Visiting Mahabalipuram is like entering a time warp. It’s like hopping into a time machine and going back to the glorious regime of the 17th century Pallava rulers. A place where art and culture thrived. An oasis where sculptors had the freedom to be. An era when art was venerated. An Utopia where time stood still for centuries.
How I landed up in this work-in-progress open-air museum is a story by itself. My journey started with what slows us all down – a traffic jam. The bus I had boarded to head to Mahabalipuram emerged out of the Chennai central bus stand and got stuck in a jam at Saidapet, before it could get out of the city. To make it worse, it started raining rhinos. The bus stood rooted at one stop for more than an hour. One middle-aged gentleman came and sat next to me in the bus. He was reading a book on nutrition. I was fascinated. Most people I have seen are happy solving crosswords or reading magazines and newspapers. But here was someone, who definitely didn’t look like a student, but was reading something more valuable in life.
I didn’t utter a word. Instead, I whipped out my Nikon and started clicking pictures of the rolling greens that passed me by. At one point in the journey, I turned to the man and asked him how much longer will it take to reach Mahabalipuram. “45 minutes,” he said, and went on to tell me something about the places I will run into before I reach my destination. About 14 kms before we could reach Mahabalipuram, we came across Crocodile Bank. My companion informed me that there are six species of crocodiles bred in captivity. About 5000 Indian and African crocodiles and alligators are kept in open pools and viewed from a safe distance. I let it pass, because I had seen a similar one outside Bangkok. Just four kms later, I passed by Dolphin City. Before I could ask my co-traveller, he said the highlight of this is the performance by an American Sea Lion (seal), which is the first of its kind in India. I said, what if the seal falls sick, and he said that there are two more as backups. Balancing a ball on its nose, diving in, diving out… the usual turns of a dolphin were on display at this theme park. I made it a point to get here the next time I am in this part of town. But the gentleman didn’t stop. He asked me if I had heard of a pyramid marketing company that made people rich all over the world without much effort. I don’t remember the name of the company, but all I know is that it’s not Amway, but has a revenue model that’s similar. My co-companion went on to say how the company’s founders are now billionaires, and how he’s trying to retrace their steps by becoming a direct marketer for their nutritious products.
So the nutrition book he was reading was actually a product brochure! I told him I was with Amway, but only for a few months before I realised the futility of being a pyramid marketer. Though marketing guys like him will tell you that you need only spend one hour every day to earn lakhs of rupees over time, it’s never like that. You have to drink, eat and sleep over it, all the time. And suddenly, you realise it’s more than a full-time job. I asked him, how much he makes from it. “My wife and I have only just begun, but are doing well already,” he said. “We make about Rs 3000 a month.” That sealed it for me, I didn’t take much heed to the gentleman next to me. I didn’t even give him my card when he asked for it. ‘I’ve exhausted my cards,’ I said, but he handed his card. I threw it away when I got down at Mahabalipuram.
The bus stand didn’t appear like one. There wasn’t any other bus except the one I took. I looked around, and found many blokes approaching me to ask if I needed a guide. When I didn’t even bother, and kept moving, they took the signal and immediately went behind a few foreigners who had got down from the same bus. I went straight to the flower vendor across the road. He was a boy who appeared about 15 years old. He was laconic: “Go straight, and then go left from there and then come back here and go left again. These are the only three places that you need to see.” I was shocked for a while. If this is all I have to see, then why do people even call it a tourist place? Later, my question was answered. It took me more than three hours to see these three places. And if I had no plans of reaching Pondicherry by the evening, I could have stayed on for another three hours atleast. So without further ado, I picked up a tour guide who could tell me more about the place.
Mahabalipuram is a rock climbers’ paradise. And most of all, it’s every sculptor’s mecca. The kind of rock-cut caves and temples you will see here date back to the Pallava dynasty of the 7th century BC. It is believed to have been named after the Pallava king Mamalla (it’s actually known as Mamallapuram, but Mahabalipuram is more in circulation). The monuments are mostly rock-cut and monolithic (built out of one stone). From cave temples to monolithic rathas (chariots), sculpted reliefs and structural temples, it showcases Dravidian pillars and Pallava art through its sculptures. It is believed that this area served as a school for young sculptors. According to historians, the different sculptures, some half finished, may have been examples of different styles of architecture, probably demonstrated by instructors and practiced on by young students.
