SHAIVA ICONOGRAPHY IN CHOLA TEMPLE ARCHITECTURE
Fig. 1: Shiva sculpture detail, Chola Period, Image source: Aashish Gundesha (lifeatkct.wordpress.com)
URMI CHANDA-VAZ MA, Ancient Indian History, Culture & Archaeology St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, India
[email protected]
Introduction: The imperial Cholas of South India were arguably one of the grandest empires in the history of India. Their reign, spanning from mid 8th century to mid 12th century CE, saw the culmination of best practices not just in the realm of social welfare, economics and administration, but also in the domains of art and culture. Having expanded their boundaries from the entire Tamil region to Kerala, parts of South Mysore, coastal Andhra and beyond to Sri Lanka, the Andamans, Lakshadweep and the Maldives1, the Chola kings truly reined supreme. Their power perhaps best manifested in the grand temples they constructed as testaments of their political and religious clout. Ardent Shaivites, the Chola monarchs created some masterpieces in stone dedicated to the Hindu deity, Shiva. In this paper, I try to look at some of the prominent Shaiva icons and their corresponding myths, as depicted in the three living Chola temples viz. the Brihadeeshwara temple in Thanjavur, the Brihadeeshwara temple in Gangaikondacholapuram and the Darasuram Airavateshvar temple in Kumbakonam and a couple of other minor temples. The Brihadeeshwara temple, Thanjavur
Fig. 2: Brihadeeshwara temple, Thanjavur, Image Source: Wikipedia
Originally called the Rajarajeshwara temple after its founder, it came to be known as Brihadeeshwara, due to its stature ('brihan' meaning big in Sanskrit). The temple was completed, barring a few final touches, in the year 1009 CE. The main deity, in the form of a Shiva lingam is called Peruvudaiyar and the temple is also sometimes known as Peruvudaiyar Kovil. Apart from the grand gopurams and the awe-inspiring structure, the temple is notable for its multitudinous fine stone sculptures that adorn its walls. Mythical lore from the Puranas and Agamas show Shiva in his various forms, including his depiction of 81 of the 108 karanas (poses) of the Bharatanatyam dance form. Some of them have been enumerated below. 1 K R Srinivasan, Temples of South India, (National Book Trust, India), 1998, P 125
Shiva Nataraja: Shiva as the Lord of Dance has great importance in the Brihadeeshwara temple of Thanjavur. Apart from Shiva's 81 karana reliefs, the god is also depicted in a beautiful sculpture in the classical pose. The cosmic dancer has his left leg raised and his right foot placed upon the demon of ignorance called Muyalaka2. Of his four arms, the upper left holds fire signifying destruction; the lower left is aligned with and points towards the demon; the upper right arm holds a drum, indicating the rhythm of time and the lower right is poised in the abhaya or fearlessness mudra.
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Much has been written about the iconography of Nataraja, especially by famed 19th century art historian and philosopher, Ananda K Coomaraswamy. This Chola Nataraja sculpture is unusually accompanied by a small Devi murti on the lower right of the panel and has a benevolent expression. More iconographic finesse emerges eventually in Chola bronzes in the subsequent years, but this is among the most notable stone figures.
Fig. 3, Shiva Nataraja, Brihadeeshwara temple, Thanjavur, mage source: frontline.in
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The sculpture rightfully depicts Shiva with a huge jatamukuta (crown of hair) with Ganga perched upon it. Gangadhara Shiva has a calm countenance proving his powers as a Yogi.
Fig.4, Gangadhara, Brihadeeshwara temple, Thanjavur, Image source: ASI via oldpicturesandpostcards.blogspot.com
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Fig.5, Chandrashekhara, Brihadeeshwara temple, Thanjavur, Image source: ASI via oldpicturesandpostcards.blogspot.com
Gangadhara: Shiva as Gangadhara depicts the mythological story of the god who uses his tresses to absorb the mighty impact of Ganga. The river descends on earth to purify it upon the invocation of sage Bhagiratha.
Chandrashekhara: Chandrashekhara implies the form of Shiva who holds the crescent moon on his head. Usually, the Chandrashekahara murti is accompanied by his consort, Uma, who either stands by his side or is embracing him. It is, therefore, also known as the Alinganamurti. However, the Chandrashekhara statue in one of the wall niches of this temple has Shiva standing by himself. The graceful statue stands on a lotus and has four hands. The statue has some ornate drapery and jewellery details too.
