Sunday, January 3, 2016

Brihadeeswarar Temple – Myths & Features

Brihadeeswarar Temple – Myths & Features
In South of India, this temple’s Vimana is tallest at 60 meters. There is one European like figure as a carving on Vimana and it is a belief that it is one ancient warning for arrival of Europeans. Later after investigations by archaeologists they propose that claim like this may be one hoax.
People also widely believe that shadow of Gopuram, which is one pyramidal tower generally over temple’s gateway, never falls over ground. It is a saying that there is use of granite of about 130,000 tons for making this temple. A 60 ton stone of granite is there as Kumbam and is having a carving in a single piece and it lies on main Gopuram’s top.
It is a belief that they took this stone to top after creating one inclined slope towards top of this Gopuram at a height of 66 meters. A belief that still prevails is that one mud-slope starting at nearly 3 miles from temple site Thirukkoilur or Raja Raja mother’s birthplace near temple of SriVirateshvara swamy.
People claim this to be only portion of Gopuram, which do not cast its shadow falling on to ground, not at least within temple premises.
A widely held belief is that the shadow of the Vimana never falls on the ground. However, several photographs exist showing the shadow on the ground. 
The Brihadisvara Temple stands as a supreme example of Chola architecture. Built on a scale appropriate enough to house the presiding deity, Sri Brihadisvara, or the Lord of the Universe, the temple continues to excite wonder at its many unique architectural features and living presence as a centre of Saiva devotion. During the period when Chola power was in the ascendant, (around 850-1350 AD) architecture in the Tamil country went through dramatic changes.
Indeed before the time of the most famous Chola king, Rajaraja I, gopurams in temple complexes were not built on a very grand scale. During the reign of Rajaraja I, the temple at Tanjore was built not only as a monument to the sway of Chola power over many southern lands but as a living sign of Saiva concepts and beliefs. It was called ‘Dakshina Meru’ as a complement to the ‘Uttara Meru’ or the sacred mount of Kailasa, thought of as the spine of the universe. The Dakshina Meru was thought to be a centre of divine power analogous to the northern centre of Sri Kailas. Many inscriptions of Rajaraja I (A D 985-1012) reveal him to be a great warrior and an ardent devotee of Shiva.
It is this spirit of ardent devotion that visualizes the entire temple complex itself as a visible symbol of the divine presence. Over the centuries the successive powers of the Nayakas and the Marathas added smaller shrines and other embellishments to the temple complex in a manner that is a tribute to the original founder as well as the spirit of Saivism.
Mythical accounts of the actual building of the temple and the underlying puranic accounts for the source of sacred power vested in this site abound. These Sthalapuranam of varying antiquity contain narratives about the sacred geography of the location of the temple, anecdotes related to the building of this complex, accounts of kingly lineages and some canonical literature.

Foremost among these texts is the Brihadeeswarar Mahatmya, forming an extract of the Bhavishyottara Purana. It contains many legends related to the construction of the Brihadeeswarar temple. The text, attributed to the legendary Vedavyasa, gives a mythical account of sixteen Chola kings and the temples they built. It describes the festivals and fairs held in the temple along with the Kumbhabhishekam. Another text of puranic nature is the Parasara Kshetra Mahatmya, which describes the greatness of Sri Brihadeeswarar. The Thiruvisaippa of Karuvur Devar is part of the Saiva canon and describes in ten cantos, each of the sacred spots visited by the saint. The ninth canto titled, Thanjai Rajarajesvaram speaks of the temple and its presiding deity with great lyrical beauty.