Continuing the description of my visit to the Hoysala temples in the initial blog, this is the follow-up post about the Amrutheshwara Temple.
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The exquisite Amrutheshwara Temple (also known as Amrutesvara) is located in the village of Amruthapura in Chikmagalur district of Karnataka. The temple was built in 1196 CE by Amrutheshwara Dandanayaka (commander) under the Hoysala King Veera Ballala II. He also set up a Brahminpuri of 24 Brahmin families around the temple.
The Hoysala era was an important period in the development of art, architecture, and religion in South India. The empire is remembered today primarily for Hoysala architecture. Over a hundred surviving temples are scattered across Karnataka. The Hoysala rulers also patronised the fine arts, encouraging literature to flourish in Kannada and Sanskrit.
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The modern interest in the Hoysalas is due to their patronage of art and architecture rather than their military conquests. The brisk temple building throughout the kingdom was accomplished despite constant threats from the Pandyas to the south and the Seunas Yadavas to the north. Their architectural style, an offshoot of the Western Chalukya style, shows distinct Dravidian influences. The Hoysala architecture style is described as Karnata Dravida as distinguished from the traditional Dravida, and is considered an independent architectural tradition with many unique features.
A distinguishing feature of Hoysala temple architecture is its attention to exquisite detail and skilled craftsmanship. Hoysala temple sculpture replicates this emphasis on delicacy and craftsmanship in its focus on depicting feminine beauty, grace and physique. The Hoysala artists achieved exceptional craftsmanship with the use of Soapstone (Chloritic schist), a soft stone as the basic building and sculptural material. This stone has the quality of hardening after being exposed to the atmosphere.
While approaching the temple, it gave a deceptively small look, but we were all in for a surprise with the number of wonders it held within. The temple is an ekakuta temple (having a single shrine) dedicated to Shiva and built close to the Bhadra River reservoir.
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The temple has an boundary wall adorned with unique equally-spaced circular carvings, which have survived in their original state.
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Along with the idol of Shiva, which had been brought from River Gandaki in Nepal there is a beautiful murti of Sharadha Devi installed on its right.
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Nandi (bull) is His vahana (vehicle), doorman, companion and the head of all Shiva’s Ganas(attendants). In Hindu scriptures, Nandi is the bearer of truth and righteousness. Each Hindu god has their own vahana (the Sanskrit root word for the English term of Wagon) that they use. These vahanas stand for specific qualities that are consistent with the deity’s image and functions. Nandi signifies strength, load bearing capacity and virility.
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An interesting feature of the Temple is that a lamp inside the temple has been burning for the past 200 years!! It consumes almost a litre of oil daily!
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The temple is medium-sized and similar to the Veera Narayana Temple at Belavadi. The open mantapa has twenty-nine bays, and the closed mantapa has nine bays with a side porch that leads to a separate shrine on the south side.
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The rows of polished lathe-turned black pillars that support the ceiling of the mantapa is a Hoysala-Chalukya decorative idiom and an outstanding feature of the temple.
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One intriguing fact is that till date no one actually knows the technology which was used to make the perfectly circular pillars since machines supposedly did not exist in that era! One can only visualise the advanced technology of that period, a chapter that remains missing from our collective consciousness and history books.
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The shrine is square in shape and has its original shikhara (tower), which is a seven story structure consisting of seven rows of indented square-shaped kirtimukhas (demon faces) with miniature decorative towers (aediculae). In each of these kirtimukhas are placed a form of Rudra. The original stone kalasa (water pot) at the top is missing and it has been replaced with a metal kalasa.
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The mantapa has many deeply domed inner ceiling structures adorned with floral designs.
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The outer parapet wall of the open mantapa has a total of 140-panel sculptures with depictions from the Hindu epics. The Ramayana is sculpted on the south side wall on 70 panels, with the story proceeding quite unusually, in an anti-clockwise direction. On the north sidewall, all depictions are clockwise, a norm in Hoysala architectural articulation.
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25 panels depict the life of Krishna and the remaining 45 panels depict scenes from the Mahabharata.
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The sukanasi, the lower tower on top of the vestibule that connects the sanctum to the closed mantapa (the Sukanasi appears like the nose of the superstructure), has the original Hoysala emblem of “Sala” fighting the lion. Kannada folklore tells a tale of a young man, Sala, who saved his Jain guru, Sudatta, by striking dead a lion or tiger he encountered near the temple of the goddess Vasantika at Angadi, now called Sosevuru. The word “strike” literally translates to “hoy” in Old Kannada, hence the name “Hoy-sala“. This legend first appeared in the Belur inscription of Vishnuvardhana (1117 CE), but owing to several inconsistencies in the Sala story it remains in the realm of folklore. The legend may have come into existence or gained popularity after King Vishnuvardhana’s victory over the Cholas at Talakadu as the Hoysala emblem depicts the fight between the mythical warrior Sala and a tiger, the tiger being the emblem of the Cholas.
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In a typical “older style” that was common in most of the 12th century Hoysala temples, there is one set of eaves where the tower meets the wall of the shrine. The eave is a projecting roof overhanging the temple wall and it runs all around the temple. Below the eaves are decorated miniature towers (aediculae) on pilasters. Below these are the five mouldings running around the shrine.
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A distinctive feature of the temple is the balustrade of the open or outer mantapa, which has over 100 miniatures of temple tower-like structures as part of the decorative swirls in bas-relief.
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The temple also houses a huge stone inscription, which consists of Kannada poetry composed by medieval Kannada poet Janna who had the honorific Kavichakravarti (emperor among poets), reflecting the rich knowledge of the poets of this era. Yashodhara Charite, Ananthnatha Purana and Anubhava Mukura are among is famous works.
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Ruvari Mallitamma, the well-known sculptor and architect is known to have started his career here working on the domed ceilings in the main mantapa.
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Amruthapura is a small village located 67 km north of Chikmagalur. It is 110 km from Hassan and 35 km from Shimoga on NH 206. Another of the Hoysala jewels in this area, the sculptures are beyond description, especially the signature polished lathe-turned pillars. One has to visit the temple to grasp the craftsmanship of the work.
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One intriguing fact is that till date no one actually knows the technology which was used to make the perfectly circular pillars since machines supposedly did not exist in that era! One can only visualise the advanced technology of that period, a chapter that remains missing from our collective consciousness and history books.
Temple Rituals
Some of the important rituals performed here are the Bilva Archana and the Kumkuma Archana. Aksharbhyasam (or Akshara arambham) is also performed here, which is a traditional religious ceremony in which children are initiated to formal education by making him/her write the beejaakshar “Om”. Devotees also visit the temple to seek blessings whose children are poor in studies. A tradition followed in the temple is of gifting a sari to show one’s thanksgiving.
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My blogs of other Hoysala temples I visited can be seen at:
- Chandramouleswara Temple, Arasikere
- Lakshmi Devi Temple, Doddagaddavalli
- Sri Veera Narayana Swamy Temple, Belavadi
- Hoysaleshwar Temple, Halebidu
- Kedareshwara Temple, Halebidu
- Parshvanatha Jain Temple, Halebidu
- Chennakeshava Temple, Belur
- Chennakeshava Temple, Arakere
- Sri Lakshmi Narsimha Temple, Javagal
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