In tune with nature

Madanakaias, bracket figure, Chennakeshava temple, Belur, Karnataka, 12th century. These are nayikas, or beautiful women, seen in Indic art from early times. They represent the fertile abundance of nature.

THE temples of the ancient period were small in size and the decorations on them were relatively simple. In the medieval period, kings began to provide direct patronage to temples. The structures of the Pallava period, between the 7th and 8th centuries, began to display regal ornamentation. By the end of the 10th century, King Rajaraja Chola of the Chola dynasty built the Brhadisvara temple in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, to reflect not only the glory of Siva, but his own grandeur and military successes. The temples of Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh are among the finest examples of the grand temples of the medieval period. The walls of the temples built during this period abound in images of nature and its bounty. This is the world of forms, the manifestation in numberless parts, of the eternal truth of the garbha griha, or sanctum sanctorum. The nagas, divine serpents, embody the protective forces and harmony of the world.

Leogryphs on the walls awaken the courage within us to face the inner truth. Continuing the ancient tradition of depicting yakshi s (associated with the fertility of the earth), temples of the medieval period portrayed apsara s, celestial beauties well-versed in the fine arts, and languorous kanyas, beautiful women. Beauty is an essential element in these depictions. In Indic philosophy, it is believed that the moment of the aesthetic response is akin to “Brahmananda”, or the bliss of salvation. Our appreciation of beauty is an indication of the grace that underlies the world, the essence of divinity which is in all. This experience transports us away from the confusion of the material world to the peace within us.