Pattadakal : Coronation Town

If Aihole was known as the cradle of Hindu temple architecture.Pattadkal was the High School where it was finally perfected. This town which is called the Cambodia of India has temples in both the North and South Indian styles.

Like many cities that fall to ruin, its treasures became part of the local population and over the years the villages have used the stones to build their own homes! Signs of temple walls being used as part of a kitchen are shown by the soot-darkened walls.

The kadasiddheswara temple walls were used as a kitchen wall!

So while it was never ‘lost’, it was only uncovered over the years and today it is recognised as a UNESCO heritage sight.

Crowning Glory

While most rivers of the Deccan flow eastwards, the Malaprabha river at this point suddenly flows northwards. That is why the Chalukyas chose this unique spot to crown their kings. They also used it to hold important events.

A glimpse of the river Malaprabha. This is the place from where the kings accesssed the Virupaksha temple.

Pattadkal was the place where 11 Chalukya kings were crowned. Subsequently 39 other dynasties also held their Coronations here hence the name Pattadakal.

Each king was crowned in his own small temple. Here you can see several plinths of the smaller temples.

The temples are made of local sandstone blocks that are interlocked and held in place by iron ‘staples’ as it were.

Temples

THIS PHOTO HAS BEEN TAKEN FROM THE WEBSITE TRAVEL THROUGH STORIES

The first four temples in the complex are built in the North Indian style while the rest are in the South Indian style. These temples are dedicated to Lord Shiva and in the early temples, you won’t find Nandi standing in front .

The Galagnatha Temple with its outer circumambulatory corridor.

The Galaganatha Temple

The circumambulatory path of the Galagnath

Shiva with head of Andhaka the demon who lusted after Parvati ( GalagnathaTemple )

The dancing Shiva with Parvati and Nandi on the arch of the Jambulinga temple

Our guide Raju gave us some explanation about the Linga but all that I remember is that the lower portion that is slightly recessed represents wealth that has to be guarded.

the canopies on the Sangameshwar temple look as though they are held up by birds

Virupaksha Temple

Vishnu as Harihara

This is an active temple and is a victory temple, one of two identical temples built by the twin sisters Lokamahadevi and Trilokamahadevi who were married to Vikramaditya ll. They were built to commemorate his victory over thePallavas.

The twin sisters who married King Vikramaditya ll

The massive Nandi in the Nandi Mandap

The twin sisters Lokamahadevi and Trilokamahadevi were married to King Vikramaditya ll. To commemorate his victory over the Pallava king, the two sisters built two identical temples in this complex: Mallikarjun ( by Queen Trilokamahadevi) and Virupaksha (by Queen Lokamahadevi).

Today, the Virupaksha Temple remains the only active temple in the complex. Above you can see the temple in its entirety with all the details of temple architecture.

The two dwarpal or doorkeepers to Shivas’s temple

Surya on top of the ceiling at the entrance to Virupaksha

Shankhanidhi the dwarpal of Kuber

On the outer walls of the Virupaksha temple you can see beautiful sculptures at the entrance itself.

Gandabheruja — Emblem of Karnataka State

Detail of Gajalakshmi

Yoga poses on top

An unusual pose of a seated Harihara outside the Virupaksha temple

Shiva with a Sendhal

Shiva & Parvati at Virupaksha

Inside the Temple

Inside the temple it is dark and quiet. The two sub sanctums on either side of the sanctum sanctorum are the idols of Ganesha ( long removed) and Parvati as Mahishasurmadini. This is inaccessible to visitors.

The statue of Parvati as Mahishasurmadini in Sub sanctum of Virupaksha temple

stories the pillars tell

The exquisitely carved pillars inside the temple have stories of the Mahabharat, Ramayan and Panchtantra.

Lifestyle & Beauty

Relaxing in a Chalukya spa

hairstyles

Mallikarjun Temple

Though this was built identical to the Virupaksha temple , it has fallen to disrepair.

The green granite Nandi in front of Mallikarjun temple broken into two

Some stories on the pillars at Mallikarjun

the Keertimukh

The motif in the middle shows the Pancahtantra illustrates the story of the monkey and the log

The story of the birth of Krishna

Stories of Shrikrishna

The Panchatantra story of the woman who asked the crocodile to babysit her child

There are several temples in this complex and quite frankly, I am a bit confused as to which temple is which. So for a better understanding, please visit this site

https://www.worldhistory.org/article/899/the-temples-of-pattadakal/

Another site worth seeing is https://turuhi.com/story/pattadakal-the-ceremonial-capital-of-the-chalukyas

The Victory Pillar

A partially hidden victory pillar that still needs to be excavated reveals the triumphant king marching on his elephant, surrounded by attendants. The second photo reveals a king lying in a relaxed pose while the last shows a flower representing peace and victory

The first Photo shows a victorious king mounted on an elephant and surrounded by his attendants. The second shows him relaxing while the last symbolises victory and peace

The second victory pillar is near the Virupaksha Temple

Built to commemorate the victory of the Chalukyas over the Pallavas, this monolithic pillar has inscriptions in ancient Kannada and Devnagiri

Pattadakal really has the most beautiful temple architecture and every student of architecture should visit it.

From Pattadkal we drove down to Aihole, the last of our temple visits before we began our return journey to Bijapur and then to Pune .

Ciao