Sri Brihadisvara: The Great Temple of Thanjavur

The Brihadisvara Temple or the Great Temple, Thanjavur, built by Raja Raja Chola-I around 1010 A.D. is a masterpiece of South Indian art and architecture. It has attracted the attention of several distinguished historians and art critics and volumes have been written on different aspect of its many splendoured greatness. The author of this book does not claim to present any new discoveries but recounts in simple language all the outstanding features for which the temple has become renowned. The majestic Vimana about 200 feet high, the tallest of its kind, justly called the Dakshina-meru, the exquisite sculptures in the niches of the sanctum walls, the delicate Chola and the Nayaka paintings in the inner corridor around the sanctum, the series of dance sculptures (Karanas) on the walls of the first floor, the modest yet stately gopuras in the outer enclosures, the beautiful bronzes and above all the highly informative and valuable historical inscriptions that give meticulous details of the donations and land-grants mode to the temple by the king and his kin form the themes of the chapters in the book. As a member of the conservation wing of the Archaeological Survey of India, the author has intimate knowledge of the several steps taken to preserve the temple in its original beauty. The popular beliefs that the shadow of the tower does not fall on the ground and that eighty ton Sikhara is a made of one stone are discounted by him. The latter was found to be mounted and assembled in parts. There is a curious figure of a man with an European dress and hat on the northern wall of the Nayaka period when Europeans were active in Tamil Nadu coast. The shrine of the Goddess Perianayaki was built in the 13th century. The beautiful bronze of Nataraja in the temple belongs to the Chola period but it suffered some damage and had to be repaired during the Maratta period. This is recorded in an inscription on the pedestal of the image. Such interesting details are given in the book. This book also presents interesting data on the members of Raja Raja’s family and their endowments, Raja Raja’s colourful titles (like Sivapadasekharan and Tirumuraikonda-Solan), the names of the streets of Thanjavur in Chola times (like the Gandharvar street), the 23 bronze images for various deities donated by Raja Raja, the weights and measures.