Tag Archives: tiger belly

Not 1, Not 2, Not 3 but…..Meeting old friends – Our Tiger Belly Ganas, in Tirumalpuram

Read this as a prelude to the previous post on Pullalur…

It was well past lunch time, but Shankar showed no signs of even vaguely harboring any thoughts of lunch !! We had been in touch for quite sometime, ever since he sent some wonderful miniatures my Mondays have been filled with anticipation – of where Shankar would be visiting that weekend and what new beauties he will unearth. Such is the enthusiasm of this wonderful heritage enthusiast from Chennai. So it was a quick exchange of pleasantries over phone and we drew a short program – the highlight would be to get to the famed early Chola temple – vaguely mentioned in ASI references as ” North Arcot District. Walajapet Taluk, Tirumalpuram, Ruined Vishnu Temple”

With no further references for the actual location, but confident that we are in the right locality thanks to the train station with the same name, we started our ride on what could at best be called a cart track. The Landscape suddenly turned greener and we saw the familiar ASI green fence. Must have been repaired recently for it was in very good condition ( the fence n gate i mean) and it was locked. At a distance, we could see a very small central shrine bereft of any towering Vimanas. We chanced our luck and placing our bets on the ASI contractor’s ` work’ went around the site, but looks like the ASI picks its contractors well. There was not a inch hole ( not that we could squeeze through a ` hole’). There were quite a few village folk working the farms around the site and we tried our luck if anyone had the keys ( as is the case with many ASI sites). Finally, our patience ran out and having driven in motorcross fashion from Kanchipuram to here, we decided to rough it up. Somehow scaling gates was so easy when you were young and a ` few’ stones lighter. I made it much to delight of a group of young girls and a crowd had already gathered to witness our circus. ( I was quite taken aback at the vocabulary of these children especially with the choice tamil unspeakables they uttered. Always thought Kathi overdid it in Ayirathil oruvan !!). Some good Samaritan produced a cycle with which shankar too jumped in ( the cyclist was gone and then Shankar asks how do we go out ?? – thankfully someone produced a stool later)

Ok, back to the site. as we walked the long walk to the Shrine – the manicured lawns showed us a very very simple structure from a distance. We approached from the rear side.

Not too impressive and how soon we jump to such conclusions ! We walked up to the front and stepped in closer.

Now, the Inscriptions references were so many right from Parantaka Chola times ( 907 – 955 CE) and even our beloved Sri Raja Raja as well.

http://www.whatisindia.com/inscriptions/south_indian_inscriptions/volume_22/part_2/parantaka.html
http://www.whatisindia.com/inscriptions/south_indian_inscriptions/volume_22/part_2/rajaraja_1.html

The simplicity of the shrine defied the sheer volume of gifts and endowments given to it. So we decided to go near and see – every inch was covered with scripts !!

There was some cheer for me as well – we did find many miniature sculptures , two splendid thoranas and some real rare gems ( warrants a sequel post), but to me the greatest interest was finding the Boota gana row lining the lintel.

Could i get lucky and spot our favorite Tiger belly in this row, i scanned each of the charming dwarfs for the familiar one..

Towards the center of the side wall, for a second i thought i had got him

No, it was a false alarm. it was actually one of the guys turned upside down !!

But then, towards the extreme left, yes, we were in luck. Jackpot

Not one but two Tiger belly ganas.


Maybe, if we had seen only one, we could have stopped, but since we found two of this ( which is by the way a first – we have never seen more than one of these guys in one site so far !) , we went around to try and see if we can spot more. The back wall didn’t disappoint.

a jiving Tiger belly specially for us.

Three so far, can we find a fourth ? yes on the other side, we spotted a fourth tiger belly. A rich Haul for the day.

The indulgence in Tiger belly ganas finally getting over, we can focus on the main items in part two of the post shortly.

