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Kumbakonam is a city with fifty mandirs, or temples. But it is not a very holy place. As the multi-colored buses barrel down the dusty roads blaring their pressure horns, the city's inhabitants quickly rush to the sides in the fear of losing their lives. On every corner there is a temple, trying to outdo the one seen on the street before. Though the city is over full with these "living" temples, we chose to see two less popular ones, and it is their histories that breathe life into them today.

<-- Gangakondacholapuram Temple: Our guide points out a famous sculpture of Shiva garlanding the figure below. (Click on the image to enlarge it)

In most mandirs, there is a steady stream of inhabitants continually entering and exiting. All along the entrances are people selling some small thing that visitors just may need. Women hold up strands of the beautiful white jasmine or malaugu that they have spent hours tying together. These lovely garlands decorate the thick braids of South Indian women, or are given as a loving offering around Ganesha's neck. Fruit sellers pile their juiciest oranges on colorful wooden carts, hiding the not-so perfect ones, as they call out to the passers-by not to miss their chance at their most delicious treats. Others sell plastic goods: buckets, combs, mirrors, toys, and many other small things that cost just enough money (but not more) to make one seriously consider a purchase on an auspicious day. Music flows out of small stalls as young men enjoy a coffee together. Holy men and beggars, many times one and the same, quietly sit waiting for someone to drop a few rupees in their open hands. The closer one approaches the mandir, the more of another type of vendor appears: the shoe guard. Since one must never enter one of these holy places with shoes, you can "check" your shoes with someone near the gateway for safekeeping. Shopkeepers usually add this service to their main business, but sometimes there are women with children who sit on the ground calling for your shoes; this is their business. Though I do not know if they get more patronage than the shopkeepers, they certainly get mine; judging from the other shoes they watch over, other people are more compelled to turn their chappals over the women and children as well.

Gangakondacholapuram Temple: side of the temple with sculpture; the musical ganesha is in the niche in the extreme right bottom corner. (Click on the image to enlarge it) -- >

This ever-prevalent pre-mandir atmosphere was lacking at the two temples we sought out this day. When we reached Gangakondacholapuram, a small town some thirty-five kilometers north of Kumbakonam, we simply slipped our shoes off before stepping out of the car, almost unwilling to glance down at our feet because it would mean one second less that we would be able to fix our eyes on the impressive entrance we saw before us.

The first thing a visitor to Gangakondacholapuram sees is a gigantic cow. A lovely cream-colored nandi sits gazing at the temple in front of it, as if though despite being sculpted from stone, she is more focused and at peace than the ridiculous humans behind her. Once we peeled our eyes off the lovely Nandi, we slowly took in the rest of the temple grounds. In front of us, built on a high base above the ground, was the main temple, with an ornate tower of over 55 meters high. To our right sat a large ferocious lion. We were told that the lion is Parvati, and the Nandi is Shiva; they are connected by the sacred Ganges water, which is kept in a well between the two. Further back on the grounds were three or four smaller structures that served as altars for other gods.

<-- (Click on the image to enlarge it) Gangakondacholapuram Temple: View of a nandi sculpted from black stone with giant nandi in the background.

The outside of the main temple building is overwhelmingly impressive because of its sculpture. Gigantic dancing Natarajas flank secondary doorways into the mandir. Rectangular niches house gods so animated that it wouldn't be surprising had they jumped out of their homes to dance on the lawns. One notable aspect about the gods in the niches is that usually they do not stand alone, but are sculpted in the company of others. There were a couple of superb ardhnarishwara, or half woman-half man sculptures, of Brahma and his wife Saraswati. Also present are Umamaheshwara, sculptures of Shiva with wife Parvati. In another niche Brahma and his wives, Saraswati and Savitri stand together and yet another one houses Shiva and his wives, Parvati and Sati. There is a lovely niche of harihara-a sculpture of Shiva and Brahama occupying halves of one body. The only Ganesha placed in a niche was a musical Ganesha, and we were told that he sounds lovely when played. A special gate-like barrier has been constructed to avert curious novice musicians from inadvertently harming him.

Gangakondacholapuram Temple: Side of temple with two Dwarpala sculptures flanking the double doors leading into the inner shrine of temple. (Click on the image to enlarge it) -->

As we rounded the temple, we noticed the wall built around the complex. It was certainly a newer addition and we were told that the government reconstructed portions where the British had pounded it with cannonballs. The British had also taken tons of stone so to be used in the construction of a nearby dam and had even destroyed the majestic sheshnag, or king cobra, that used to crown the entrance of the main gateway to the temple complex for the same purpose. Since then, only imaginations have benefited from this destruction.