2 Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy, The Dance of Shiva – Fourteen Essays, (Rupa Publications, 2013), p. 54-55
Fig.6: Kiratarjuna panel, Brihadeeshwara temple, Thanjavur, Image source: poetryinstone.in
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Kiratarjuna/ Paashupatastramurti: This panel depicts an episode from the epic, Mahabharata. The Pandava prince, Arjuna, goes to the forest for performing austerities and please the god, Shiva. Shiva, pleased by his penance, decides to grace Arjuna with his divine presence. But he and Parvati appear before him in disguise in order to test him. Shiva assumes the form of a kirata or a mountain hunter. In an archery challenge between Arjuna and Kirata, the latter wins and reveals his true form to a humbled Arjuna. He blesses Arjuna and gives him the Paashupata astra (weapon), which will render him victorious in war. Apart from the principal characters of Arjuna, Shiva-Parvati, and Kirata, the panel features many ganas, animals and divine beings.
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Dakshinamurti: The Dakshinamurti form of Shiva underlines his role as the universal teacher3. He is said to have taught the sages all forms of knowledge facing the south or dakshina direction. Iconographically, as is seen in this Chola sculpture in the Brihadeeshwara Temple, Dakshinamurti Shiva is depicted as seated alone under a tree. He usually sits on a deer throne with his left leg resting on his right knee and the right leg placed upon apasmara, the demon of ignorance.
Fig. 7: Dakshinamurti Shiva, Brihadeeshwara Temple, Thanjavur, Image source: frontline.in
Such Dakshinamurti statues were common to all Shaiva temples of the period.
3 Roshen Dalal, The Religions of India: A Concise Guide to Nine Major Faiths, (Penguin, UK, 2014)
Bhikshatana: In his Bhikshatana form, Shiva is a wandering mendicant. Naked but for a few ornaments, this four-handed form is a beggar-god, a heretic who roams the world begging for alms in a kapala (skull) bowl. The myth suggests how this is Shiva's atonement for severing the fifth head of Brahma for his incestuous intents. The form is said to be a gentler form or an amalgamation of Shiva's fiercer aspect, Bhairava4.
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The niche sculpture of Bhikshatana, according to Shaiva iconography, is depicted naked, with wooden slippers on and four hands. A dog, considered an impure animal, is shown eating out of his hand to symbolise that Bhikshatana, like Rudra, is a fringe character and not a mainstream God.
Fig. 8: Bhikshatana Shiva, Brihadeeshwara Temple, Thanjavur, Image source: kavinvinu.blogspot.in
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Fig. 9: Veerabhadra, Image source: ASI via oldpicturesandpostcards.blogspot.com
Veerabhadra: The mythical story of Veerabhadra5 comes from the Linga Purana. The episode is that of the Daksha sacrifice, where Sati has immolated herself, unable to bear the insults of her father towards her husband, Shiva. Upon hearing of Sati's death, an enraged Shiva tears off a fistful of his hair and throws it on the ground. From one half of this half emerges the fearsome Veerabhadra, and from the other, Mahakali. As Kramrisch quotes from the Rig Veda equating Veerabhadra to the Purusha, she says that Veerabhadra was “ … of great strength and splendor, with a huge body, of great being. ...he had a thousand heads, eyes, feet, but also terrible tusks projecting from his mouth and numberless weapons.” Veerabhadra was given the charge of destroying Daksha by Shiva. After wrecking havoc in the sacrificial arena along with thousands of Shiva's ganas, Veerabhadra rips off Daksha's head and throws it in the sacrificial fire. Having completed his task, he returns to Shiva in the Kailasa.
