Discovering the magic of Pallava art

Transcription

1 Tamil Nadu Discovering the magic of Pallava art After having tasted the softness of life prevailing on the Coromandal coast, it is already time for other journeys southwards that I had been dreaming of. Puducherry (Pondicherry) is an anchor which allows a traveller to spread out like sun rays to various destinations in Tamil Nadu such as Kanchipuram, Mahabalipuram, Chidambaram, Thanjavoor or Thiruvannamallai. It is here that the majestic architecture of temples and sanctuaries bears testimony to the prodigal wealth of Dravidian history, waiting to be rediscovered today. Text and photos by Mireille-Joséphine Guézennec-Himabindu 50 India & You January-February 2009

2 Kailasnatha temple at Kanchipuram Comfortably installed in our white Ambassador, which seems to belong to another era, it is rather early, as it should be done in the tropics, that we leave Puducherry, headed towards Kanchipuram. I was already dreaming of what it would be the outcome of my expectations and wonders. Situated inland, little over 100 km in north-west, Kanchipuram is an animated, vibrant and prosperous city, thanks to its rich agriculture, but above all well known for its silk works. Kanchi was also the base of a very famous university which spread throughout the south, pretty much like Varanasi or Nalanda in the north. And it also figures in the ancient texts as being one of the seven holiest cities of India. Kanchipuram: Testimony to glory of the Pallavas It was from the 8th centuries that the Pallava kings ruled south India. Big builders and well read, these unchallenged kings were to go on and construct a number of temples dedicated to the various Hindu and Jain gods. At the beginning of the 8th century, it was at Kanchipuram that they installed the capital of their dynasty which was to go on and impose itself, as much through its military might as the cultural prowess displayed through exceptional art and spread through their refined and monumental architecture. Much more than simply religious places, these temples of the south, more often than not immense in physical dimensions, were constructed under the royal patronage and reflected the ambitious conquests achieved by the Pallavas who were by then the unquestioned masters of the south. Amongst the first structures excavated are the works ordered by King Paramesharavarman I ( ) and some of these are still visible at Mahabalipuram. But it is to Narasimhavarman II- Rajasimha ( ) that we owe the magnificent temple of Kailashnatha at Kanchipuram, which reveal as much the talent of the local artists as the perfect knowledge that they had of iconographic themes. Narasimhavarman II- Rajasimha was one of the principal kings who ruled over this part of south India, along with his son, the Yuvaraj or Crown Prince, who incidentally died before the father. We find at Kailashnatha, representations of Shiva, Parvati and their son Skanda, an echo of the royal family of the epoch. The interiors of the temple unveil vibrant scenes borrowed from Shaivik mythology and from the Puranas, dedicated to Shiva or his consort goddesses.

3 Shiva s vehicule (vahana), the Nandi Bull at Kailasnatha Shiva temple Kanchipuram is renowned for its hand-woven silk sarees on MG Road, we come across another kind of nocturnal activity that of the crowded and noisy streets. The restaurant offers a wide choice of Tamil snacks to accompany our masala chai with ginger and cardamom. Mahabalipuram : Sea, Sand and Stone Before leaving Kanchipuram, it is mandatory to make a visit to the silk workshops that employ nearly 80 percent of the local population. Often, these family-run workshops need three or four special skills for weaving. Stretched on the weaving machine, it is here, under our admiring eyes that the precious silk materials are born. Depending upon the style, it would take nearly three weeks to finish a silk sari, a very fashionable and feminine dress that all Indian women aspire to wear, especially during the festivals that are so common here in southern India. The end of our visit coincided with the completion of weaving of a silk sari that the makers cut in a meticulous fashion. So, soon it was the time to make a purchase and faced with my reserved and reticent reaction, I noticed that my hosts were feeling let down, a reaction that I understood very well. At each trip to a workshop I could not dream to add a new silk saree to my wardrobe, splendid as they were with their lilac tones or gold lined borders. A classic example of the Pallava sculpture Kanchipuram was also essentially known as the seat of goddess Uma or Parvati. Uma, an avatar of Parvati, was able to achieve her ambition of gaining Shiva s love through her unending and intense devotion and austerities, praying continuously to a lingam which represented Shiva, under a blossoming mango tree. Legend has it that one day in order to save the lingam from the floods, Uma held it so tightly to her bosom that it left marks of her breasts and bracelets on the stone lingam. Touched by her devotion, Shiva appeared before Uma and granted her wish. In the heart of the Ekambareshwara temple or the God of Mango is a sacred mango tree which retains the souvenir of this memorable meeting which took place under this sacred tree and where the union of Shiva and Uma took place. Of the same nature as Kama, the God of Love, this sacred mango tree, whose age is supposed to be over 3500 years, has four branches representing the four Vedas. After an offering to the goddess, the officiating priest invites us to complete a pradakshina, or circumambulation around the revered tree. At the end of the day and the torrid heat, the temple becomes increasingly animated. The majestic gopurams cast their lengthening shadows as the sky becomes increasingly bright with a number of stars. As the night advances, we savour the moments as music and devotional hymns fill up the evening with fervour. And as we head for a tea break towards the MM Hotel 52 India & You January-February 2009

