Baroli temple

Ghateshwara Mahadeva Temple

The Baroli Temples or Badoli Temples are a group of one larger and three medium-sized Hindu temples and several smaller shrines in the south of the Indian state of Rajasthan . The temples are no longer used for cult purposes, but are under the care of the Archaeological Survey of India .

location

The Baroli temples are located in a forest near the village of Baroli approx. 50 km (driving distance) southwest of the metropolis of Kota at an altitude of approx. 310 m above sea level. d. M .; the river Chambal flows about 1 km west of the temple site. This can be easily reached by bus or taxi, as it is right next to the N33. Another temple is about 1 km from the main square.

history

There is uncertainty about who commissioned the temple complex, which is enclosed by a wall, and its exact chronological order - they are mostly attributed to the Gurjara Pratihara rulers and date to the 9th to 11th centuries.

architecture

Ghateshwara Mahadeva Temple

The Ghateshwara Mahadeva Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva , is the largest and most important temple in the group. It consists of a pillar-supported vestibule ( mukha mandapa ) that is open at the side and whose multi-tiered pyramid roof is accompanied in the corners by four Shikhara turrets; in between there are statues of gods with “beautiful girls” ( surasundaris ) as accompanying figures. The cella ( garbhagriha ), elevated by a tall Shikhara tower with amalaka ring stone and kalasha vase , contains a Shiva lingam framed by a yoni . The interior of the cella is largely unadorned, but has an open lotus flower as a ceiling decoration. A stone Nandi bull lies in the transition from the vestibule to the cella.

In front of the temple there is a two-storey vestibule open on all sides with a multi-level and richly structured pyramid roof, which is interpreted as a dance hall ( rangamandapa ).

Shiva temple with temple pond

Shiva temple

Another Shiva shrine is located in the middle of a temple pond ( kund ) which is embedded in the ground and surrounded on all sides with steps ( ghats ) , which overflowed with water in the monsoon season , so that the small lingam inside the temple was temporarily flooded. The partially destroyed roof of the temple shows a rich structure - the small shikhara accompanying turrets are crowned with amalaka - ring stones; some still carry small kalasha jugs on top. The actual temple could be reached via a narrow walkway made of hewn stone blocks.

Vamanavatar Temple

The Vamanavatar Temple, the top of which has been completely destroyed, shows inside a damaged sculpture of Vamana , the dwarfish appearance of the god Vishnu .

Trimurti temple

The interior of the well-preserved Trimurti temple shows a largely destroyed wall relief with the heads of Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu. According to another interpretation, however, it is Shiva in his three aspects.