Chausath Yogini Temple (Bhedaghat)
The Chausath Yogini Temple of Bhedaghat (also Bheraghat ) near Jabalpur in the state of Madhya Pradesh is the largest of its kind in India . It should actually be called Ekasiti Temple , because it has 81 niches to accommodate Yogini statues instead of the usual 64 (= Chausath ).
location
The Yogini Temple of Bhedaghat is located not far from the town of the same name, about 18 km west of Jabalpur, which in turn is located near the so-called Marble Rocks , a rock breakthrough of the Narmada River that is popular especially in the monsoon season . The temple rises on a hill about 360 m high just outside and above the village.
history
Nothing precise is known about the history of the building and who commissioned the temple. From an inscription that contains a king's name, however, it can be concluded that it was created around the year 1000. During the time of the Islamic advance in northern India , the statues were smashed, or at least badly damaged.
architecture
The outside completely unadorned and undivided temple has a diameter of over 38 m (125 feet); Inside there is a wide circular courtyard area with a Shiva temple ( Gauri-Shankar-Mandir ) with a vestibule ( mandapa ) and tower ( shikhara ). On the inner walls of the outer wall there are 81 niches, in which formerly about 1.10 m high statues of all female demigods (yoginis) were placed, but most of them have disappeared or are badly damaged. In front of it there is a roofed walkway supported by pillars that protected visitors from both the sun and rain.
The basic structure of the Gauri Shankar temple - possibly added a short time later and moved slightly from the center - is kept quite simple and unadorned. After destruction by Islam , the entire temple was renewed in the 18th century: the flat roof of the vestibule ( mandapa ) was given a crenellated parapet wall and pavilion-like structures ( chhatris ) in the style of Mughal architecture with Bengali roofs . The exterior of the cella ( garbhagriha ) is strongly structured ( ratha ), but completely unadorned; the pyramidal structure is multi-tiered, which corresponds more to the South Indian Dravida style ( vimana ). The interior of the temple is also unadorned and contains a Shiva lingam and a statue of the god with his wife Parvati riding on a Nandi bull.
See also
literature
- Vidiya Dehejia: Yogini Cult and Temples - A Tantric Tradition. National Museum, New Delhi 1986, pp. 125ff.
Web links
- Yogini Temple, Bhedagath - Photo + tooltips (English)
- Yogini Temple, Bhedagath - Photo + tooltips (English)
- Yogini statue, Bhedagath - photo + information
Individual evidence
Coordinates: 23 ° 7 ′ 48 ″ N , 79 ° 48 ′ 5 ″ E