Mahakuta

Mahakuta - Vishnu temple with Shikhara tower in the background. The Kalakalesvara temple in the foreground, consecrated to Shiva , has a pyramidal roof structure ( vimana ); a Nandi bull looks at the Shiva lingam inside the temple.

Mahakuta is an important Hindu temple complex consisting of around 15 small to medium-sized temple buildings in the Indian state of Karnataka .

location

Mahakuta is located in the Bagalkot district in the north of Karnataka at an altitude of about 645 m above sea level. d. The place is about 14 km east of Badami and can be easily reached by buses, taxis or a rented bicycle. The temple complex is located in a lush green, water and tree-rich valley basin. In the center of the complex is a temple pond surrounded by walls and always filled with water .

history

Little is known about the early history of the temple site with its 15 or so temples; an inscription pillar from Mahakuta - which has been installed in the Adil Shahi Museum in Bijapur since the early 20th century - is dated to around 600 - but no temples have survived from this period. Another inscription with information about a foundation (precious stones, silver honorary umbrella and a piece of land) in favor of the Mahakutesvara temple (see below) is placed there and dates from around 700. Due to their structural design and their rather simple decoration, most of them still are The surviving temple buildings from the Chalukya period (2nd half of the 7th century) were assigned - they were therefore built roughly at the same time as the buildings in Aihole .

temple

The temple buildings of Mahakuta mostly only consist of a cella ( garbhagriha ) and a small, flat-roofed pillared vestibule ( mandapa ) - there is no length or width in Mahakuta, as can be seen in the somewhat earlier, sometimes simultaneous temples of Aihole ascertain. In addition, the temples of Mahakuta are made of - mostly large and smoothly hewn - stone blocks; the pillars, which were so important for the early architecture of Aihole, do not play a role in Mahakuta.

In contrast to the approximately simultaneous temple buildings in Aihole, the surviving temples of Mahakuta usually have a tower structure above the cella, whereby two types of construction occur: a towering Shikhara tower with a pillow or pumpkin-shaped keystone ( amalaka ) in the north Indian Nagara style or a generally flatter pyramid roof ( vimana ) with a dome-like keystone in the South Indian Dravida style . However, the Shikharas still lack the jar-like or vase-like attachment ( kalasha ) that became common on temple roofs in northern India around 800 .

Almost all temples stand on a base zone that protects the standing structure from floods and free-range animals, which at the same time "elevates" the temple in the figurative sense; However, approaches to a platform ( jagati ) are not discernible. Most of the temples of Mahakuta face east; the name ending -esvara and the many Nandi sculptures suggest that they were consecrated to the god Shiva .

Vishnu temple

The cella of the temple - possibly consecrated to Vishnu in his incarnation as Narasimha - is made up of large, precisely hewn stone blocks and divided on the outside by wall niches. The Shikhara tower, which is one of the oldest extensively preserved examples of its kind, takes up the structure of the outer wall of the cella and strives - slightly curvilinearly curved - skyward. The massive pillars of the vestibule are only decorated with bas-reliefs in the upper half; Vegetable motifs and garlands can be found here, but two birds (goose and peacock) can also be seen. The decor of the slightly recessed portal garment is also quite simple: the usual Ganga and Yamuna figures are missing, but there are at least some relief figures (right: female figure, tree and guardian; left: lovers, tree and ascetic with long strands of hair). The inner walls of the sanctum - with a Shiva lingam later installed here - are not structured and undecorated.

Mahakuta - Mallikarjuna Temple (right)

Mallikarjuna Temple

Mallikarjuna Temple is very different from most of the other temples in the Mahakuta temple complex. A comparatively elongated vestibule ( mandapa ) rests on two slender pillars and is covered with wood and reeds; flat stone slabs rest on it. The current construction, however, comes from a later time; It is unclear whether it has replaced an older, smaller porch - the supporting pillars approx. 3.20 m away from the portal and the external dimensions of the platform make this rather unlikely. The roof of the cella is stepped several times and ends with a dome-like construction, which shows clear influences from the South Indian-Dravidian tradition. These influences can also be found at the small shrine in the foreground and at the Mahakutesvara Temple.

Sangamesvara Temple

Mahakuta - in the foreground the Vishnu Pushkarni pond with the small shrine for a four-faced Shiva lingam ; on the banks of the Sangamesvara Temple; behind the whitewashed Mahakutesvara Temple

The Sangamesvara Temple stands directly on the large temple pond in the center of the temple complex. In its appearance (flat-roofed vestibule and Shikhara tower above the cella) it hardly differs from the Vishnu temple; however, it is somewhat larger and finer. The niche on the southern outer wall contains a beautiful statue of Shiva as a lakulisha or as a pashupati : the god, depicted with only two arms, stands on the back of a demon figure that has been forced to the ground; his penis is erect; one hand holds an ax, the other is open; the god's long hair is curly and hangs down to the shoulders. The two-armed portraits of gods in the other two outer wall niches - Ardhanarishvara (with generally more female forms) and Harihara - are of exceptional artistic quality. A stone Nandi bull lies in front of the temple entrance and looks out over the Shiva lingam inside the undecorated cella.

Mahakutesvara Temple

The Mahakutesvara Temple, also dedicated to Shiva, has a roof structure - today whitewashed - in the South Indian Dravida style . Several stone sculptures (including Krishna , Durga as the slayer of the buffalo demon ( mahisasurmardini ) and several lingams and nandis) were set up nearby ; There is also a marble temple pavilion in Islamic styles from the 16th or 17th century. In the anteroom is the above-mentioned plaque from around 700 with a foundation inscription. In a covered shed there is a wooden temple car ( ratha ) as it is often used in processions in South and East India.

Other temples

The other temples ( Kalakalesvara , Chandrakeshava , Pinakapani and others) are mostly similar to those already mentioned in the Nagara style. In the large temple pond ( Vishnu Pushkarini = 'Lotus Basin Vishnus') there is a smaller shrine with a four-faced Shiva lingam ( chaturmukhalinga ), which covers all directions, i.e. H. symbolizes the whole world encompassing universality of Shiva.

meaning

Apart from its cultural-historical importance as an important link between North and South Indian building traditions and ways of thinking, the temple complex of Mahakuta, largely untouched by tourism, offers a multitude of insights into the casual approach of many Indians to their cultural heritage.

literature

Michael W. Meister u. a. (Ed.): Encyclopaedia of Indian Temple Architecture - North India, Foundations of North Indian Style. Princeton University Press, Princeton 1988, pp. 285ff ISBN 0-691-04053-2

Web links

Commons : Mahakuta - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

↑ Mahakuta - map with altitude information

15.934722222222 75.723611111111Coordinates: 15 ° 56 ′ 5 " N , 75 ° 43 ′ 25" E

[1] Mahakuta - map with altitude information