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THANJAVUR : OF
THE BIG TEMPLE
by Deepti Bhagat
Thanjavur
(more popularly called Tanjore) is world famous for its World Heritage
Brihadishwara Temple known by the locals as the Big Temple. Thanjavur was
the ancient capital of the Chola Kings who at the height of their power
ruled over most of the Indian Peninsula and Sri Lanka and parts of the
Malay Peninsula, and Sumatra. Thanjavur is known as the rice bowl of Tamil
Nadu and you will see numerous rice paddies as you drive to the town.
The Brihadishwara Temple was built by the great Chola Emperor Raja Raja in
the later tenth/ early eleventh century. The Temple is a fine example of
Dravidian temple architecture. The tower over the sanctum sanctorum soars
high (64.5 meters) and is topped by a huge monolithic cupola carved out
from an 80 tonnes block of granite. An interesting story goes that an
inclined plane was built so that an elephant could roll the block all the
way to the top to install it. As an elephant cannot walk backwards another
plane was built on the other side for the elephant to return to the
ground. Whether, it happened or not, it makes a great story. It is indeed
a great feat of engineering. All the more as the construction, was done in
such a way that the shadow of the cupola never falls on the ground. The
sanctum sanctorum has a four meter high lingam with a circumference of 7
meters. The inner walls of the temple have the many mudras (poses) of
Bharatnatyam (classical Indian dance) portrayed by dancing damsels.
Perhaps the sculptors did this as Shiva the presiding deity is also the
God of Dance (Natraja).
There are spacious grounds around the temple with 250 lingams along the
outer walls. A huge Nandi (Shiva’s bull and favored mode of transport)
sits facing the temple. Weighing over 25 tons, it is perhaps India’s
largest Nandi. The temple is maintained by the Archeological Survey of
India while worship is conducted by priests employed by the erstwhile
rulers of Thanjavur.
You must visit the Thanjavur Palace and Museum which has a fine collection
of royal memorabilia. Next to the Palace is the Art Gallery which has a
wonderful collection of Chola bronze statues ranging from the 9th to the
18th century. Saraswati Mahal Library which lies in between the Palace
Museum and Art gallery has over 30,000 palm- leaf and paper manuscripts in
several European and Indian languages. Scholars can visit the library to
conduct research. The Royal Museum has the Epic Ramayana written on palm
leaf- a rare manuscript indeed.
Thanjavur or Tanjore is famous for the “Tanjore Paintings” – a unique
style of paintings on glass with gold leaf and semi-precious stone
embellishment. Krishna is the deity most often depicted in the paintings.
The Tanjore Plate is also a good souvenir from here. It is a carved bronze
plate with silver highlights.
The Schwartz Church (1779) dedicated to the Danish Rev Schwartz of the
Danish mission seems out of place in this temple town as it sits in the
Palace gardens.
A free cultural program is held at the Big Temple on every second and
fourth Saturday (weather permitting) so if you are there for a visit don’t
miss it.
For more information contact :Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation
Ltd, Tourism Complex,
Wallajah Road, Near Kalaivanar Arangam, Chennai - 600 002, Tel+: 91-44
-25383333, 25389857, 25360294, Fax:+91-44-25381567, Email : ttdc@md3.vsnl.net.in
and website: ww.tamilnadutourism.org.
Our Brokerage: Rent: Equivalent to one month's rent : Sale: Equal to 2% of
the deal value. Service tax extra (10.2%) Short term let: 15% of the gross.
TDS on brokerage - 5.61% TDS on rent - 16.83%
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swagatamwebsite@gmail.comDisclaimer
Thanjavur
(more popularly called Tanjore) is world famous for its World Heritage
Brihadishwara Temple known by the locals as the Big Temple. Thanjavur was
the ancient capital of the Chola Kings who at the height of their power
ruled over most of the Indian Peninsula and Sri Lanka and parts of the
Malay Peninsula, and Sumatra. Thanjavur is known as the rice bowl of Tamil
Nadu and you will see numerous rice paddies as you drive to the town.