We also explored the smaller structures built around the main temple. They, like the main temple, were still being used as altars; one housed Ganesha and the other Shiva. A salient feature of these structures was not only their lovely sculptures outside, and personal atmosphere of each inside, but also that the gods are carved of pitch-black stone in a flowing manner. Since they are illuminated only by a diya, the visitor has to step up closely to the god and truly recognize it. "Recognize," not in name only, but to really feel who this god is. The overall effect is unique and can be appreciated in these small shrines.

<-- (Click on the image to enlarge it) Dharasuram's haunting peacefulness is food for every visitor's imagination.

Unlike many temple complexes, Gangakondacholapuram is inviting in its green surroundings. Your feet delight in the soft grass beneath them and you enjoy seeing people relax in the shade of palm trees on the grounds. On the day we visited, a wedding party was having pictures taken and I could not help but think that they could not have chosen a more appropriate place to celebrate their special event. I thought at first that the bright new wedding clothes and fresh flowers in the women's hair lent Gangakondacholapuram a distinct feeling of rebirth. But maybe it was really a feeling of continuity and closeness that made me more at home here.

The second temple we visited was in a small town called Dharasuram, situated four kilometers to the west of Kumbukonam. As we approached the site, I saw a high stone wall and at regular intervals, a nandi sculpture sat atop it. The stones of the wall are characteristic of very old structures that struggle with a tropical or humid climates; they are charcoal gray and at times blackish, and embody the romance that many older buildings possess with the passing of time. Though the wall itself would be formidable, the small nandis look out from their world from atop this boundary almost as if casually watching for visitors to invite and draw into the mandir. Indeed, when we found the entrance we also found a larger nandi expecting us as she contentedly sat in a covered pillared shelter surrounded by water. We had learned from Gangakondacholapuram that she most likely faced the altar inside, and so she served as a marker of sorts to the main shrine. We walked towards the immense closed doors in front of us and left our shoes outside as we quietly slipped in, closing the door behind us. The caretakers and priest were just finishing their lunches and our appearance must have postponed an afternoon nap, but the priest was very hospitable and guided us around the temple complex, which was no small feat.

Dharasuram Temple: Niche with Shiva sculpted from black stone, brightened by sunlight and covering. (Click on the image to enlarge it) -- >

If the nandi we saw at Gangakondacholapuram had impressed us with its sheer immensity, it was the miniature, detailed sculpture that immediately amazed us when we first arrived at Dharasuram. A raised pillared hall is the first part of the complex that the visitor sees, and every inch of the surfaces, including the ceiling, is covered with small flowing sculpture. The pillars' bases are mythological creatures that combine lion, pig, ram, and cow into one animal. Further up on the pillar, entire stories are played out, such as the marriage of Shiva and Parvati. Though the sculpture is the most detailed on these pillars, all facades of the structures in this compound are covered with scenes of court and daily life, yoga positions, a woman giving birth, jugglers and acrobats, physical combat, Draupadi and the five Pandavas, elephants, and gods defeating demons (to name a few). One can literally spend hours, if not days not only to really "read" these stories, but also to appreciate the artistry with which they were executed. The artists have employed a variety of techniques combined with vivid imaginations to produce outstanding pieces of art.

<-- (Click on the image to enlarge it) Dharasuram: One of the many wonderful reliefs decorating temple surfaces. This one depicts four acrobats; the two in the center are said to represent the wheel of life.

Besides the sculpture in miniature are masterfully crafted larger gods and goddesses placed in shrines both inside the pillared hall as well as in niches around the temple. The statues are draped in vibrant colored cloth that stands out almost shockingly from their dark enclosures; they truly are a sight to see. Another remarkable feature of Dharasuram's temple is that a good deal of the paint that once covered temple walls from the times of the Nayaks is still vivid. Vibrant reds and blacks can still be seen, closing the distance of time between artist and viewer.

Dharasuram is famous for the miniature sculpture found especially on these pillars. (Click on the image to enlarge it) -- >

One of my most favorite discoveries at Dharasuram's mandir was the series of round demarcations placed at key places around the compound. We were told that they were where oil lamps were placed for illumination during nights. Imagining the original painted facades lit by these lamps, which also were placed around lotus flower ponds, in the darkness of a star-filled sky one thousand years ago is an overwhelming vision in my mind that will not be easily erased. We had opened the heavy wooden door to this compound not realizing that beyond it 1,001 years of Indian nights lived, dancing upon the stones of the temple. One story after another can be found if one simply looks. Regardless of whether a visitor is inspired to make a story up, or recollects the significance of a scene depicted, there is undeniable pleasure in that she or he has either created new life, or has preserved an old one.

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