Here we go – one more tiger belly! Kodumbalur Moovar Koil

Great works of art catch the eye of many. There are numerous studies, research papers, coffee table books that are brought out, thousands of people take photographs of them and a google search would through up hundreds of links. But then there are some offbeat ones, which sit nestled in pristine surroundings, seemingly still lost in time, waiting to be discovered, for their time under the Sun – or do they prefer to remain like that – in total obscurity. But then, its the question of identity – the flutter in the heart, the mist in the eye, the shiver in the goosebumps – the pride of knowing the greatness of the land you hail from. Surely, we got to take better care of them and showcase their beauty for all to see.

Such was the experience for us, as we walked past eye catching greenery and acres of land which was a visual overdose, for these days you hardly get to see the horizon with the array of high rises, suddenly a small structure came into view.

This is Moovar Koyil – or three temples – but hold on, there are only two vimanas left but you do get to see the base remnants of the now lost three vimana. This little gem of a masterpiece of sculptural beauty is the work of Bhuti Vikramakesari – the Irukuvel chief of the Kodumbalur clan, along with his two queens and a monastry of Kalamuka ascetics. The Kodumbalur clan, were political allies of the Cholas for a long time and this particular king was a contemporary ( can i say fiduciary or subordinate) of Sundara Chola – Parantaka II ( i can see the eye brows going up for all Ponniyin selvan fans ..Yes it is he – the father of Raja Raja Chola)

From a distance, the site does tend to fall a bit short of your expectations. But hold your horses, even inch of space of this is a treat.

Maybe to highlight that this site aims to look at things differently, i am going to start this series on the moovar koil treasures, by showing a very tiny but equally interesting sculpture – bypassing the bigger and larger beauties. I do have a vested interest in doing so, for he is one of my cute cuddly favorites.

First, to show you where he is – he is part of the bootha regai ( line of Bootha or goblin freezes)

Lets step closer and see if you can spot my friend.

Ok, let me narrow your search range.

Oh, such a cutie -showing off his belly art.


Did you spot him, yet

He does look a bit grumpy today!!

The question to us is, the bootha regai runs through the entire length of that row around the vimana, and the other vimana as well. There are many bootha ganas depicted doing various acts and many times they are repeated, but this particular fellow is unique. We found him in the Great Penance Panel in Mahabalipuram, in Pullamangai, in Srinivasnallur and now here – always just only once in the site. What is his role and why the tiger face in the belly.

Hang on for the rest of the series, when we look at the `main’ beauties from moovar koil.

Tiger belly once again – can’t keep this little devil out

We have already seen this cute little darling of a fellow in Mahabalipuram and in Srinivasanallur. Today we are traveling to another Chola treasure trove – Pullamangai, Brahmapureerswara temple .

A quick test for your observation powers. Can you spot our friend.

Can’t, try this one

Still Can’t, come on !!

Now, do you see him. such a darling fellow.

Nowadays, we do see Shiva’s Gana’s ( assistants) adorning modern temple walls, but they lack the character and spirit of the originals. They are sadly repetitive and monotonous. Take a look at this impressive array of delightful ganas – each of them have such cute expressions that its difficult not to fall in love with them. One thing you have to notice is the fact that these are true dwarfs – as you can see by the body proportions and the depiction of the hands and legs – this is not to show the physical deformity but to show how observant were the sculptors who could sculpt them so beautifully.

Not all have the tiger belly face and it seems to be one particular individual who has this – what could be his name. Need to do some more research to find out. Meantime, please keep an eye out for this tiger belly face when you visit Chola temples. And for the normal fellows, please do spare them a glance.

picture courtesy : Ms. Kathie and Varlaaru.com

Our friend tiger belly again – Srinivasanallur Koranganatha Temple

We had seen earlier the interesting belly face of Shiva’s assistant in the Mahabalipuram great penance panel. While i was discussing this with Kathie sometime back, she immediately recognised a similar face ( brilliantly) this time from an early Chola temple – situated 50 kms from Trichy – compared to the later temples this pocket sized temple is packed with so much of sculptural beauty – The magnificent Koranganathar temple in Srinivasanallur,

