In Search of the Monsoon: Mammmalapuram

[continuation of July 11, 2004 emai]

During the ten days I stayed in Chennai studying yoga at the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram, I decided to use one of the days I wasn't scheduled for a class to get out of the city and take a day trip to Mammalapuram.

Mammalapuram

Mammalapuran is a shore town about 50km south of Chennai, famous for its temple and popular for its beach. The Pallava kings of Kanchipuram resided there during way back from the 5th to the 8th centuries AD. I saw some remarkable stone carvings and visited several very old temples, including the Shore Temple and the rock-cut temples resembling chariots called The Five Rathas.

This elaborate carving into a huge rock is called Arjuna's Penance - to me this carving is the essence of India!

This stone carving is almost 100 feet long and 40 feet high; there's a fissure running perpendicularly through the center that the artist incorporated into the sculpture.

The Arjuna's Penance stone carving depicts animals, deities, semi-divine creatures, and fables from the Hindu Panchatantra books.

For all those elephant lovers out there...

Guess you could say I really liked these carvings!

An unsual aspect of many of the stone carvings in Mammalapuram is that they portray scenes from everyday life, as opposed to gods and goddesses. This bas relief carving in stone in one of the temples shows a woman milking a buffalo amidst other ordinary Indian folk.

Bas relief carving in stone in one of the temples in Mammmalapuram.

Bas relief carving in stone in one of the temples in Mammmalapuram.

Wandering around these old temples, one can't help but imagine the lives of so many people who have lived and worshiped here over the centuries. That's truly one of the most powerful aspects of traveling in India -- the awareness of the continuous presence of an ancient culture over hundreds and even thousands of years.

Temple alter with Shiva lingam, symbol for ritual worship of the creator aspect of Shiva's divinity.

Another Shiva lingam in a temple alter (got these pictures with the assistance of Sarachandran; ususally it's not cool to be taking pictures of the interiors of Hindu temples).

This big balancing rock, on the grounds of the Shore Temple site, is a popular photo op.

The beach at Mammalapuram near the Shore Temple.

This is the site of the weathered Shore Temple in Mammalapuram, originally built in the 7th Century AD facing the sea.

Approaching the Shore Temple.

The larger spire of the Shore Temple.

This temple spire has seen 1300 years of sun, wind, and ocean air -- as well as thirteen centuries of devotional human history.

A stone pig and an elaborate Shiva lingam on the grounds of the Shore Temple site.

This is an active temple in the town of Mammalapuram that Sharachandran and I visited (as with almost all temples in India, photographs of the interior strictly prohibited!)

Part of The Five Rathas site; they are rock-cut temples resembling chariots. The Five Rathas derive their names for the heroes of the Mahabharata (the classic Indian spiritual literary epic).

It wasn't unusual to be asked to pose for a picture with the local citizenry, who seemed to find a westerner such as myself an exotic photographic subject. This elephant statue is part of The Five Rathas.

A wider angle of The Five Rathas.

Shiva's divine bull Nandi and friends at The Five Rathas.

Another temple on the Five Rathas site.

Temple hall in The Five Rathas site.

Who knows how many feet have stood in this temple hall, and what has been felt and seen here over the centuries?

Detail of the stone carving in one of the structures of The Five Rathas site.

Mammalapuram is also known as one of the best places in India for stone sculptures and crafts; here's a great statue of Ganesh near the part of town where the stone merchants create and sell their work.

Vendors hawking their wares to tourists visiting the Five Rathas.

Another temple on a rock outcropping in Mammalapuram.

Small temple alter featuring Hindu goddess.

Still another old Hindu temple near Mammalapuram.

Weathered outrigger canoes on a section of the beach in Mammalapuram used by fishermen.

I hired Sarachandran for the day to drive me to Mammalapuram in one of the famous Indian Ambassador cars. A Tamil from Chennai, I discovered he was a devout and decent man during the course of the day as he talked of his family and his relationship with Shiva. He was pleasant company and did his best to give me a thorough tour of the worthwhile sights of Mammalapuram, and I spent pretty much the whole of one of my days in India with him.

Overall it was a pretty nice day in South India.

The Croc Farm

On the way back to Chennai from Mammalapuram Sharachandran suggested we visit another popular local tourist attraction, the Crocodile Farm. As a boy I was a big fan of lizards, and so, though I was kind of tired from roaming around Mammalapuram investigating ancient temple sites all day, I was curious and agreed to his suggestion.

I've seen crocodiles in the zoo before but never so many in my life! I'm pretty sure this is too crowded to be an ideal environment for these animals but it makes for quite a sight.

You really wouldn't want to be on the other side of this wall...

Colorful iguana.

A Komodo dragon -- very large lizard!

Driving back to Chennai at the end of the day we passed this inland waterway near the ocean--the beauty of South India!