Do you like stories? I do. A lot. 🙂

Especially stories of those who live larger-than-life lives in spirit and feat.

This post is the tale of one such story—of a king called Bhimadeva I and his lovely, loving queen Udayamati, who lived a thousand years ago. And no, it is no myth. There are colossal monuments they left behind as testimony of their love and piety, as I discovered one sunny wintry day I travelled 75 kilometres north-west of Ahmedabad in Western India, in the state of Gujarat.

Come, let me tell you more.

Son of Agni, the fire-god’s, Sun Temple of Modhera

Bhimadeva I (1024 – 1066) was a Chalukya king, belonging to a dynasty which ruled Gujarat and Rajasthan between 942 and 1243 AD. Their capital city was Anhilwad, today’s Patan. Also known as the Solanki kings, the Chalukyas of Gujarat were Agnivanshi Rajputs and saw themselves as direct descendants of Agni, the Vedic god of fire.

As was the norm, all the Chalukya kings built numerous temples, monasteries, and large water reservoirs throughout their realm. But none was more majestic or beautiful, in detail or glory as the sun temple in the ancient township of Modhera that Bhimadeva I built in honour of the sun god—Surya—plonk on the Tropic of Cancer. Covered with intricate carvings on both its outer and inner walls, the yellow sandstone structure ruptures into a stunning conglomeration of gods and goddesses, leaves and flowers, birds and animals.

Four structures, all equally ornate, make up the complex. First in line is a terraced large water tank or kund, fed by sub-soil water of the nearby Pushmaavati river, dotted with 108 shrines dedicated to the Hindu pantheon. This leads to an ornamental gateway or toran which in turn opens into a dancing hall or ranga mandapa, once the site of congregation and sacred dancing and singing.

The east-west temple complex axis ends in its crowning glory, the main temple with the sanctum sanctorum. The latter, in its hey-day, used to house a golden effigy of Surya standing in a sea of gold coins which was lit up by the first rays of the sun on spring and autumn equinoxes. The effigy is long gone. And so are the coins. What remains are the silent ochre walls and a king’s devout offering. A small, undecorated ancient Shiva temple to the north of the main temple keeps the sanctity of the place alive.

Modhera is filled with those “Aah, this is why I love to travel moments.” Electric-coloured birds flit from one shrine to another, in stark contrast to the lazy turtles in the shallow waters of the kund. The golden sandstone blocks tell a million stories of myth and some erotic sex in perfect harmony and order. Nothing is random or unplanned. Each piece a perfect part of a perfect whole.

Look closely at the main temple and you will find sets of 12 Adityas [aspects of the sun god and thus identical to Surya], one for each month, and 12 Gauris [aspects of Gauri, another name for Shiva’s wife Parvati]. Interspersed amongst them are the 8 Dikpalas, the guardian gods which preside over the different directions. By the main entrance is the three-armed, three-legged Shiva as the Tripada Bhairava, one of his rarest iconographic forms. In the eastern edge of the kund, a reclining Vishnu, the creator, gazes out at his cosmos in calm.

Recent years has witnessed some debate on whether the temple is not solely for Surya, but for Shiva as well, seeing the number of sculptures dedicated to him and his consort.

Whatever be the case, though there may be no “pilgrims” to the elaborate ensemble now, no one has forgotten Bhimadeva I. His grand statement of his loyalty to his deities and subjects alike lives on, tangible in a patch of land under the appeased gods.

[Note: Click on an image to enlarge it and read the caption. Use the arrow keys to navigate through the set.]

The Sun Temple at Modhera was built by Bhimadeva I, a Chalukya [Solanki] king in 1016 – 1027 AD.

Steps lead up from the water tank or kund to the gateway or toran. Built on an east-west axis, the temple is dedicated to Surya—the sun god.

The 4-terraced water tank was used for ceremonial ablutions by pilgrims before entering the temple.

104 shrines devoted to various gods and goddesses of the Hindu pantheon dot the water tank.

A turtle in the water tank: “Welcome to my ancestral home. It’s been in the family for centuries.”

Vishnu sleeping on the mythical serpent Sesanaga inside the miniature shrine on the eastern steps of the water tank.

Once upon a time these steps would have been a hive of activity, teeming with pilgrims and priests.

I chanced upon this tiny little fellow sunbathing on the worn yellow sandstone blocks. I couldn’t quite believe its vivid colouring. Before I could recollect myself, it had flitted away. But not before I took this picture.

Just before the main temple is the ranga mandapa or sabha mandapa, an open airy pillared hall, and site for congregational dancing and singing in medieval times.

The main hall of the main temple.

Eight octagonal columns decorated with apsaras form an octagon in the main temple hall. An apsara is a celestial female figure who inhabits the skies. She is often depicted dancing or playing a musical instrument.

Unlike the inner walls, the outer walls are more profusely carved with 12 Adityas [aspects of Surya, the sun god], 12 Gauris [aspects of Shiva’s wife Parvati], and 8 Dikpalas [gods of the directions]. The above sculpture is of an Aditya.

Rows of life-like prancing elephants line the outer base of the platform or pitha on which the temple stands.

Tripada Bhairava, the three-armed, three-legged Shiva at the main entrance of the temple. Note: He is on the outer wall, to the right of the doorway.

Perfect symmetry. Perfect order. Symbolic of the Hindu belief of the perfectness of the universe. 🙂

– – –

A dowager queen’s act of piety for her beloved—Rani-ki-Vav in Patan

If Bhimadeva I’s legacy to Gujarat in particular, and India as a whole, was a sumptuous ode in stone to the sun-god Surya, his wife Udayamati on being widowed built one of the largest stepwells in the world in her husband’s memory.

