Brihadeeswara Temple
Brihadeshwara is the term given to Lord Shiva, who is revered in the Tanjore Big Temple built by Raja Chola I and sanctified more than a thousand years ago in 1010 AD. The temple features an enormous Shivaling in its sanctum, advocating the name Brihadeeshwara (the all-unavoidable Lord).
Brihadeshwara Temple Highlights
The Periya Koil (large sanctuary), Brihadeeshwara sanctuary, features an astonishing design that demonstrates the Cholas’ brilliance in sanctuary development, mold, fresco painting, and metallurgy. The sanctuary has successfully weathered the elements, including six notable earthquake tremors and a severe fire disaster. In recognition of its outstanding design, UNESCO designated the sanctuary as a World Heritage Monument.
The marvel in granite
This amazing sanctuary is entirely made of stone. Interestingly, history states that there is no rock quarry for approximately 50 kilometers near the sanctuary, leading to the conclusion that the massive stones used in the construction must have been imported from far away areas. Even master planners are perplexed as to how the octagonal-shaped top stone, weighing around 81 tons, was raised and placed over the vacant Shikara, which measures 216 feet (66 meters). The engineers and architects engaged continue to inspire the developing world today.
Brihadeshwara Temple’s History
The Chola King Arulmozhivarman, also known as Rajaraja Chola I, was an incredible hero who ruled over South India, Ceylon, Malaya, and the Maldives Islands. Establishing the structure for the sanctuary in response to the demands that appeared in his dreams, it was completed around 1010 AD, and the monarch proudly christened the sanctuary ‘Rajarajeshwaram’, a name that has endured for centuries.
He planned to commemorate every genuine festival in the sanctuary, making it the focal point of all monetary and religious activities. Later, the Marathas and Nayakas attacked Tanjore and dubbed the monument ‘Brihadeshwara sanctuary’.
Staggering Architecture of Brihadeshwara Temple
Brihadeshwara temple, with its 216-foot shikara, the Vimana, one of the world’s highest artificial shikaras, is notable for its immensity and is also known as the Dakshina Meru (the Meru pile of the South).
This Vimana ascending over the sanctum sanctorum is an empty building constructed entirely of interlocking stones, with no coupling materials used at all. The massive bull statue (Nandi) is approximately 16 feet long and 13 feet tall, and it is carved from a single shake. The Shiv Ling in the sanctuary is about 3.7 meters tall.
Engravings of Brihadeshwara Temple
The followers of the powerful RajaRaja Chola coordinated to manufacture a large number of engravings in a deeply point-by-point manner that to this day remains unrivaled in the historical backdrop of other temples around the world. These carvings reveal some important information and exclusive insights on sanctuary growth and its distinguishing features, as well as a glimpse into the culture that was being instilled at the time.
In terms of the sanctuary’s organization, day-to-day ceremonies to be held in the temple, the subtle elements of contributions and enrichments to be made with a specific depiction of the significant number of gems given to the sanctuary, the strategies for extraordinary love on important days, and a few other significant details are all managed and carefully worked on. According to history, the 107 passages mentioned were directed by the lord and were located in the imperial showering corridor on the castle’s eastern side.
The surviving monument of the Brihadeshwara Temple
While none of the massive royal residences that worked against the historical backdrop of the Cholas survived to stand today as fiercely as they did once, the Brihadeshwara temple’s ability to withstand the test of time for more than a thousand years demonstrates the unrivalled achievement of Chola engineering and the supporter’s exceptional dedication to Lord Shiva.
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