Showing posts with label RAJA CHOLA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RAJA CHOLA. Show all posts

Thursday, April 9, 2015

1400 Years Old sun clock of Chola Empire

'Mystery of India.com'1400 Years Old sun clock of Chola Empire
Kingdoms and kings are history, but certain devices bequeathed by them tell the story of their times. One such historical instrument is the 1,400-year-old sun clock mounted on the 35-feet-high inner wall of Sivayoginathar temple at Thiruvisanallur, some 12 km from the Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu. It is the only ‘wall clock’ in Tamil Nadu in the real sense of the term.
The temple authorities have decided to refurbish the historic ...legacy which stands testimony to the infinite wisdom and scientific temper of the Chola kings.
The wall clock built during Parantaka Cholan‘s rule does not require battery or electricity. Carved out of granite and shaped like a semi-circle, all it has is a three inch-long brass needle permanently fixed at the centre of a horizontal line. As the sun casts its rays on the needle, the shadow of the needle indicates the right time. The people, mostly the devotees coming to the temple, deciphered the time of the day by watching the silhouette cast by the needle of the sun clock from six am to six pm, and perhaps planned their day accordingly.
Expectedly, time has taken its toll on the sun clock at the sixth-century temple. The clock will work as long as the sun shines because of its unique working principle. But due to brass discoloration, the needle is getting blurred on the granite surface. The numerals were added by British for their own convenience which still exists.
The clock will get is facelift when the temple managed by the Thanjavur Palace Devasthanam undergoes renovation at an estimated cost of Rs 46 lakh. “The time that the sun clock shows may not be expedient today, but its history is,” said Aru Ramanathan, the grandson of Devakottai ARM ALA Arunachala Chettiyar who did the first renovation after a long gap in time in 1931.
Interestingly, the temple has many a religious significance. The presiding deity Sivayoginathar does not sit with his consort Soundaryanayaki in the sanctum sanctorum as is the case in many temples. The Ambal’s Sannidhi (shrine) is separately situated facing the South where the Sun Clock is mounted. The legend has it that eight Siva Yogis merged with the lingam here after attaining salvation. Hence the name Sivayoginathar for Lord Siva. As Siva is in deep meditation inside, Ambal waits outside for him looking at the Sun Clock.
Source: Times Of India
Mystery of india

Sunday, April 20, 2014

Raja Chola’s Samadhi left in Ruins


In the village of Udayalur, half submerged in a field behind a farmer’s house, lies a lingam. A flimsy pandal over the lingam, constructed with sticks and thatched leaves, is the only symbol that betrays the significance of this site. The spot is supposed to be the samadhi of Raja Raja Chola, one of the greatest Hindu kings that ever lived.
The illustrious Raja Raja Chola, is well known for his patronage of the arts, his vast conquests, and his tremendous temple building campaign. The famous Brihadeesvara temple, which recently turned a thousand years old, was consecrated by Raja Raja for Mahadeva.
This dilapidated samadhi of the Chola king is not an exception. Across India, we find similar examples that showcase the modern Hindu’s insouciant attitude towards the pitiful condition of historical structures that preserve the memory of our ancestors’ heroism and sacrifices.
The samadhi mandirs of Baji Rao, Hemu, and many others suffer from the same indifference. The cruel twist in this story is the ridiculous deification by modern Hindus of personalities who have been dedicated to the destruction of Hindus. Sonia Gandhi and Mayawati, both have opulent temples dedicated to them by their sycophantic followers. Then there are the temples devoted to the Tendulkars, Bacchans, and Kushboos of our country. In this age of Kali, the bull of morality stands on one leg. And so, the memory of the great Chola is relegated to such an ignoble fate.
Below part of Raja Raja Chola’s Legacy
1000 years ago, Raja Raja Chola did exactly that. Going down in the history of India as one of the greatest kings, he expanded the Chola kingdom over the whole of South India, Kalinga and Sri Lanka, his reign is considered the golden period of the Chola Dynasty. To commemorate the great achievements of his kingdom, he set out to leave behind a mark of his kingdom’s supremacy, something that told generations to come what a mighty and great dynasty ruled over the land. The culmination of that thought was the Brihadeeswara Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva at the then capital of the Chola kingdom, Thanjav
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