This fierce form of Shiva is one of the niche statues at the Brihadeeshwara temple in Thanjavur. While the icon does not have the many attributes of Veerabhadra as described in the myth, his form can be identified by his fierce expression, his warrior-like moustache, and his pointed, protruding teeth. Such statues occur in other Chola temples too. 4 Kate Morris, Illustrated Dictionary of History, (Lotus Press, 2008), p. 36 5 Stella Kramrisch, The Presence of Shiva, (Princeton University Press, 1993), p. 322-323
Brihadeeshwara Temple, Gangaikondacholapuram
Figure 9: Brihadeeshwara Temple, Gangaikondacholapuram, Source: Wikipedia
The precedents in splendour set by Rajaraja Chola were ably carried forth by his son and successor, King Rajendra Chola I. To commemorate his victory over the Gangas, King Rajendra established a brand new capital called Gangaikonda Cholapuram, which translates to The land of the Chola (kings) who defeated or brought the Gangas. This capital featured another architectural marvel – a structure of the same kind and name – the Brihadeeshwara temple. It is not known why King Rajendra decided to build a similar temple instead of finishing or adding to his father's ambitious project, but he managed to create an awe-inspiring piece of art that has withstood the test of time and still stands among the Great Living Chola Temples today. Apart from the amazing fact that the vimana of the temple never casts a shadow on the ground, the temple is also known for some of the finest specimens of Shaiva sculptures. Anugraha murtis: The great Chola king Rajendra believed that he enjoyed the special benevolence of Shiva and commissioned many anugraha murtis6 (statues depicting the Lord's favour) to be carved on the walls of the Brihadeeshwara temple in Gangaikondacholapuram. The Chandesahanugraha murti, the Ravananugraha murti and the Markendeyanugraha murti are some of the examples. Fig.10: Chandesanugraha murti, Brihadeeshwara temple, Gangaikondacholapuram, Image source: thehindu.com
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Chandesanugraha murti: The Chandesanugrahamurti depicts the legend of the Nayanaar saint, Chandeswara or
6 S. Theodore Baskaran, Marvels in Stone, The Hindu, July 30, 2011, retrieved from http://www.thehindu.com/features/magazine/marvels-in-stone/article2308298.ece
Chandesa. Legend7 has it that the young cowherd was a devout bhakta of Shiva and would bathe the sand lingams he created in milk. Hearing of his son's wasteful activities, his father Datta came to reprimand him. Immersed in deep meditation, Chandesa did not notice his father. When his father angrily kicked the lingam and broke it, Chandesa struck the intruder with his staff. The staff magically became Shiva's axe, felling Datta. Thereupon, Shiva appeared before Chandesa, blessing and acknowledging him as one of his greatest devotees. He also restored Datta's legs. The boy was then counted among the highest Nayanar saints. The sculpture (figure 10) depicts Lord Shiva entwining a garland around Chandesa's head like a turban while he sits at his feet. Shiva is flanked by Parvati and is among the fewer instances among sculptures where he is accompanied by his consort. Scholars like C. Sivaramamurty purport that Chandesa's sculpture may actually have been made in the likeness of the emperor Rajendra himself8. The theory is plausible, since other Chola king, like his predecessor, Rajaraja Chola also had similar carvings commissioned (fig 11).
Fig. 12: Ardhanarishvara sculpture, Brihadeeshwara temple, Gangaikondacholapuram, Image source: Wikipedia
Fig.11: A bas relief carving depicting Rajaraja Chola worshipping Shiva in the Brihadeeshwara temple at Thanjavur, Image source: frontline.in
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Likewise, the Ravananugraha murti depicts the mythological story of Ravana from the epic, Ramayana. In brief, the story says how Ravana tried to shake the Kailasa mountain – the abode of Shiva and Parvati – when his Pushpak vimana couldn't fly over it. To teach the arrogant Ravana a lesson, Shiva pressed down the mountain with his toe, thereby trapping Ravana beneath it. Ravana then underwent penance and chanted Shiva's name for thousands of years. Finally, pleased with the asura king, Shiva not only freed him but also gave him divine weapons.
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Ardhanarishvara: The fascinating androgynous form of half-Shiva and half-Parvati is found in many Chola temple sculptures, but the one in the Brihadeeshwara temple at Gangaikondacholapuram is known for its striking beauty. There are many variations of the Ardhanarishvara myth, that are listed in the different Shaiva Puranas, but the central idea is that Shiva and Shakti are but one.
As the statue shows, this popular icon is split vertically in the middle, with the right half usually depicting Shiva and the left half, Parvati. The differences in the gender of the two halves are discernible through Parvati's breast, dress, jewellery, hairstyle and other lanchanas or marks. 7 Swami Parmeshwaranand, Encyclopedia of Shaivism Vol 1, (Sarup and Sons), 2004, p 144-145 8 S. Theodore Baskaran, Op. Cit.
