"Despite the documented evidence of chess historian H.J.R. Murray, I have always thought that chess was invented by a goddess."
George Koltanowski, from Women in Chess, Players of the Modern Game
Thursday, July 5, 2012
1,100 Year Old Renovated Temple Rededicated
India has a very ancient and rich, multi-layered history but most of it is unknown to us in the West. I'll bet just about everyone in this country (USA) knows what a mummy is, but how many know who Buddha is? King Tut? Sure - millions of us have heard about HIM! But how many of us have heard about Kali Durga? Check out this absolutely incredible and beautiful temple:
KANCHEEPURAM: Thousands of residents in the temple town of Kancheepuram were a
proud lot on Thursday as their restoration efforts along with the Archaeological
Survey of India (ASI) came to fruition with the kumbhabishekam
being performed at the 1,100-year-old Varadharaja Perumal Temple.
The
consecration ceremony began at 11am and went on till 1 pm. Hundreds of devotees
lined up for more than a kilometre on Gandhi Road, the busiest stretch in the
town. The district administration had declared public holiday on Thursday for
the kumbhabishekam.
On Wednesday, a similar kumbhabishekam and chariot
procession was held at the famous Sri Kodanda Rama temple in Madurantagam,
around 78km from Chennai. "It is a huge event in the temple town. Years of hard
work had gone into its restoration. The temple is always a pride of
Kancheepuram," said S Jeeva, a resident.
Said to be the second oldest
temple in Kancheepuram after the Ekambaranathar temple which has more than a
thousand ancient temples, the Varadharaja
Perumal temple was built by the famous Chola king Raja Raja I in 1053AD (a
year before king Raja Raja died). Later, the temple on 23 acres was expanded by
subsequent Chola kings, including Kulottunga
chola I and Vikrama chola.
Anticipating a Muslim invasion in 1688 AD,
the local chieftain sent the main image of the deity to Udayarpalayam, now part
of Trichy. It was brought back with great difficulty after the involvement of a
local preceptor who enlisted the services of general Todarmal of Vijayanagara
era. During British period, Robert Clive
visited the temple for the Garuda seva festival and presented a necklace (now
termed Clive Maharkandi) which adorns the deity during the special occasion
every year.
The temple showcases the architecture of ancient Vishwakarma
Sthapathis with three outer precincts namely Azhwar Prakaram, Madai Palli
Prakaram and Thiru Malai Prakaram, 32 shrines, 19 vimanams, 389 pillared halls
(most having the lion yali sculpture) and sacred tanks.
One of the most
famous architectural pieces in the temple is the huge chain sculpted from a
stone. There is a 100-pillared hall with sculptures depicting Ramayana and
Mahabharata, a masterpiece of Vijayanagara architecture. "There are 362
inscriptions on the walls of the temple ranging from Cholas to Vijayanagara
periods," said retired deputy superintendent of state archaeology department, K
Sridharan.
Watch what you say, or they'll be calling you a radical, a liberal, an intellectual, a criminal... The Logical Song (paraphrased), Supertramp, 1979
"We are what we defend, what we stand up for." Da Vinci Code, as spoken by the character Sophie Saunier in the movie version to character Professor Robert Langdon.
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I'm one of the founders of Goddesschess, which went online May 6, 1999. I earned an under-graduate degree in history and economics going to college part-time nights, weekends and summer school while working full-time, and went on to earn a post-graduate degree (J.D.) I love the challenge of research, and spend my spare time reading and writing about my favorite subjects, travelling and working in my gardens. My family and my friends are most important in my life. For the second half of my life, I'm focusing on "doable" things to help local chess initiatives, starting in my own home town. And I'm experiencing a sort of personal "Renaissance" that is leaving me rather breathless...
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