Aihole | Ancient Chalukya Temple Architecture | el Liven
Channel: el Liven
Date: 2021-06-13

Chalukya dynasty history. Indian temple architecture moved from thatched roofs and wood to stone and pillar at Aihole, Karnataka. The Lad Khan temple showed the earliest beginnings of a spire. The Durga temple with its apsidal layout fascinates even today.

#Aihole #elliven #chalukyaDynastyHistory

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Furthur down the Malaprabha river  from Pattadakal is a small village. Aihole was the cultural capital of the Western Chalukya dynasty (543-757CE). The ancient temples show various early stages in temple building. It is the cradle of Indian temple architecture.

The Durga temple (late 500 - early 800 CE) is iconic in its apsidal layout. A colonaded ambulatory passage runs around the sanctum. Exquisite stone carvings give a glimpse into family life at that time. The doorframe lalata-bimba (centre of lintel) depicts Garuda (the eagle) holding the tails of the serpents (naga-sakha). The river goddesses Ganga and Yamuna are in the door jambs. The torana (brackets) at the entrance is its first appearance in temple architecture. It reminds of the practice followed by working in wood. Pillars provided sculptors the opportunity to carve beautiful figures and motifs. Siva as the cowherd is carved lounging naturally against Nandi, who is eyeing the child playfully twisting his tail. A symbolic blend of the spiritual and the mundane. Exposed stonework shows the mortises used to fix the carved blocks. Vishnu in Varha (boar) avatar rescues mother earth from the snakes. Durga with awesome power slays a muscular maheshasur. 

The Lad Khan temple (c400) reminds of a wooden prototype with it's log-shaped blocks. The projection over the garba-griha (sanctum) is the earliest known, and is the earliest precursor of the Shikara (spire). Gaudargudi temple is older than the Lad Khan temple. It is among the earliest temples having a pradakshina patha (circumambulatory path). 

Other structures in the site develop from the thatched hut concept. Inside they explore cylindrical pillars. Structrally, stone is still just a substitute for wood, even in the jointing

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Credits
🎬 Shotcut https://www.shotcut.org/
🎵 Zakir Hussain - Solace (from Lossless Legs https://www.shnflac.net/)
🎛🎚🎧 Audacity https://www.audacityteam.org/
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aihole_4.JPG

📚 References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aihole
http://ccrtindia.gov.in/templearchitecture.php (evolution of temple architecture)
https://asi.nic.in/durga-temple-aihole/
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Le_temple_de_Ladkhan_(Aihole,_Inde)_(14382588182).jpg (see caption for significance)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chalukya_Shiva_Temple


Temples:
0:00 Intro
0:15 Durga Temple
2:20 Lad Khan Temple
2:55 Structures