The South Indian style of temple architecture is very distinct from that of the rest of India. It is convenient to resolve the types of architecture into four periods corresponding to the principal kingdoms that ruled in southern India down the centuries i.e. the Pallavas, Cholas, Pandyas and the Vijayanagara rulers. According to the plan -- four sided, polygonal or curvilinear -- the southern Vimanas are classified in the southern Silpa and Agama texts as Nagara, Dravida and Vesara.
THE PALLAVAS (600-900 AD)
The earliest examples of temples in the Dravidan style belong to the Pallava period. The temple architecture of the Pallavas is divided into two groups: rock-cut (610-690 AD) and structural (690-900 AD). The greatest accomplishments of the Pallava architecture are the rock-cut temples at Mahabalipuram. These temples are further divided into: excavated pillared halls or mandapas and monolithic shrines known as rathas. The five rathas were built by Narasimhavarman I (625-645 AD) and are named after Draupadi, Arjuna, Bhima, Dharmaraja and Sahadeva. The Dharmarajaratha is the longest and most complete of these rathas.
The famous Kailasanatha and the Vanikunthaperumal temples at Kanchipuram are the best specimens of the structural temples of the Pallavas. The temple complex consists of a sanctum, preceded by a mandapa, some peristylar adjuncts and an incipient entrance gateway. Early temples were mostly dedicated to Shiva, and were sparsely adorned in the interiors. Later, however, pillars bore the brunt of the carver?s tool and these came to be richly adorned with scenes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.
It is interesting to note that while the transition of wood to stone was effected in northern India during the reign of Ashoka in the 3rd Century BC, it took one thousand years more in getting reflected in southern India under the Pallavas.
THE CHOLAS (900-1150 AD)
The Chola art is a continuation of that of Pallava times. The Cholas had built several hundreds of temples, the earlier examples of which were modest in size while the later ones were huge and large with the Vimanas or gopuras dominating the landscape. The temple of Koranganatha at Srinivasanalur in the Trichinopoly district, built during the reign of Parantaka I (907-949 AD) is one of the earliest examples of the Chola architecture. The temple consists of a pillared hall or mandapa with an attached sanctuary or vimana. The height of the shikhara is 50 feet, while the cornice of the mandapa measures 16 feet from the ground. The Chola architecture achieved its peak at Thanjavur, the capital established by the Chola ruler Rajaraja I. The Brihadeshwara temple at Thanjavur, erected around 1000 AD, has been described as "the most beautiful specimen of Tamil architecture". In the words of Percy Brown "apparently the largest, highest and most ambitious production of its kind hitherto undertaken by Indian builders, it is a landmark in the evolution of building art in southern India". The 55 metres long main structure of the temple had a 58 metres feet tall pyramidal tower or shikhara. The temple is composed of several structures combined axially, such as a Nandi pavilion, a pillared portico and a large assembly hall, all aligned in the centre of a spacious walled enclosure. The temples at Thanjavur, Chidambaram, Sri Rangam, Gangaikonda-Cholapuram, Darasuram and Tribhuvanam amply illustrate the style of architecture that characterised the monuments in southern India between the 11th-13th centuries. The Chola style of architecture also had a considerable influence on the architecture of the Hindu temples of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and those of the Southeast Asian kingdoms like Sri Vijaya (Sumatra) and Chavakam (Java). |