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Fig.13: Kamantaka Shiva, Brihadeeshwara temple, Gangaikondacholapuram, Image source: Shashwath T R, public Picasa album
Kamantaka: The Kamantaka sculpture depicts the story9 involving Shiva and Kama, the god of desire. Following Sati's death, Shiva lost all interest in the world and started practising severe austerities. Afraid that the world would burn in the fire of his tapasya, the gods contrived to disturb him. Brahma asked Kama to do the needful. Kama, accompanied by his wife, Rati, went to the designated spot, whence he shot five floral arrows at Shiva. Disturbed and enraged, Shiva opened his third eye and burned Kama to ashes. The god of desire is later revived on Rati's pleas, but the story goes to display the wrath of Shiva. The most notable feature of this sculpture is Shiva's open third eye. Since he is in a sitting position, it suggests a that he was in meditation before Kama's intrusion. A similar statue of Kamantaka or Kama dahana Shiva is also seen at the Chola temple at Darasuram Airavateshvara. The icons of this temple shall be discussed next.
Darasuram Airavateshwara Temple, Kumbakonam
Fig. 14: Airavateswara Temple, Darasuram, Image source: Wikipedia
This temple is the third of the Great Living Chola temple triad and was constructed in the 12 th cent. CE by the Chola king, Rajaraja II. This world heritage site is a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva as Airavateshvara. The name is derived from the myth where Indra's white elephant, Airavata, worships the god. Airavata, who suffers from changed colours due to sage Durvasa's 9 Namita Gokhale, Book of Shiva, (Penguin, UK, 2012)
curse, is apparently cured when he takes a dip in the waters of the pool of the temple. While there is a shrine dedicated to Indra to justify the myth, the temple primarily has Shiva statues in various forms. Tripurantaka: The Tripurantaka form of Shiva plays the role of a warrior who Fig. 15 Tripurantaka and Saraswati, Airavatesvara temple, Darasuram, destroys a triad of asuras. The demon Image source: Arunkumar Marimuthu for tulsimadam10.in Tarakasura has three sons, Tarasksha, Kamalaksha and Vidyunmali. These siblings, having pleased Brahma, obtain the boon of having three invincible floating cities. They terrorize the three worlds and the gods seek Shiva's help to destroy the triad. According to the conditions of Brahma's boon, Shiva awaits the moment when the three cities or Tripura would align perfectly and targets them. Brahma himself drives Shiva's chariot while Vishnu himself becomes the flaming arrow which proves fatal for the demon siblings. The destroyer of Tripura thus becomes Tripurantaka. •
Fig 16 Vinadhara Dakshinamurti, Airavatesvara temple, Darasuram, Image source: ASI
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Vinadhara Dakshinamurti: Dakshinamurti Shiva is usually understood to be a teacher figure and the Vinadhara Dakshinamurti is especially a teacher of music. He is characterized by four arms and a vina or lute. This form of Shiva is especially venerated the Indian performing arts traditions. The references to this icon are found in the Kamika, the Amshumatbheda and the Karanagamas10.
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Lingodbhava: The Lingodbhava or Lingotbhava murti is perhaps one of the most defining Shaiva icons of the Chola temples and is found in most of their creations. The mythological story behind this form of Shiva involves a quarrel between Brahma and Vishnu for supremacy. Shiva makes an appearance at the scene as a pillar of fire and challenges them to find its source. Both the gods fail and accept Shiva as the supreme lord. This motif is popular in South Indian temples . The myth is a typical example of Shaiva canons which try to establish the supremacy of Shiva.
Fig 17: Lingodbhava murti, Airavatesvara temple, Darasuram, Image source: tamilandvedas.com
The iconography includes Shiva emerging from a pillar with four arms, the feet not showing. Similar sculptures are seen at the Brihadeeshwara temples at Thanjavur and Gangaikonda Cholapuram.