4 The Five Rathas of Mahabalipuram Mahabalipuram has many artisans gifted in sculpting stone If Kanchipuram is famous for its silk works, Mahabalipuram gets its fame from the granite stone work. Hundreds of artisans have set up shop in this village, along the way that leads to the Five Rathas or Five Chariots. I recognize Mahabalipuram due to the obsessive crystalline music and rhythm of the sculptors instruments that hit the stone and which accompanies us as we walk to the Five Rathas. These chariots are named after the five Pandava brothers, heroes of the Mahabharata and their common wife, Draupadi. Set in a vast space, these imposing monolithic monuments are also the symbols of Pallava art, such as the magnificent 27 metre-long fresco sculpted in rock and illustrating themes like The descent of Ganga or Arjuna s Penitence. At somedistance this sculpture is facing the sea, a symbolic presence of the holy river, to which India has always accorded the supreme importance. Situated on the Coromandel coast, Mahabalipuram or Mamallapuram, which bear the name of the founding king, Narasimhavarma I Mamalla, was from the 8th century and for around two centuries, a large port for trade with Java, Sumatra and other parts of the south east Asian countries. The beach temple: A piece of art, kissing the ocean In the morning, as the sun was rising, we walked to the large beach of Mahabalipuram in order to meet the fishermen who are coming back from their fishing and were already collecting their booty and repairing their nets. How the sea is spirited and the waves so powerful! How many men and shipwrecks has this wild sea engulfed? But also how these fishermen, their bodies turned brown by the long time spent in the open seas and their faces tanned by a harsh south Indian sun, stand in solidarity in order to face up to the sea! Walking along the seaside, we reach the Beach Temple, one the jewels of Pallava art, constructed in the beginning of the 8th century, but protected from the powerful waves, as well as from the last tsunami in 2004, by a imposing black rock massif. Impassable but eroded by the salty air of the sea, big sandstone statues of the Nandi bull keep a watch on the temple. The entire site is so overwhelming that it is little wonder 54 India & You January-February 2009

5 A purification prayer underway at the Vaishnav temple of Mahabalipuram Under this precious dais, in the sanctum sanctorum or Chit Sabbha, lives the Master of the House, Shiva Nataraja, the cosmic dancer, also venerated in this temple in his most subtle form, the akasha lingam (or ether lingam). And as was my habit when I was living in Chennai, I came to honor the Master and to rejuvenate my spirits in the special atmosphere of the temple. The principal entry is through a small street which opens into the eastern gopuram. Young women, with a child in the arms, and jasmine garlands in their black, oiled hair, walk in a step. Impatient as they are they also enter the temple. Under the gopuram, I stop for a while to see again the part where 108 karanas or poses of Bharata Natyam have been sculpted. that the site was notified as a world heritage site by UNESCO as early as After a visit of the tiger cave under an ardent sun, the village of Mahabalipuram is a very nice stop and also a touristic place. In the market road, facing the sea, coffee shops as well as restaurants make for a nice place to rest while you can savour a wide choice of menus. Some, on the beach, propose also fish and other seafood for a real touristic price. Massages have also become a good business, as several shops offer to sculpt the occidental bodies. It was difficult to believe that so many people competent in this domain had suddenly all descended upon this piece of land, leading to fierce Tiger Cave at Mahabalipuram competition between the various shops, while being unloyal to the real masseurs, well-trained in the ancestral traditions and the Ayurveda. Chidambaram: The splendid Shiva Nataraja temple An excellent sculptor, Shiva Nataraja through His cosmic dance, created and shaped the universe. We were only a few kilometers from Chidambaram, when we spotted from a distance, the hieratic gopurams of the temple, which soaring up towards the sky as proud guards, announced the presence of an exceptional place. At the heart of the temple, a golden dome or the Kanaka Sabbha houses the divinity, the Lord of dance. India & You January-February

6 Tourism Chidambaram is the temple of cosmic dance where each morning and afternoon poojas are held in honour of Nataraja. whom Near the Navagraha temple I found Ganesh, one of the priests of the Dikshitar community, a very ancient family of Brahmins who have managed the temple right from the beginning. Ganesh allows me to enter the sanctum sanctorum of the temple as if we had known each other for several lives. So I stand with an offering of flowers and a coconut in my hands, I wait for the auspicious moment when I would make the offering and when the curtains open and the lamps light up the statue of the God of Dance, it is with a wave of fervour that joins hundreds of hands.homage to Shiva Nataraja! Everyone steps backward, in communion with the rest thanks to the darshan or the vision of the deity who seems to transfer his energy to the devotees. A mystic moment in the heart of Dravidian India. In the evening, I return to the temple, called by Ganesh to a ceremony celebrating peace in the world that the Dikshitar priests had organized. They lit fires and made the ritualistic offerings, while chanting the Praying for peace at a temple in Chidambaram vedic mantras. Sitting on a floor, with a group of women dressed in their best looking silk sarees, I feel contented in this communion with heart during this sacred night. 56 India & You January-February 2009