Mahabalipuram Shore Temple

UNESCO World Heritage Listing, 15 October 1983

International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) Recommendation, May 1984—That the proposed cultural property be included on the World Heritage List. 

"The early phase, (of medieval temple architecture: South Indian style of Tamil Nadu (7th-18th century) which, broadly speaking, coincided with the political supremacy of the Pallava dynasty (c. 650-893), is best represented by the important monuments at Mahabalipuram." (Medieval temple architecture: South Indian style of Tamil Nadu (7th-18th century -Encyclopaedia Britannica) 

For many, the great Mogul palaces of North India with their glittering facades and Arabian Nights minarets represent Indian architecture at its most vibrant and exotic. But these treasures—built by India's foreign rulers—are about as representative of indigenous Indian art as Calcutta's colonial buildings. 

For me, the true seat of India's architectural glory rests in the southern province of Tamil Nadu. Here, in the fishing village of Mamallapuram (Mahabalipuram), south of Madras, (Chennai) you can witness the legacy of more than three-centuries' worth of early Tamil art. Scattered among the town's rocky hillocks are magnificent rock-cut temples, fabulously detailed tableaux and dramatic shore temples representing some of the finest examples of ancient temple art in India. 

Steps from the sea, beyond a breakwater of jagged rock, I found Mamallapuram's trademark eighth-century shore temples. Soaring up into the sky against a backdrop of blue sea and casuarina trees, they occupy what must be the most romantic temple setting in India. The shore temples are a favorite among Tamil families who flock to the site on Sundays.  

A Magnificent Past  

It has been many years since these temples were used for worship. Even so, groups of women in glittering saris moving against a backdrop of golden stone and sand breathed life into these incredible monuments, hinting at their magnificent past. The main temple, dedicated to Vishnu, was built so close to the shore that its base was lapped by seawater. Twelve-hundred years of plate tectonics have pushed the temples safely onto dry land.  

Unfortunately, centuries of salty spray blowing in from the Bay of Bengal have eroded much of the artwork decorating the stone facades. The temple's greatest significance is not in the details of its carvings, however, but in its pyramid-shaped peak, or vimana.  

These were among the first stone temples to be built in this style. The new temples, with their soaring peaks rising up out of the sands, set the standard for south Indian temple building that has endured to this day. It was the Pallavas, Tamil Nadu's first great imperial power, who created Mamallapuram's shore temples.  

Although their capital was at Kanchipuram—about 65 kilometers west of Madras—it was here, at their seaport on the southeast coast of India, that they created their most exquisite works of art. Little is known of the Pallavas. Some claim they traced their lineage back to the great Mauryan emperor Asoka; others that they were little more than plunderers.  

Whatever the case, they were the first great patrons of Tamil art. Through the development of music, dance, poetry and sculpture they helped establish a distinct Tamil identity. More significantly, they created a style so fresh and daring it would influence the development of Tamil temple building for centuries to come.  

The best example of Pallava sculpture is found 500 meters inland. The stunning Penance Panel—more commonly known as Arjuna's Penance—is a beautifully preserved, open-air tableau more than 30 meters long. It tells the story of the descent of the Ganges with a lively cast of characters including nagas (snake people), dwarfs and a hypocritical cat. Folk art depictions of life in the seventh century show woodsmen carrying bows and an exotic collection of animals from elephants to iguanas.  

Images reflecting the everyday life of ordinary villagers is one of the things that make the rock carvings at Mamallapuram unique.

Strength of Krishna

One of the best examples of this is the Krishna Mandapa, an elaborate bas-relief that predates the Penance Panel. In it, Krishna is seen lifting Mount Govardhana with one hand to protect local villagers from the wrath of the god Indra. Instead of consorting with other gods, he is surrounded by ordinary scenes of village life: a shepherd playing a flute; a mother nursing her baby; a couple dancing hand in hand; even a cow playfully licking her calf while being milked by a farmer.  

The Penance Panel was created during the reign of King Narasimha Varman I, who ruled from 640 to 668 and was responsible for some of Mamallapuram's greatest works of art. Such was his contribution that he even named the port after himself. Assuming the title of Mahamalla (great wrestler) after an important military victory, he named the Pallava port town Mahamallapuram (Mahamalla town) before launching a flurry of artistic activity. Some of the temples, it has been suggested, weren't even built for worship, but to show off the talents of local artists.  

One of Narasimha Varman I's most curious legacies is the Five Rathas. Set amid sandy dunes on the southern edge of town, these free-standing temples were carved out of individual blocks of granite. The temples are decorated with gorgeous bas-reliefs in typical Dravidian style. In addition to voluptuous Durgas and noble Shivas, there is also a seven-foot-high elephant beautifully carved out of solid rock. Its significance is unclear, but it's likely that the elephant—whose backside is the same shape as the temple next to it—is a little joke, compliments of Pallava architects.  

Wander around Mamallapuram's dusty streets today and your step soon slows to the gentle rhythm of chisel tapping against stone. Fourteen hundred years after Tamil artists first began turning lumps of rock into temples for the gods, sculpture remains a part of everyday life. On every street corner, young men chip away at mounds of stone producing Ganeshes, Shivas and Parvatis —now for the shops that have sprung up around town.

—Katherine Tanko, "South India's Kingdom by the Sea,
International Herald Tribune, 19 February 1999,
www.iht.com/articles/1999/02/19/malla.t.php

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