Bidar Part 2 - The Jalasangvi Eashwara Temple
Have you ever visited a temple just to see one sculpture? I did, during our trip to Bidar. To begin with, as I have mentioned in my earlier post, the Bidar trip happened without any planning whatsoever, so I had not done any search for temples nearby. However, while at the JLR property, I watched a video about Bidar, and my attention was captured by a brief glimpse of a temple, and a particular sculpture. It rang a bell, so I went back over the video again and again, much to the amazement of the staff, and then went back and did my own search. The sculpture that had caught my eye is a rather well known one, at least to people interested in such things. Here it is….
She is sometimes called ‘Lekhana Sundari’, and sometimes ‘Shasana Sundari’. She is an apsara or surasundari, shown writing on what appears to be parchment, with a stylus. What makes this sculpture very interesting is that she isn’t simply posing as a writer, she is actually writing. the words inscribed on the slab mark the beginning of an inscription.
The inscription reads…..
“Saptadveepodaree Bhutam Bhutalam Swakarishayati Chalukya Vikramaditya Saptamo Vishnuvardhanah”
Which can be translated as – Vikramaditya of the Chalukya dynasty captures and rules the land between the seven oceans.
The script is old Kannada, and it is a eulogy to Vikramaditya VI, who also had the epithet Vishnuvardhana. Vikramaditya VI, was the Western Chalukyan Emperor from 1076 to 1126. He is known as the greatest of the Western Chalukya kings, and had the longest rule in the dynasty. This dynasty, the Western Chalukyas, are also sometimes called the Kalyani Chalukyas, since they ruled from Kalyani, which is now Basavakalyan, in the Bidar district of Karnataka.
Vikramaditya is noted for his patronage of art and literature. His court had many famous Kannada and Sanskrit poets. The Sanskrit scholar Bilhana, who came to his court from Kashmir, in his Vikramankadevacharitra, compares his reign to that of Rama (Ramarajya). His rule also saw prolific temple building activity, and there are numerous inscriptions related to him, his donations and his rule.
This temple, with the Lekhana Sundari is among the smaller temples constructed during his reign. It is usually called the Jalasangvi Eashwara Temple, since it is located in Jalasangvi village, about 50 Km from Bidar. However, it was originally known as the Kamaleshwara or Kalleshwara Temple. The temple is a small one, but has some beautiful sculptures. There are sculptures on the inside as well, but the ones on the outer wall are the most impressive.
A number of the sculptures show Apsaras or Surasundaris, beautiful women in different poses. Our Lekhana Sundari is one of them.
These apsaras have their origin in their counterparts in Buddhist stupas across the country, the shalabhanjikas, who were shown leaning against, or holding the branch of trees. They, like these women, represented fertility and auspiciousness, and through them, the artists seem to have depicted various scenes seen across the region, not necessarily spiritual, but simply familiar. Hence, the Lekhana Sundari is important. It hints to us, that women writing, and writing important things, like a eulogy to the king, wasn’t uncommon in the 10th/11th centuries.
Let us take a walk around the temple and see some more of the beautiful sculptures seen here.
Let us begin with Ganesha. He is seen with multiple arms holding a variety of attributes, and in a dancing form. His vahana, the mouse is seen on his left.
There are three main niches on the outer walls, each of which holds a seated figure. The rest of the sculptures around are all in standing pose.
As we begin a pradakshina of the temple in a clock-wise direction, the first niche we encounter has Shiva, seated on Nandi, holding a trishul in one hand, and a snake in the other.
One niche has Narasimha, with a shankh and chakra.
The third niche has an interesting figure. It is evidently a form of the goddess, but which goddess isn’t very clear. Next to her is a bird, but which bird isn’t clear. Of her four hands, one is broken. One holds what appears to be an ankusa, or elephant goad, which is usually seen with Ganesha. Another holds what appears to be a noose, or pasha, somewhat like one held by Varuna. I am unable to identify the third object she holds. I wonder if she is some kind of composite form of the goddess.
Other than these, there are other deities on the walls….
Here is Shiva as Bhikshatana, or Kankala murti, the wandering ascetic. He holds the trishul and the damru, as well as a skull cup, a snake winds itself around his legs, his hair is spread in a halo around his head, and he wears sandals. There are two figures below him, to his right. They could be one of the saints and his wife, and there is an animal to his left, which is unrecognizable.
There are a few sculptures of Vishnu. Two of them hold a Shankh, Chakra and Gada, but in different order. One holds only the Chakra and Gada.
Here is Chamunda…
Coming to the apsaras or Sundaris, the highlight of this temple, there are many, seen in different postures, depicted performing different actions. One is shown being troubled by a monkey, another is shown with a parrot, and one is even shown fighting a tiger! Go over the images one by one and see the details. Each and every single one of them is gorgeous, and one can study them all at great length.
There is another set of female figures, subtly different. There is something different about how each of them is depicted. The one thing they have in common, is that they are all shown standing on a platform, held upright by a dwarf, usually known as a Bharavahaka Yaksha, the one who bears the load. My guess is that these depict female deities, probably related to the Matrikas.
The last sculpture I would like to show you is one I have not been able to identify.
At first glance, I thought it was Shiva. The posture, the attributes, they remind me of Bhikshatana. But it is not Bhikshatana. To begin with, it is a female figure. She holds a skull topped staff, and what appears to be a damru. The long garland she wears might be made of skulls, but it isn’t very clear. I have no idea who she is. If you have any ideas, please do leave a comment.
By the time I decided to visit this temple on our journey from Bidar to Solapur, I had already arranged for a cab. However, I was fairly confident of persuading our driver to made an additional halt. As it turned out, our driver was in no mood to oblige, and his obstinacy only made me more determined. I have had situations earlier, when drivers have had various reasons for not wanting to go somewhere, but this was different. This temple was just a short distance away from our route, and, eventually, with Shankar’s help, I succeeded in wearing down his resistance. The rest of our journey passed, first in sullen silence, followed by intermittent grumbling, on the part of our driver. But visiting this temple was well worth it. By the time we approached Solapur, he was so fed up of us, that he barely made any comment when we asked him to stop at Naldurg along the way.
References
The damsels of Karnataka's Jalasangvi, by R.H. Kulkarni, in The New Indian Express, 28th May, 2020
KARASHIMA, NOBORU. South India: Chola Dynasty, State and Administration, "The Tenth to Twelfth Centuries."
Indian Archaeology, 1991-92: A Review
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