This can be seen in the pyramidal Pancha Rathas (five chariots) where each Ratha is sculpted in a different style. These are five pyramidal structures named after Draupadi and the Pandavas – Arjuna, Bhima, Yudhishtra, Nakula and Sahadeva. Despite their sizes, they are not assembled and are instead carved from one single large piece of stone. Awesome.
Largely describing events from the Mahabharata, watching Pancha Rathas took me an hour. Housed in a sandy compound and built like a pagoda, the rathas resemble Buddhist shrines and monasteries. I loved Draupadi’s ratha. Located at the entrance to the gate, it was spectacular and yet so simple. Shaped like a hut, it is dedicated to goddess Durga. Female door-keepers stand on either side of the Ratha, one holding a bow and another, a sword. At the eastern wall, a bas-relief shows Goddess Durga standing on the lotus with two worshippers offering flowers at her feet.
Elephant-shaped sculptures in the Nakul-Sahadev’s ratha are the highlights of the pancha rathas. They face the sea and are huge. Of all the rathas that are certified UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Yudhistir’s ratha is the largest. He was the eldest of the pandavas. One of the guides told me that this is a perfect example of the temples built in south India in later years. Most of the rathas are incomplete. Take this ratha – the ground floor is unfinished. The peculiarity? There are no stairs leading from the ground to the first floor, but there are stairs from the first to the second. What I loved was a carving on the first floor – a bearded ascetic holding a bell in his hands, a devotee with a tuft, holding a flower basket, a temple attendant with a bunch of keys, carrying an offering to god. The Ganesha Ratha is the only completed sculpture of the five rathas. Earlier dedicated to lord Shiva, it is now a shrine of Ganesha. Talk of one god replacing the other in his own territory.
The Pallavas did not stop with the Pancha rathas. They went on to build more sculptures. My guide informed me that four are found on the outskirts of Mahabalipuram. Two Pidari Rathas lie side by side on the way to Tirukkalakundram. To the south of these two rathas lies the Valayankuttai Rath and the fourth one lies opposite the Mahishasura Mardini Mandap. But it is nameless.
Apparently, the sculptures of Mahabalipuram are popular in countries like Britain, Germany, Denmark and Singapore. Images made of soapstone, handicrafts, wood carvings, sea-shell articles and jewelleries are sold here. What’s more, you can see sculptures in the making. Part of the reason why foreign tourists flock here is Tamil Nadu’s Department of Tourism conducting world famous dance festivals every Saturday, Sunday and on holidays during December and January. With Arjuna’s Penance (a rock bas-relief shaped like a giant) as the backdrop, the festival goes on for four weeks. Dancers from across India come here to display their choreographed moves. Besides, there are classical renditions, tribal dances and puppet shows for the general audience.
The other marvels in and around Mamallapuram include the Trimurti cave, Kodikkal Mandapam, a replica of Arjuna’s Penance, Ramanuja Mandapam, Adivaraha Temple, Koneri cave, Pancha Pandava Mandapam and Sthalasayana Perumal temple. What really fascinated me most was the hill slope near the Ganesha Ratha that held on its expansive chest, a huge boulder. Known as Krishna’s Butter Ball, the Pallava kings tried to move the boulder with elephants but were unsuccessful. Quite unbelievable, because it’s located just at the point where the mountain slopes. A marvel all the way. And I found an old woman selling mangoes. From far, she looked much smaller than the boulder which formed her background. A Kodak moment all the way.