What she was doing was nothing out of the ordinary. Inundated with scanty and erratic rainfall, Western India is also plagued with sandy soil leading to sinking water levels in the dry season. Building reservoirs, lakes, stepwells, and watering places in an otherwise arid land was considered an act of merit, especially when it was in memory of the dead. What was extraordinary was the size and scale of her endeavour. It is enough to make one gasp, no matter how jaded a traveller you may be.

Sixty-five metres long, 29 metres deep, seven storeys underground held up by four pavilions with 226 pillars [originally 292], and decorated with nearly 400 large sculptures and a multitude of smaller ones covering every conceivable surface. Even in its current partially ruined state, Rani-ki-Vav does not fail to take one’s breath away with its perfect symmetry and sensitive sculptural detailing.

An architectural form unique to India, the stepwell is literally a well with a series of steps going down to a subterranean water level or a collection point for rain-water. Whilst they started off as plain and pragmatic with a well and water reservoir [to collect surplus water], stepwells evolved into a highly decorative format, as elaborate in design and ornamentation as its architectural cousins overland. Rani-ki-Vav is the high point of this form. Never before or after, has a stepwell reached such a rare combination of artistic and utilitarian perfection.

Till a few decades ago, this gigantic structure on the banks of the River Saraswati in Patan [pronounced Paatan], the capital of the Chalukya dynasty 140 kilometres north-west of Ahmedabad was covered completely in silt. It is only in the last few decades that the sands have been cleared by the Archaeological Survey of India, and the stepwell revealed in all its splendour.

After one gets over the euphoria of the size and scale, be prepared to swoon at the unabashed glory of classical Indian sculpture generously swathing the walls of the inverted temple well, replete with its very own toran. Vishnu’s 24 forms, the eight Vasus, and the Hindu trinity of Brahma-Vishnu-Shiva, Ganesha, the regents of the directions, and Bhairava, all with their consorts are just some of the deities carved into the niches of the edifice which highlight the sanctitude of water.

Interspersed in-between are nagakanyas and apsaras, wrapped in snakes or engrossed putting on their makeup, mirrors and kohl intact. Some are erotic, some purely devotional. The parallel with the sculptures in the other masterpiece built by her husband in Modhera is acutely visible.

The most poignant sculptural theme, though, must be that of Parvati’s penance in which she’d stood on one leg in the Himalayas so that she may be reunited with her consort Shiva. It is evocative of Udayamati’s own penance to be reunited with her dead husband. For all its magnificence Rani-ki-Vav was still, first and foremost, the dowager queen’s act of merit aimed so she may again be with the love of her life, Bhimadeva I. Every sculpture, every detailing, the very scale, was all to add to her worthiness for the longed-for re-union.

[Note: Click on an image to enlarge it and read the caption. Use the arrow keys to navigate through the set.]

Rani-ki-Vav literally meaning the “Queen’s Stepwell” was built just after 1064 AD by the dowager Queen Udayamati as a memorial to her late husband Bhimadeva I.

The colossal stepwell was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site list in June 2014.

Stunning carvings—sacred, secular, and geometric—cover the walls and pillars of the seven-storeyed subterranean edifice. The above stone border is reminiscent of the Patola silk weaves which Patan is famous for.

There are nearly 400 large sculptures carved into the stepwell’s surfaces. This carving is of Varaha, an incarnation of Vishnu in which he is represented with a human body and boar’s head. Note the sensuous goddess caressing Varaha’s snout.

A female beggar with a club made from human bone capped by a skull—a common sight perhaps in medieval Gujarat.

Vamana, another of Vishnu’s incarnations. This time a plump, celibate student.

Durga Mahishasuramardini, the 20-armed form of Shiva’s consort Parvati, killing the buffalo demon. Her legend, filled with symbolism, is a key part of Hindu mythology, particularly Shaktism.

Carved inside niches in the walls encircling the 29-metre deep well are three identical sculptures of Vishnu sleeping on the mythical serpent Sesanaga.

Kalki, the future incarnation of Vishnu. One he is yet to assume, wherein as a warrior king he will destroy all evil forces.

Whilst the niches on the walls are carved with divinities, the projecting panels portray apsaras or nymphs.

Another nymph, this time one deeply engrossed in applying kohl to her eyes.

Work was abandoned on the Rani-ki-Vav after a point. If all the sculptures planned for the seven levels had been made, there would have been at least 800 pieces instead of the 400 now.

Rani-ki-Vav’s colossal dimensions are held together by four pavilions supported with 226 pillars.

Rani-ki-Vav was Queen Udayamati’s penance in line with prevailing traditions. Widows were expected to follow in the goddess Paravati’s footsteps. The only difference was Parvati stood on one foot in the Himalayas to be reunited with Shiva. Medieval royalty had stepwells made.

It is only when one looks down at the well from the western end, that the scale of the inverted temple really sinks in. Note: Leave this view for the end of your visit!

– – –

And that, dear reader, was the story of Bhimadeva I and his consort Udayamati. And by virtue of their legacy, the story of Modhera and Patan, 1,000 years later as well. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did travelling to the two sites and writing about them. ❤

Travel tips:

• Modhera is 75 km and Patan is 140 km north-west of Ahmedabad. The roads in Gujarat are excellent and toll free. Car hire is easily available.
• Both the sites can be clubbed together as a day trip. Stop at Modhera first.
• The Archaeological Survey of India has published comprehensive guide books for both sites. These are available at the respective ticket counters. Guides are also available for a fee of Rs. 150 at the gates.
• Tickets and timings: Rs. 15 for Indians, Rs. 200 for foreigners; open 7 days a week from sunrise to sunset; Photography allowed.
• Patan was assigned UNESCO World Heritage Site status on 22 June, 2014.