The Spectacular Jewel

Who am I to write about this Edifice? But then if I don’t write, I will not be doing justice to my latest passion which is to put pen on paper or as per the modern parlance, to run my fingers over the key board. The urge to write is so intense that I have decided to shelve my ignorance and to go ahead. The Edifice I am talking about is the Brihadeeswarar Temple which is better known as the Big Temple of Thanjavur. I have had the opportunity to visit this marvel in 1977 when my father was transferred there for a brief period. That trip in 1977 was the first holiday that we had had as a family and it was also the first sight seeing trip for all of us. Thanjavur was the first halt in a long list of places which we visited during that trip and the Big Temple was the first site we saw. That being the sequence of events, The Temple held a special place in my heart.
The fact that it dominated the skyline and stood as a silent sentinel just made it awesome. Not having studied the history of the Cholas or for that matter of any of the Southern kings of the earlier centuries, I visited the temple in total ignorance. The little I learnt about the place was from my father who having been in Thanjavur for the preceding couple of months, had picked up from hear say. Thus I was told of the 80 ton single piece of granite that was placed on top of the Gopuram with the help of no machines and just by the perseverance of man. I had looked up to the heavens to see this monolith perched high above. Until then the only Gopurams I had seen were the much painted and ordained ones of the Kapaleeswarar and the Parthasarathy Temples, both contemporaries of the Big Temple. However it could be the colour of the stone or the natural finish that made the one at Thanjavur stand apart. This also gave it a rugged feel, a feel of raw and unbridled strength. I also got to see the magnificent Nandi that graced the courtyard of the temple. It was carved from a single piece of granite which had been brought from far. These points were noted and stored in one of the crevices of the grey matter, only to resurface in the most unimaginable surrounding. Why I call it unimaginable is because the next time that I heard the Big Temple being discussed in detail was in a programme on National Geographic Channel, and this I got to view while on a holiday in the picturesque Island of Bintan, Indonesia. I viewed the whole programme with utmost interest and learnt many of the salient features of the temple and also about the great King Raja Raja Chola who built this edifice. He did not stop at that, but also got together a Navy which went far and wide and conquered lands including some of the islands of Indonesia. This was an achievement without any parallel in the 10th Century AD. He was also instrumental in spreading Hinduism in the lands he conquered. If the world has an Angkor Wat, I believe that the seeds were sown by King Raja Raja Chola. It is indeed strange and coincidental that I had to learn about him while I was in Indonesia.
Last week saw me visit Thanjavur for the second time. The only reason for Thanjavur to be included in the trip which was otherwise a mini pilgrimage was to show my family The Big Temple. On arriving there, I realized that I had forgotten almost everything about the place. The only thing that was vivid in my mind’s eye was the temple. There was an urge to revisit the citadel,(it truly is one, what with a moat all around and enough place for the local population of the 10th Century to take refuge) however at the same time, I was afraid that I may be in for a shock. The reason for saying this is because, many a time it happens that what impresses one as a youngster, may not have the same effect later on in life. As I mentioned earlier, Brihadeeswarar temple was the first site I saw in my first site seeing trip and thus the impression I carried was exaggerated a thousand times. In the last 32 years I have travelled and have had the privilege to see some of the Wonders of the World and thus I wondered if the Temple still had the magic to bring in me the emotions which I experienced during my first visit. Also I had spoken so much about it to my family and friends that I did not want to disappoint them.
The moment we entered the UNESCO World Heritage Site, all my apprehensions just disappeared and once again I was a naïve person totally mesmerized by the glory of the past. I won’t be wrong if I say that I enjoyed the site far better the second time around having acquired some background knowledge of the place. Right from the imposing entrance to the cavernous and magnificent courtyards to the heavenly gopurams to the gigantic Nandi to the symmetric corridors and finally to the mammoth Lingam everything was perfect and just the way I remembered. This time around I had with me a camera with which I could capture some of the physical aspects of the place for posterity. I really wished there was a way by which I could carry with me the majestic essence of the place and also the sense of history that pervades the air.
How glad am I that I made the trip. It not only rejuvenated the first impressions but also proved that the second impression can be even better. Here was something that had weathered nature’s fury and man’s destructive nature and still managed to remain almost unscathed. Even after 1000 years, it exudes a magical power which forces even the mightiest among the mighty to cow down with respect. I came out feeling totally awestruck and apart from uttering the Lord's name, wondered for how many more centuries this Spectacular Jewel of the Chola Crown would continue to amaze and enthrall mankind.