Advertisement
Published: April 8th 2012
Edit Blog Post
KHAJURAHO, MADHYA PRADESH, INDIA. Monday 2 April, 2012.
After a good nights sleep in the Taj Hotel we were collected by yet another guide at 8.00 am. Our destination today was the resplendent Hindu temples of Khajuraho. These have been immaculately restored after almost a millennium of neglect and abandonment and are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
These temples are famed for the delicate sensuality, forthright eroticism, and everyday detail of the sculptures that decorate the facades of the temples. They were built between the 10th and 12th centuries AD and have been hailed as the greatest architectural achievement of the Chandella Dynasty. By the 16th century the temples had fallen out of use and were engulfed by the surrounding jungle, until the British 'rediscovered' them in 1838. Although it appears to be fairly accessible on a map, Khajurho is about as remote from the Indian mainstream as it was when the temples were built.
The temples cover a significant area and are divided into groups. After queuing for the tickets we entered the Western Temple Complex which has the best preserved examples of Chandella architecture. We first went to the Varaha Temple, which enshrined a huge
image of Varaha, the Boar incarnation of Vishnu. Built of sandstone it dates from 900 to 925 AD. Next we went to Lakshmana Temple, then Kandariya Mahadeva, Jagadambi and Vishvanha Temples. All have ornate sculptures adorning their walls in such high relief as to be virtually 3D. The incredible skill of the stone carvers is evident throughout and the attention to detail incredible. The temples change colour and hew as the day passes from warm pink to white at midday and then back to pink at sunset. Many of the sculptures depict erotic scenes as well as day to day life, battles and dancing.
Our guide knew them all intimately and pointed out (with the aid of the torch in his mobile phone) scenes of women removing thorns from their feet, combing their hair and other mundane scenes as well as the erotic carvings for which these temples are famous. The Chitragupt Temple was being restored so we just took pictures from the outside. We finished our tour of the Western Complex with the Nandi Shrine which is a detached pavilion which forms part of the architectural scheme of Vishwanatha Temple. The square pavilion rests upon 12 pillars and
enshrines a massive image of Nandi, the Bull vehicle of Shiva which faces the main deity of Vishwanatha Temple.
After we finished the Western Complex we returned to the car and were taken to the Jain Group of temples. First we went to Parshwanath Temple. Constructed in the 10th century AD, this is the largest and best preserved of the old Jain Temples of Khajuraho and is of an individual design. Even though it is of Sandhara Architecture it possesses none of the typical balconied windows, instead having latticed windows. It also has a shrine attached to the back of the sanctum which is also unusual. Our guide showed us photographs of Jain monks and how they progress from wearing toga type clothes to eventually being completely naked and always carrying water and a cushion to sit on. We then went on to look at the smaller Adinath Temple in the same complex.
Next we went back to the car and were driven to the Duladeo Temple, lying on the Khodar Stream, which is in the Southern Group. This also has exquisite carvings and the angular shaped rippled exterior is unique to Khajuraho. We declined a trip to
another 'hard sell' gemstone place and elected instead to return to the hotel. We arrived back around 10.30 had a shower and packed and were ready to checkout at 11.40. Our car arrived at 11.45 to take us to Khajuraho Airport for our flight to Varanasi. The flight was an hour late but otherwise went without incident (apart from the usual security checks, stamps etc).
We were collected by the local agent at Varanasi airport and driven into the old town. We had to alight from the car some 15 minutes walk from the hotel and carry our stuff through the crowded streets to the hotel as the whole area is pedestrianised after 3.00 pm. Thank goodness Mr Barun had our big luggage. It was incredibly hot and the stink of urine and worse was overpowering. We trudged through the narrow, stinky streets, trying to avoid treading on the holy cows, dogs, people and getting run over by two wheelers and bicycles. We arrived at the hotel (which according to the agent was THE BEST). We checked in and were told we needed to be in reception to meet our guide at 5.45 am the next morning - groan!
The agent left and we were shown to our room which was more like a cell. No natural light, tiny and with very dangerous wiring. At least the bed was clean.
We rested until 7.30 and then wandered down to the River Ganges to witness the nightly ceremony which takes place on the Ghats (river banks) near the hotel. This was very noisy, and busy, with holy cows, goats, dogs, people (onshore and in boats) all there to see a lot of monks performing a ritual ceremony which takes place every evening. It was quite interesting to watch, but the river and the banks were full of rubbish and the smell was dreadful. We took some photos and went back to the 'hotel' for dinner. M had quite a good chicken curry but D was less fortunate with his mutton. One positive result was that we could get a bottle of Kingfisher in a town where alcohol is seriously frowned upon. We went to bed not too sure at all about Varanasi.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.131s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 13; qc: 29; dbt: 0.1012s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb