruins of the Laxman temple, we proceeded there first. The temple is believed to be among the earliest in India built solely of bricks. It is also believed to be the only temple dedicated to Laxman, brother of Lord Rama.
…The Laxman temple is believed to have been built in the 8th century by Vasata, the daughter of King Suryavarma of Magadh. Vasata was an ardent devotee of Vishnu and she built the temple in memory of her husband Harsha Gupta. Her son Mahashivagupta Balarjun, however, was the Shaivaite ruler credited with building the city of Shreepur – the City of Wealth -Â as the capital of the Mahakosala kingdom.
Every religion, especially Buddhism, flourished under the royal patronage of Harsha Gupta and Balarjun.
Copperplate inscriptions and a Chinese coin unearthed at Sirpur indicate that trade was buoyant under Balarjun’s rule and this brought with it exchanges of learning from neighbouring countries as well. Sirpur became an established centre of Buddhism between the 6th and 10th centuries and the Chinese traveller Hieun Tsang is believed to have visited the city.
Tsang’s travelogue mentions Shreepur as having over a hundred Buddhist monasteries inhabited by over 10,000 monks belonging to the Mahayana sect.
…Many rare idols are believed to have been stolen from Sirpur due to lack of proper security. One such piece, an idol of Goddess Tara, is believed to have been stolen in the mid-1960s and is currently housed in a US museum.”
Image: Ruins of the Laxman temple at Sirpur
Image:Â Remains of a Shiva temple
Read the full story here.
Image courtesy: http://raipur.gov.in/images/temple11.jpg
From India Digital Heritage Project of Microsoft India – See Famous Indian Landmarks in Vivid Detail on Internet
You might have visited some of the most important temples and other landmarks in India but you might not have had the patience and time to go in for a close scrutiny of the architecture and sculptural details of some of the unparalleled architectural gems of India. But with the India Digital Heritage Project of Microsoft India you will be able to enter some of the important heritage and religious sites in India and see everything in minute detail from the comfort of your home on the Internet.
The highlight of this unique digital heritage project is that takes a holistic approach, focusing not only on monuments but their associated cultural heritage. The India Digital Heritage Project of Microsoft is a collaboration with the Department of Science and Technology in India and various academic and industry research organizations.
India Digital Heritage Project of Microsoft India is an effort to collect, store and share data on architectural sites in India and stimulate research in visualization, computer vision, graphics and related fields.
Microsoft Research India’s Advanced Development and Prototyping Team has completed a pilot prototype for the Sri Andal Temple in Srivilliputtur, Tamil Nadu.
Building upon the existing Photosynth and HDView technologies, engineers, researchers and designers, teamed up to create a virtual representation of the Sri Andal Temple in Srivilliputtur which enables users to walk through the premises of the temple, observing the vivid courtyards, murals and pillars that lie within.
Users may choose to follow a ‘guided-tour’ where a narrator explains the historical and cultural importance of what is being viewed. In order to enhance the experience, giving it a ‘real-life’ effect, ambient sounds of pujas, birds and natural surroundings have been built into the system.
In order to view the large images of temples on India Digital Heritage Project of Microsoft India website you must install the HD View Add-on your browser. HD View is a new viewer developed by Microsoft Research’s Interactive Visual Media group to aid in the display and interaction with very large images.
http://virtualindia.msresearch.in/DH/index.html
Thanks to Krishen-ji for alerting me to this.
Tamil Nadu temple murals effaced on a large scale by T.S. Subramanian (The Hindu, 12 July 2009):
150 to 250-year-old works whitewashed; loss to Tamil Nadu’s painting tradition
VANISHING LEGACY: At the Mannarkovil temple near Ambasamudram in Tamil Nadu, some surviving paintings juxtaposed with the whitewashed wall where a ceiling-high painting of Narasimha existed; Below is a photograph of the since-effaced Narasimha painting, taken in 2007.
CHENNAI: An array of striking paintings has been whitewashed out of existence at the Rajagopalaswamy Kulasekara Alwar temple at Mannarkovil in Tirunelveli district. These were images of the coronation of Rama, the Dasavataram, Narasimha, Garuda, a wrestler fighting an elephant and so on. Estimates put their antiquity at 150 to 250 years.
More recently, murals of the late Nayak period were whitewashed at Muthalamman temple at Kodangipatti, near Karur.
Over the past several years, similar mural masterpieces have been whitewashed at the Meenakshi temple in Madurai, the Arunachaleswarar temple at Tiruvannamalai, the Vishnu temple at Tiruvellarai near Tiruchi, and Siva temples at Patteeswaram near Kumbakonam, Tiruppulivanam in Kancheepuram district and Vedaranyam, all administered by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department of the Tamil Nadu government.
Similar vandalism has been witnessed at other temples in the State, including the Varadarajaswamy temple in Kancheepuram, the Lakshmi Narasimhar temple at Sevilimedu, and the Sanjeeva Rayar temple at Iyengarkulam, both near Kancheepuram.
The latest round of effacement that has been revealed took place about six months ago in the name of renovation, and it is still under way. Sculptures on pillars and inscriptions have also been “cleaned†by sand-blasting: it involves training sand on them at high pressure. This is in violation of a Government Order that bans sand-blasting in temples as it damages sculptures and inscriptions. A sign-board at the temple says Rs. 8,16,000 will be needed for “sand-blasting (chemical wash)†for the renovation.
The Mannarkovil temple was built by Chera king Rajasimha in the 11th century A.D. for the Chola emperor Rajendra. It has an independent sub-shrine, belonging to the 13th century, devoted to the Vaishnavite saint Kulasekara Alwar, who spent his last days in Mannarkovil. It has inscriptions of the Chola and the later Pandya kings. It has three sanctum sanctorums.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/07/12/images/2009071257351601.jpg
The murals that have been whitewashed existed on the side walls of themantapa (hall) in front of the sanctum on the first floor. While the paintings on the sanctum walls remain, those that were whitewashed include the scene of Rama’s coronation (pattabhishekam) and the Dasavataram on one side. On the opposite side, a masterpiece of Narasimha too has disappeared under coats of lime. Murals on the wooden beams supporting the roof have received coats of paint. Murals on the second floor mantapa, which underwent a gaudy restoration some decades ago, have been whitewashed.
K.T. Gandhirajan, a specialist in art history, said murals in the temples at Mannarkovil and the nearby Tirupudaimarudur, Edaikal and Kalakkadu, exhibited the rare characteristics of “the confluence of Tamil Nadu and Kerala schools of painting.†What was special about the Mannarkovil temple was that it had paintings on both walls and wood.
“The idea was that the halls should be replete with paintings. The artists must have used two types of pigments — one for the wall and another for the timber — because the colour schemes are different, †he said.
P. Krishnan, during whose tenure as temple Executive Officer the murals were whitewashed, said he never gave permission for such work.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/07/12/stories/2009071257351600.htm
NRam who is the editor of this newspaper, blatantly published some rubbish which your blog had posted. One of the greatest hyppcrites of the century is N Ram.
@ gajanan: You mean to say that the murals were not white-washed? and that the news is false? Pl. clarify.
Shantanu
N Ram published this whitewashing of the murals, but at the same time , the Hindu published soemthing which said that nothing is Indian. Then they go to publish this about the temple murals. This newspaper has double standards. I hope this clarifies my position. The whitewashing must be true.
BBC has some pics of “Sirpur, a land of temples and monasteries” (looks like posted yesterday)…Is someone at BBC reading my blog?!