THE SPELLBINDING SUN TEMPLE
King Bhimadeva I, who ruled the Saurashtra region in the
11th century AD, is said to have built the beautifully
carved Sun Temple at Modhera, north of Kathiawar, between
1026 AD and 1027 AD. Built in front of a rectangular tank
(which has small shrines at three of its sides), Modhera
is a precursor of the Sun temple at Konark.
The similarity between the two is evident in that the
idols were installed to be naturally lit by the sun.
In the case of Modhera, the icon was placed so that
it was bathed in light at the time of the equinoxes.
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The large, stepped, stone kund with recesses
for small images of subsidiary deities, leads up a staircase
to a torana, with fine, broad-based pillars sans their
joining arch. The now spireless shrine, built on a raised
platform, is entered through a great, octagonal, pillared
pavilion carved in the lavish fashion favoured by the
Solankis. At a distance, the pillars give the appearance
of solid mass.
The whole structure is outclassed by the incredible rectangular
step tank or 'Surya Kund', a majestic 100 sq metre rectangular
pond, with interesting shrines, said to total 108 in all,
the auspicious number of flowers on a garland. Larger
shrines to Vishnu, Ganesh and the Natraj incarnation of
Shiv in Tandav stand on 3 sides of the Surya Kund, with
the 'Sabha Mandap' of the principal temple soaring on
the fourth side, to remind you that this is the domain
of the Sun God.
Close up, they produce exactly the opposite effect,
so finely carved and full of detail are they. As in
other Surya temples, the carvings are predominantly
of female attendants. Rows of frames carved out on each
pillar hold graceful dancing figures as well as the
plump gana-s or yaksha-s that seem to hover around the
gods.
A separate structure from this pavilion is the closed
mandapa beyond it leading to the Pradakshina path and
Garbha Griha. The temple may once have had more than
one level but in its state of ruin it is difficult to
tell. Recurring images of the sun god appear at important
positions throughout the structure, especially on the
'dedicatory block above the mandapa doorway'.
In Modhera too, as in Kashmir, the representation of
the Sun God seems to indicate a foreign model for the
figure is clothed for cold weather in boots and cloak,
unfamiliar to Gujarat. However, the main idol, and his
sunken garba griha, are lost to us forever. It is fortunate
that his chariot pulled by seven horses was drawn from
the rubble around the temple before it could be further
ruined.
Although the temple's shikhar is missing, the spires
of the small 'kund' temples are an indication of what
it might have looked like. Even though probably more
curvilinear than those of Konark or Khajuraho, Modhera's
spire followed the basic Nagara pattern of vertical
lines meeting at a point directly above the garba griha.
In front of the temple is a colossal tank, which was
once known as Surya Kund or Rama Kund .The tank has
a series of carved steps leading to the bottom. Several
miniature shrines adorn the steps of the tank - which
is an art gallery in itself.
Modhera is now the site of several dance and cultural
festivals. The sun temple and the ambience here provide
a majestic backdrop for the exhibition of performing
arts.
HOW TO GET THERE
Air: Nearest airport is Ahmedabad.
Rail: Nearest railway station is Mehsana.
Road: State transport buses and private luxury coaches
connects various centers of Gujarat. It is situated
119 kms. from Ahmedabad via Mehsana.
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