Apart from the rathas, there are 14 such important constructions in and around Mamallapuram (that’s the official name). The beauty of it is not only due to its architecture but also for its casuarinas trees, the silvery sandy beach and the classical hand-made crafts that form a collective splendour. To add to the charm are many places around this sculptor’s paradise that have become part of my must-visit list the next time I am here. Most prominent among them include the Cholamandal Artist’s Village, Dakshina Chitra, Muthukadu, Crocodile and Snake Park, Chengalpattu, Kanchipuram, Kovalam (the Olive Ridley Turtles come here between November and March to hatch their eggs), Mudaliarkuppam, Thirukkalukundram, Tirupporur, Vandalur and Vedanthangal. Apparently, in Thirukkalukundram, 16 km away from Mahabalipuram, there is a 160 metre hill with a small Vedagirishvara temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. The priest in the temple feeds a pair of white eagles, which are said to be saints. The eagles on their way from Varanasi and Rameswaram, nest in this hill temple at a particular time in the afternoon when no other eagles or birds attend.
There are also many great temples around Mamallapuram. Though, I didn’t have the time to see them, I remember my guide mentioning the Kailasanathar temple that boasts of a 16-sided Shiva lingam in black granite stone. And then he mentioned the Ekambaranathar temple that boasts of 1000 lingas carved out of a single stone. He said that there’s also a mango tree over 3,500 years old. It bears four branches representing the Four Vedas (Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharvana) and the fruits from these branches have four different tastes.
All along, it was raining intermittently. I would go into a cave and stay there until the rain stopped. The guide would take this opportunity to regale me with his stories. When he said there is a ruined Dutch fort and a Dutch cemetery carved with headstones and Ditch inscriptions, I felt like going all the way there, but then it began to rain incessantly. And then, it started to rain heavily and I had to abandon all plans of visiting any place around Mahabalipuram. But there was still one place I hadn’t visited: the seashore temple. Though it was only a kilometre away, the rain prevented me from taking the road by myself. So we hired an auto for Rs 50 and went up there. My guide launched into his story-telling session even before we reached the temple. Apparently, there were seven temples known as the seven pagodas. But the lonely survivor is the shore temple. It was originally constructed during the 7th century and is one of the oldest temples in south India. This shore temple has gained popularity and tourists flock here because it is listed among the world heritage sites by UNESCO. The central shrine is in the form of a rectangle. It has a magnificent statue of lord Vishnu which is known as Sthala Shayana Perumal or Ananthasayana which means sleeping Vishnu. The peculiarity about this particular temple is that Vishnu sits on the floor to listen to the sounds of names. The figure of Vishnu is found in segments which are to be looked through various doors.
The grand temple is surrounded by mandapas and compound walls. There is a rock-cut of two young women riding a lion. The lion has a small, square shaped cut in its belly. Apparently, a huge rock near the temple has been the target of waves since the ancient times. There is also a carving of a buffalo demon running with a stick in his hand, located on the northern side. My guide informed me that the temple looks lovely when the lights come on weekends when the sun goes into hiding. But I was unlucky. I had come on a weekend allright, but I was leaving by 3pm to be on time in Pondicherry where I had booked a room.
Mamallapuram is best known for Krishna Mandapam, the biggest among the mandapams. Dedicated to Lord Krishna, the sculptures picturise his brave and energetic adulthood. As a kid, he lifted the Govardhana mountain so both the people and cattle could be saved from the rains precipitated by Lord Indra. Being the god of rain, the shepherd community used to thank Indra once a year for his blessings. When Krishna asked them to stop the practise, an angry Indra ordered the rain clouds to pour heavily and destroy all the animals. When Krishna heard of it, he lifted an entire mountain with his little finger to save them. The downpour lasted seven days. Finally, Indra realised his mistake and withdrew the clouds.
What stopped me dead in my tracks was when my guide told me about how the place got its name. Apparently, during the rule of a mean and cruel king Mahabali, Lord Vishnu killed him in battle. The result strangely was that the place was named after the dead, arrogant Mahabali. Later, the name was changed to Mamallapuram because then king Narasimha Varman I was given the title of ‘Mamalla’ meaning ‘the great wrestler’ for his feats in the arena. Ironically, it’s still known by its old name.
Old is gold, I guess. Though, the person it’s named after isn’t.
STRAIGHT FACTS
Area: 8 sq. km.
Altitude: Sea level
Population: 12,000
Climate: Summer – Max. 36.6°C, Min 21.1°C; Winter – Max. 30.5°C, Min 19.8°C
Rainfall: 32.5 cm average
Clothing: Tropical
Languages spoken: Tamil and English
Tourist season: Through the year