The temple is situated on the banks of the river Cauvery at Srinivasanallur. It is not a ‘living’ temple. “..Early Chola temples were small with no walls around them. Koranganatha temple 50 km from Trichy is the garbhagriha-and-mandapa type with beautiful sculptures on every surface. The base of the wall has a row of sculpted mythical animals called yazhi that is a special feature of Chola architecture. The first floor is made of bricks which have been plastered. This temple is a prototype of south-style architecture…” Takeo Kamiya in Architecture of the Indian SubContinent

Well, beautiful sculptures is putting it mildly, we will see the beauty of its sculptures in subsequent posts. But today we are to see just a panel – a decorative lintel panel, called Thorana or more correctly a Magara Thorana. This sculpture kind of symbolises the entire temple, for the amount of detailing that’s gone into this piece of stone is mind blowing. Lets take a look at the panel now.

Set high above the wall above two spectacular damsels ( we will see them later – just that dont want to divulge from the subject) the myriad of creatures – from mythical riders riding spectacular lion yaazhis, who themselves emerge from the mouths of larger Yaazhis, they seem to be at war with each other or just sporting ( This seems to be a popular motif among Cholas – with more definition for such sculptures in Pullamangai, Big temple and Darasuram – we will see them also soon)

The main character in the panel seems to be Vishnu as the Boar saving Mother Earth – he is shown with four hands – with the top two hands holding up his standard weapons, he is full of victorious/ triumphant energy – see him sporting her on his left lap – Mother Earth is all devotion, relieved at being rescued shown praying with folded hands. That the sculptor has gone to such lengths to portray even the Naga King and queen in such a miniature but with intricate details ( see them just coming into frame under Varaha murthy)

Noticeably one of the Ganas has the head of a bull – the one to the extreme left bottom. – just abvoe him is our little friend. We saw him in the Mallai penance panel – her he is again, this time upto more mischief, making faces by pulling his mouth with his index finger. The tiger yazhi in the belly seems more gruesome here. Have one more instance of such a belly faced Gana in Pullamangai ( if readers find any more please send us), not all Ganas are depicted thus. So do they have a name, a specific role – like the bull head one, the tiger belly etc??

Words cant be found, no praise too much to drink in this splendid creation. Just makes you sit back and let it fill your senses.

Thanks to Shriram for the temple pictures ( more to come) and Kathie for the panel and for identifying this for me.

Arjuna gets the Pasupatha Astra – Chola version

Hi,

In our earlier posts, we saw the famous penance panel of Mahabalipuram and how the Pallava Sculptor masterfully handled it. Now we run ahead 300 years to come to the Big temple in Tanjore.

The pinnacle of Chola art, the great contribution of Raja Raja Chola to south Indian temple architecture – everything about this temple is big, massive, yet today we are seeing a very small wall panel sculpture.

There are a lot of interesting books on the big temple ( every stone there is a subject for research), but to me this book was most useful in helping me identify a lot of these sculptures.

Iconography of the Brihadisvara temple by dr francoise lhernault.

This particular composition is called the Pasupatha astra dana murthi, its a very lively composition and exquisitely crafted. First, lets see the full panel in relief.
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At first glance, seems to be a maze of characters. so lets focus on line by line – bottom up

The row starts with a host of Shiva bootha Ganas ( goblins! for want of a better word) slowly morphing into a wild boar – need to check back the actual story. ***
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Arjuna is advised to beef up his nuclear stockpile and aims at getting the Pasuptha astra from Shiva -he dsoe severe penance. Pleased with his penance, shiva comes with his consort, but as is his wont, wants to sportingly jest with him – to see if he truly has the skill to wield the great weapon. So he comes disguised as a hunter and both seem to shoot down a boar ( was the boar sent by shiva – so could be logical that he sent his attendant himself ) at the same time. Soon an argument ensures as to who will take the prize and both of them engage on a one to one combat. It goes on for a long time, and Arjuna is visibly tired, yet the hunter shows no sign of tiring. This makes Arjuna realise that he is up against a divine force and he submits to his grace. Shiva reveals himself and grants him his weapon.

