kailash temple

architecture

1. KAILASH TEMPLE SUBMITTED TO- Kush Jee Kamal SUBMITTED BY- Garima and Paridhi

2. ABOUT Kailash Temple is situated in the Sahyadri hills of western India, 30km from the city of Aurangabad in Maharashtra. The temple is a part of the Ellora caves, one of the largest rock-cut religious cave complexes in the world. These caves have been declared a  UNESCO World Heritage Site . The magnificent Ellora caves comprise 34 rock-cut temples and monasteries covering more than 2km of land. These temples and monasteries were dug, carved out, and sculpted side by side in the face of a high basalt cliff. They are divided into three sections to serve three different religions — Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. The Kailash temple is the 16th temple in Ellora’s chain of 34 treasured monuments.

3. ARCHITECTURAL SIMILARITY The temple shares some similarities with the Virupaksha temple located in Hampi, northern Karnataka. Many people believe that the Virupaksha temple’s architects were probably also involved in creating the magnificent Kailash temple due to these similarities. KAILASH TEMPLE VIRUPAKSHA TEMPLE

4. FACTS Largest Monolithic Structure 33 meters wide and 50 meters lon g. Its size and design techniques represent quality craft which modern scientists and engineers have said is impossible to recreate today despite access to advanced technology and machinery. One Big Rock The temple is a multi- storeyed structure carved from a single, gigantic basalt-rock face. No additional rock piece or stone blocks were added to its structure or used for sculpting. Cut Top to Bottom Construction for the Kailash temple began from the head of the cliff at Ellora caves. Artisans flawlessly chiselled the tough volcanic rock in a vertical direction, starting from the top and excavating their way down to dig three massive trenches. The Kailash temple is the only temple in the world that is carved from top to bottom . This technique is called “ cut-out ”. All other rock-cut structures in the world are made by cutting the rock or mountain from the  front  and then carving it; this is called the “cut-in ” technique. Carvers sculpted the rock at every step while descending, giving form to the main temple, a tower over the sanctum, free-standing pillars (mainly stationed at the entrance), religious statues and individual shrines.

5. INSIDE THE TEMPLE The temple houses several carved panels depicting scenes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata . Giant monolithic statues and pillars stand in its U-shaped courtyard. The south-eastern gallery has huge panels depicting different avatars of Lord Vishnu. Religious motifs are intricately carved into the stone of the temple’s walls and ceilings.

6. ABOUT ARCHITECTURE The architecture of the Kailash temple, depicts- Gopuram (a monumental tower at the entrance of a Hindu temple). Nandimandapa (pavilion of Shiva’s sacred bull Nandi). Gudhamandapa (closed hall) and vimana (shrine), and the Shaiva sculptures carved on different parts of the temple. The selected sculptures highlight different aspects of Shiva.

7. GOPURAM VICTORY TOWER NANDI CHAMBER MANDAPA GARBHGRIHA PARIKRAMA SHIVLINGA

8. NANDIMANDAPA The first floor of the double-storeyed gopuram and nandimandapa are connected by a rock bridge . The upper floor has a monumental sculpture of Nandi. T he nandimandapa has gates on the east and west that connect it with the gudhamandapa and gopuram respectively. The external walls of the upper storey of the nandimandapa are carved with sculptures of Shiva, Vishnu and gandharvas. The roof of the mandapa is mostly flat , except for a slightly raised square platform which supports a drum-like structure with a stupika (a small stupa) on it.

9. GUDHAMANDAPA The gudhamandapa at the Kailash complex is a square hall supported by 16 huge pillars divided into groups of four. The pillars support the heavy beams and also carry the weight of the roof. P ilasters are decorated with horizontal bands that carry geometric and floral designs. The bands have mythological stories illustrated on them and are topped with chaitya arches (the arches that crown an entrance) with carvings of divine figures.

10. ABOUT ARCHITECTURE Entrance to the Kailash temple is from the west through a double- storey gopuram. The outer face of the gopuram wall has compartments formed by deep pilasters. The compartments house carved sculptures of divinities. T he monumental tower at the entrance leading to the horseshoe-shaped courtyard. The north and south court of the temple have two identical dhvajastambhas (victory pillars). H ave square shafts with decorated horizontal bands on the upper and lower parts. C arvings of divinities in shallow niches in the middle. The shafts rest on a flat square and are crowned by cushion capitals

11. There is a projecting balcony over the entrance gateway, crowned with a sala shikhara (a barrel-vaulted roof) . The shikhara is marked by chaitya arches on all four sides and has a mandir kalash (a metal or stone spire atop Hindu temples) on top. The western arch carries a sculpture of Parvati seated on Shiva’s lap; this rare form of Shiva is called Lingam . ENTRANCE

12. ENTRANCE

13. VICTORY PILLAR

14. ABOUT ARCHITECTURE The temple has a   U-shape   and is about 150 feet deep. Kailash Temple is  three stories tall . Large stone carvings along the outer walls depict various Hindu deities. Two internal flagstaff pillars show stories from Lord Shiva’s saga. Towards the top, you see carvings of elephants that point your way down. On the bottom of the main building It seems that the elephants are carrying the weight of the vimana.

15. U SHAPE TO THE TEMPLE

16. One of the many stories carved on the walls of Kailash temple. The gudhamandapa of the temple has episodes from Ramayana carved in eight horizontal registers . The story begins from the upper register and summarises the epic with incidents such as Rama and Lakshmana’s encounter with demons, their exile to the forest, the appearance of the golden deer, and abduction of Sita by Ravana . The fight between Vali and Sugriva, and Hanuman setting Ravana’s Lanka ablaze are carved on the fifth and sixth registers, respectively. The seventh register shows monkeys building the setu (bridge) to Lanka, and the last one depicts the final battle between Rama and Ravana.

17. EXTERIOR Walls of the garbhagriha have graceful figures of Shiva in different forms. Sculptures are carved in the niches topped with beautiful toranas (freestanding arched gateways)

18. The north court of the temple complex has a shrine dedicated to the river goddesses, which can be accessed through a flight of stairs. This shrine a verandah with pillars and pilasters, which houses standing figures of Ganga on a makara (crocodile) at the centre, flanked by Yamuna on a kachhapa (tortoise) on her left and Saraswati on a lotus on her right. The south court of the temple complex has the yajnashala (sacrificial enclosure) , with sculptures on all directions apart from the north, which is marked by ornamental pillars. Sculptures of saptamatrikas (seven mother goddesses) are shown sitting on their respective vehicles, which includes Chamunda on a jackal and Brahmani on hamsa ( swan). EXTERIOR

19. Both the north and the south court of the Kailash temple have freestanding life-size sculptures of elephants on high pedestals. The elephants represent- symbolise strength power glory the Rashtrakuta rulers (753–982 AD), during whose reign the temple was built.

20. The vimana (superstructure over the garbhagriha) of the temple is built in the Dravidian style and has a pyramidal structure with multiple tiers. These tiers have square aedicules at the corners and rectangular ones at the centre.