More Than One Shrine in The Vertical Order

The temple worship seems to have become a prominent
feature from the beginning of the Bhakthi movement.

Temples, first rock-cut type and then made of stones,
made their appearance from the 8th century. Huge stone
temples were built by the Chola Emperors and their
successors throughout Tamilnadu. Thus, unlike in other
parts of India, the architectural history of the Tamil country
starts only with the beginning of the seventh century A.D.
Prior to this, probably perishable materials like wood etc.
might have been used for construction of temples and
hence succumbed to the ravages of time. Early Tamil
literature talks of structures like koyil, madam (madom),
nagaram, palli, pali. etc., which are apparently references
to temples or religious edifices.
The temples were generally rich, having been owners of
land and other forms of wealth and became the centres
around which many aspects of life of the people got
organized. They were employment providers, since
architects and sculptors were needed in the construction
activities and pesants to cultivate their lands. Music, dance,
and drama were patronized by the Hindu temples,
providing employment, to artists and artisans. Most of the
big temples in Tamilnadu have many myths of their own.
The architecture of temple generally confines to five basic
shapes viz.,
caturasra (square)
ayatasra (rectangular)
vrittayat (elliptical)
vritta (circular)
astasra (octagonal)
The plan of a temple is dictated by the nature of the deity.

For example, the shrine of the reclining Ranganatha, can
only be a rectangular one. The basic shapes are reflected
in the superstructure of the vimanas. Square and
rectangular shrines are the common ones, the other
shapes being adopted rarely. However, these forms are
represented in the sikhara of the vimana. The apsidal form,
a derivative from Buddhist architecture, was popular up to
the 10th century in the Tondaimandalam, after which it
declined in usage.
There are temples having more than one shrine in the
vertical order. This style is found in some Vaishnava
temples, at Kanchipuram, Uttiramerur, Madurai,
Tirukkostiyur etc. In these, three shrines one above the
other, intended for the , standing, seated and reclining
forms of Vishnu. The Vedanarayanar koil, popularly known
as Mannarkoil near Ambasamudram an ancient temple built
during early 1200 (circa A.D. 1209) is a fine example for
this type of architecture.
The early style coincide with the Pallava dynasty (c. 650893) and is represented by the important monuments at
Mahabalipuram, a fine group of small rock cut cave
temples (early 7th century) - monolithic temples carved
out of the rock, the largest being the three-storied
Dharmaraja-ratha (c. 650). The word ratha here is not
very proper, as the word ratha means a chariot, where as
this is a temple, and should have more aptly been called
Dharmaraja temple. Their capital city Kanchipuram also
possesses some fine temples, the Kailasanathar (dating a
little later than the Shore Temple), a majestic structure
with subsidiary shrines attached to the walls. The enclosure
wall has a series of small shrines on all sides and a small
gopuram. Another splendid temple is the Vaikuntha
Perumal (mid-8th century) at Kanchipuram, which has an
interesting arrangement of three sanctums, one above the
other, within the body of the superstructure.
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The 9th century marked a fresh movement in the South
Indian style, as revealed in several small, simple but very
elegant, temples set up during the ascendancy of the Chola
and other contemporary dynasties. Most important of a
large number of unpretentious but beautiful shrines that
dot the Tamilnadu countryside are the Vijayalaya Colisvara
temple at Narttamalai (mid-9th century) with its circular
sanctum, spherical cupola, and massive, plain walls; the
twin shrines called Agastyisvara and Colisvara, at Kilaiyur
(late 9th century); and the splendid group of two temples
(originally three) known as the Muvarkovil, at Kodumbalur
(c. 875).
These simple beginnings led rapidly (in about a century) to
the mightiest of all temples in the South Indian style, the
Brihadeeswara, or Rajarajeswara, temple, built by Rajaraja
Chola at the Chola capital of Thanjavur. The main walls are
raised in two stories, above which the superstructure rises
to a height of 190 feet (60 meters). It has 16 stories, each
of which consists of a wall with a parapet of shrines carved
in relatively low relief. The great temple at
Gangaikondacholapuram, built by the Chola king Rajendra
I, is somewhat smaller than the Brihadeeswara; but the
constituent elements of its superstructure, whose outline is
concave, are carved in bolder relief, giving a rather
emphatic plasticity. The Airavatesvara (1146-73) and
Kampaharesvara (1178-1223) temples at Darasuram and
Tribhuvanam follow the tradition of the 11th century but
are smaller and considerably more ornate. They bring to a
close, a great phase of South Indian architecture extending
from the 11th to the 13th century.
From the middle of the 12th century, the Gopurams
(entrance buildings), to temple enclosures began to be
greatly emphasized. They are extremely large and
elaborately decorated with sculpture, quite dominating the
architectural ensemble. Temples also continued to be built

although they never achieved colossal size, they are often
of very fine workmanship. The Subramaniya temple of the
17th century, built within the compound of the
Brihadeeswara temple at Thanjavur, indicates the vitality
of architectural traditions of the later period.

More Than One Shrine in The Vertical Order

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More Than One Shrine in The Vertical Order

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The temple worship seems to have become a prominent

feature from the beginning of the Bhakthi movement.

The plan of a temple is dictated by the nature of the deity.

architectural ensemble. Temples also continued to be built

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