Now we step back to the panel and see how masterfully the sculptor has interwoven the principal characters….

ok the Gana morphing into a boar could be one of our assumptions.
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then we see Arjuna up on one leg in penance – not as emaciated as the mallai version ( so maybe the mallai one is Bagiratha who is said to have been in penance for a much longer duration)

The next is the famous face off pose ( remember the one from Kanchi Kailasantha temple) –
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you can see how the sculptor has sculpted parvati with a baby skanda clinging to her in such a miniature..amazing.
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Next to them,looks like Brahma, Vishnu and Lakshmi watching the amazing duel. ( but it mallai panel we see Vishnu encased in a temple !!) and a host of other gods.
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We now come to the third tier – the panel read right to left as we see it – all the gods seem to give a hats off salute to the Arjuna – who is in all revenue, head bowed, folded hands – while the majestic posture of Shiva

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– oh, how can i describe it aptly in words – one arm non chalantly on his bent knee, while the other resting on his consort – Parvati too is amazingly graceful. While surprise surprise, a small bootha gana seems to be handing over the boon/weapon ( sadly no belly face for him – remember the belly tiger face of the gana in mallai – will post a seperate thread on him soon)
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The last, looks like Shiva, Parvati ( with baby Skanda on her hip – what a lovely lively depiction) returning to their abode.
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The fourth tier – also has a host of celestials in the act of saluting the great event.
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The last characters – seem to be a ascetic giving a discourse to an ardent pupil – is this the great sage Vyasa dictating the Mahabharata? 1307

** I did some checking and found the actual story – credit to Mr. V. Subramaniam for giving me the correct references from a delightful song from Saint Sambandar’s Devaram ( Tirumurai 1.48.6)

The song indicates it was an asura ( demon) – Mukasura who was disturbing Arjuna’s penance.

More information on the legend

http://www.shaivam.org/siddhanta/makira.html

purANa of the deity

kirAtar : the hunter

This is the only form of Lord Shiva in which He appeared black in color. arjuna wanted to get the peerless weapon pAsupatAstram from Lord Shiva for the battle of mahAbharata. He left the other four pANdavAs, went to the forest and did austere tapas for getting the boon of Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva was satisfied with his prayer, wanted to give the pAsupatAstram to him, but wanted to play a bit too. He took the form of a Hunter with Shakthi as Huntress. That time a demon by name mUkAsura, who was in the form of wild pig came to kill arjuna. To kill the wild pig arjuna fired an arrow from the front, at the same time the Hunter, Who is none other than God Himself, attacked it from the back and killed the pig.

arjuna mocked at the Hunter for firing the arrow from the back. Having great pride of his valor, he was als angry at the Hunter because He aimed at his prey. The Hunter responded that attacking an animal from the back is not against rules of hunting. An argument broke out. They decided to fight deciding who was more valorous between them. The Hunter cut the string in arjuna’s bow with His arrow in the fight! Angered and excited, arjuna started wrestling. He couldn’t match the Lord, and the Lord enjoyed his fighting. At one point of time in wrestling arjuna held the foot of the Hunter. As the Lord is pleased when somebody catches His holy feet, He stopped wrestling appeared with pArvati revealing Who He is. Shocked arjuna pleaded for forgiveness, as he was trying to fight with the Supreme out of his ignorance. However the God, Who is pleased by devotion, blessed him and gave him the invincible pAsupatAstra. (In some books it is told that arjuna couldn’t fight with the Hunter, he started worshipping the Shiva Lingam. To his astonishment he found the flowers he offered to the Lingam on the head of the Hunter. Then he prostrated before the Hunter and the Lord revealed Himself). This can be found in detail in kirAtArjuniyam of bhAravi and mahA bhArata.