10 T A Gopinatha Rao, Elelments of Hindu Iconography, Vol 2, (Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, 1968), p. 289
Other minor Chola temples and icons
Fig. 18 (From L-R), Moovar Koil Temple, Kodumbalur [Image source: trekearth.com] and the Swetharanyeswarar Temple, Thiruvenkadu [Image source: templesoftamilnadu.co.in]
Two other minor Chola temples will be considered in this paper. The first is the temple complex of Moovar Koil at Kodambalur, which – according to epigraphical evidence – was constructed by a Chola general called Bhuti Vikramakesari in the 10 th century CE for Kalamukha ascetics11. While two temples are now extant, excavations have revealed that three were orinigally built and there were smaller parivara shrines all around it. The important Shiva icons within this temple are the Gajasamahara and the Kalantaka forms.
Fig 19. The Gajasamaharamurti at an obscure little Chola structure called the Kalleshwara temple in Betur, Karnataka
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Gajasamahara, also known as Gajasurasamhara, Gajantaka, Gajaha or Matangari is that form of Shiva where he defeats the elephant demon, Gajasura, who was terrorizing the devas and the rishis12. The iconography depicts him with multiple arms carrying various weapons, and dancing vigorously on the skin of the flayed elephant. Uma and a terrified young Skanda are sometimes shown as onlookers.
11 Suganthy Krishnamachary, Genius behind the architecture, The Hindu, June 26, 2009, (retrieved from www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-fridayreview/genius-behind-the-architecture/article658938.ece) 12 Dr. Akila Sivaraman, Sri Kandha Puran, (GIRI Trading Agency Private, 2006), p. 369
As Kalantaka or Yamantaka, Shiva is the conqueror of time or death. The mythological story is that of the ardent Shaiva devotee, King Markandeya or Shweta. The story occurs in the Bhagavata and other Puranas and the Kedara Khanda13. Once when the righteous king was immersed deep in meditation, praying to the Shiva linga, Yama or the god of death came to take him away. Shiva emerged from the linga and in protecting his deity, burned Yama to ashes. When the king came to, he was amazed at the turn of events. Despite his deep gratitude, he requested Shiva to bring Yama back to life since he was responsible for maintaining the law of time. Shiva obliged, and Yama then told his dutas to never bring Shiva's true bhaktas to his loka.
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Fig. 20 Kalantaka murti, Brihadeeshwara temple, Gangaikondacholapuram, Image source: Indianature Sq's Flickr photostream
Inscription-based evidence suggest that the Swetharanyaeshwarar temple at Thiruvenkadu date back to the time of Aditya Chola or Rajaraja Chola I. The resident deity of this temple is Shiva as Swetharanyeshwarar or Lord of the White Forest, but there is a Nataraja murti too. The temple is also famous as a Navagraha (nine planets) temple and has a big shrine dedicated to Budhan or the planet Mercury. Also notable are the three tanks of the temple, called Agni teertham, Surya teertham and Chandra teertham, which are said to have been created from the three tear drops that fell from Lord Shiva's eyes when he was dancing vigorously in his Aghora rupa. •
Fig. 21 Aghora Virabhadra, Airavatesvara temple, Darasuram, Image source: Arunkumar Marimuthu for tulsimadam10.in
Aghoramurti: In this temple, Shiva is primarily worshiped in his fierce form of Aghoramurti. When Nandi was unable to defeat the demon Marutwasura, he sought refuge in Shiva. From Shiva's eye emerged Aghoramurti. This fearsome form is also called Dashabhuja Aghoramurti and has “ten arms,... possessing three eyes and and terrific countenance. The colour of his body is blue and that of the garments, red. There are to be snake ornaments all over the body. In his ten hands he should carry parashu, damaru, khadga, khetaka, bana, dhanush, sula, and kapala, and the remaining hands should be held in the varada and abhaya poses14.” When the demon Marutwasura beheld this terrible form, he collapsed and died. This myth appears in the Svetaranyamahatmya15.
13 Wendy Doniger (edited by), Purana Perennis: Reciprocity and Transformation in Hindu and Jaina Texts, (SUNY Press, 1993), p. 64 14 T A Gopinatha Rao, Elelments of Hindu Iconography, Vol 2, (Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, 1968), p. 200 15 David Dean Shulman, Tamil Temple Myths: Sacrifice and Divine Marriage in the South Indian Saiva Tradition, (Princeton University Press, 2014), p. 133
