As a weekend getaway, I took a train to Thanjavur - the ancient capital of the Chola Dynasty. (The overnight journey was quiet...most passengers were lost in their private worlds as the train chugged along the picturesque paddy fields of Tamil Nadu.) Thanjavur, a small town in southern India, rose to great prominence as the power center of the Chola Empire during the 10th century. At that time, when much of the northern region of the Indian subcontinent was undergoing irreversible transformation owing to invasions from Central Asia; here in the South, a great empire arose and the native culture, in its cyclic tradition , saw a powerful rebirth. The Cholas left behind a rich legacy of art & culture spread across a wide geographic region encompassing most of southern India, parts of Sri Lanka, Burma, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Cambodia. The most famous of all Chola architecture is the breathtakingly beautiful Brihadisvara temple. Currently a UNESCO World Heritage Site, this masterpiece in temple building was undertaken by RajaRaja Chola-I.
The three days I spent in this exquisite temple complex was full of sheer amazement and inspiration. Built using granite stones, the temple - a magnificent feat of engineering and sculpting, is dedicated to Shiva. A set of imposing gateways lead to the a large courtyard, at the center of which lies the main temple with its ornate tower rising to an impressive 63 meters. The place exudes enormous energy and tranquility. Since the traditional ritual practices are continued in the main temple even to this day, this millennium old structure seems very much alive, unlike most archaeological sites which are often soaked in a sense of a bygone era.
Smaller shrines of the other deities - mostly members Shiva's family like Ganesha, Kartikeya, Parvati, Nandi can be found around the main temple.
The walls of the entire structure are all covered with thousands of intricate carvings depicting - gods, demons, mythical creatures, kings, warriors, dancers and damsels, stories from religious scriptures, poems, festivities, events in lives of the kings, battles and conquests...The lyrical quality of the sculptures, their sense of form and design was so very compelling that I decided to sketch more elaborately than my usual doodle style.
Observing and attempting a catch a fair likeness in mere drawings was an exercise in patience and made me deeply aware and appreciative of the enormity of struggle and persistence of all those artisans who undertook the mammoth task of creating this temple. Its glory remains undiminished even after a thousand years and makes me wonder about the times we live in now. Then was a time, when artists were audacious enough to contemplate the eternal through their work...now is a time when art has become a commodity whose worth is decided by auctioneer's mallet...now is also the time where Eternity is a designer perfume and Infinity a luxury car!
One of the most enjoyable experiences of this trip was my interaction with school kids and totally kind strangers. As I sat to sketch, a crowd of curious onlookers (mostly school kids who often come here on excursions and sightseeing tourists) would invariably gather around and encourage me with their comments, regale with their witty anecdotes, amuse with their unusual observations... The continuous sketching and interaction with a lot of interesting new people not only improved my sparse Tamil... but was such fun that, days just flew by and I had to finally bid adieu. There's enough inspiration and awesomeness in this place to fill scores of sketchbook pages and needless to say, I'll visit again someday.
