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News18
30-06-2025
- News18
'Dynasties of Devotion': All About Forgotten Whispers Beneath Temple Spires
Last Updated: The author has turned the spotlight on the rulers who shaped the seven iconic temples in her book -- the Cholas, Hoysalas, Cheras, Rashtrakutas, and Khmers When we visit a grand Hindu temple, most of us do the predictable: we marvel, we click pictures, we leave. But author Deepa Mandlik's book, Dynasties of Devotion, urges us to pause, dig deeper and listen to the whispers of stone, chisel, and myth. Because behind every towering gopuram and intricate carving lies a saga of devotion, not just to the divine, but to the art, architecture, and empire. In this beautifully written travel-history hybrid book, Deepa Mandlik retraces her family's footsteps through seven iconic temples — Ellora's Kailasa temple, Thanjavur's Brihadeeswara, Airavatesvara, Chennakeshava, Padmanabhaswamy, and Cambodia's Angkor Wat and Bayon. Mandlik's book takes us through lessons that integrate history and architecture, but more than that, weaves heart into stone, tracing dynasties, decoding sculptures, and listening for forgotten whispers beneath temple spires. The book is not a dry archaeological log. It's a storytelling feast, rich in legend, behind-the-scenes stories and civilisational exchange. When you walk through the ancient corridors of Hindu temples in Cambodia or south India, the intricate carvings of deities, the echo of chants long silenced, and the sheer audacity of stone carvings make you wonder: how did Hinduism travel this far? What winds carried these gods across oceans and dynasties? Most temples are known for their presiding deity, but the author refreshingly turns the spotlight on the remarkable rulers who shaped them — the Cholas, Hoysalas, Cheras, Rashtrakutas, and Khmers. Their architectural visions were not mere constructions but cosmic declarations, each temple a testament to power, piety, and profound cultural exchange. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on the Brihadeeswara temple. Mandlik takes you to the court of Rajaraja Chola, where a group of sea-faring traders return from Cambodia after a profitable trip. The merchants complain about being robbed by the navy of the Cheras of Kerala and presented the king with a golden miniature replica of a Hindu temple built in Cambodia and sang its praises. Rajaraja had been thinking of making a grand temple, and seeing the miniature stirs something deep inside him. He had dreams of building a magnificent temple and, thus, begins the saga of Brihadeeswara — a temple that would take years, weather palace and family intrigues and eventually stand as a monumental embodiment of that vision and sacred grandeur. Everyone talks about its towering vimana and grandeur. But, Mandlik also delightfully explains the dancing sculptures of Hindu deities, Shiva and Parvati, and explores how this Chola dynasty temple was once a prestigious stage for Bharatanatyam with nearly 400 dancers and 250 musicians in residence. The temple wasn't just sacred, it was sensory. This blending of fact and folklore is her magic. You don't just learn, you imagine. The book is peppered with fascinating stories and she tackles popular myths with gentle clarity. One enduring legend is that the Brihadeeswara temple is so huge that its shadow never touches the ground. Advertisement While this is not true, the origin of the myth is even more delightful. Mandlik narrates the story of how when the temple was completed, Rajaraja was inspecting it accompanied by the chief architect. He was quite impressed since it was exactly how he had envisioned it. However, looking at the stupendous temple, he asked his chief architect: 'Will this temple ever fall?' To which, the architect quipped: 'Forget the temple, even its shadow won't fall on the ground.' This conversation between the king and his architect became a legend that has endured. Sometimes, legends endure because we need them to. In later chapters, Mandlik travels to Angkor Wat, where the visual poetry of the Mahabharata and Ramayana is carved into stone. But she doesn't stop there, she also explores the Buddhist Bayon temple, which is not Hindu but is still included in her list for its symbolic connection to Mount Meru. advetisement The Bayon was at one time also converted into a Hindu temple. Its carvings still reflect the shared motifs and deities of Hindu cosmology. On a side note, 'meru' in Sanskrit means 'high" and the 'Sumeru Throne" is a common feature in Chinese pagodas. Mahameru, the sacred five-peaked mountain, is central to Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cosmologies, and is imagined as the axis of the universe — the abode of Brahma and the celestial realm. While modern academics often dissect Hinduism and Buddhism with surgical precision, I applauded Mandlik's inclusion of Bayon because it reminds us that the origins of both practices were, for centuries, entwined, and still are. Coming back to the book, it has been written with affection not abstraction. It preserves the bhaav, the emotion of faith, while offering rich historical and architectural context and massive amounts of data. The anecdotes are compelling, the research strong, and the writing warm and accessible. The book is interspersed with full-page photographs and you feel like you are standing in the mandapas, touching the cool stone hearing the distant rhythm of temple drums. advetisement top videos View All If you ever plan to visit these temples, carry this book along. It is better than any guidebook. Even if you're not planning a trip anytime soon, read it anyway. Because this is time travel. This is devotion, dynasty, and drama, and I wish history was taught like this in school. When you finish the book, I guarantee goosebumps and a warm feeling at the sheer magnificence of the architecture and the wonder that was Bharat. (The writer is a lawyer, author and founder of YogaSmith, whose next book, 'Dharma Ecology of Bishnoi Warriors', will be out in July. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views) tags : hindu temples Hinduism religion Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: June 30, 2025, 07:00 IST News opinion Book Review | 'Dynasties of Devotion': All About Forgotten Whispers Beneath Temple Spires
Mint
05-06-2025
- Sport
- Mint
What Bengaluru's leaders have forgotten about legacy
On Tuesday night, 3 June, as the Royal Challengers Bengaluru cricket team won its first Indian Premier League title, I felt a sudden unease. Not because I don't love cricket or the joy of celebrations—I do—but because I've lived long enough in Bengaluru to dread what happens next. Traffic snarls, jammed roads becoming choking funnels, rains turning half-built streets into muddy rivers. So, instinctively, I started mapping my next day's routes, mentally avoiding potential flashpoints. But not once—not even remotely—did I imagine lives would be lost celebrating something as simple as a cricket victory. And yet, painfully, that's exactly what happened. By Wednesday night, 11 people had died in a stampede at Bengaluru's Chinnaswamy Stadium. Among them: the 18-year-old son of a pani puri seller; a 14-year-old girl who'd arrived excited and hopeful; and a 22-year-old engineering student proudly wearing his RCB jersey. Families stood shattered outside mortuaries, unable to comprehend how quickly celebration had turned to devastation. When I heard politicians responding casually—some even comparing this avoidable disaster to stampedes at massive events like the Kumbh Mela—I felt a deep, searing anguish. My thoughts turned to Whitefield, Gunjur, and Varthur—places where I've stood helplessly watching commuters struggle, fall, and bleed on neglected roads. Lives continue to be quietly damaged every day, as if we've all become numb. Meanwhile, we live surrounded by concrete jungles rising rapidly, apartments still unfinished, some with nothing more than a foundation stone and yet brazenly proclaiming 'Live in Nature's Womb." Irony couldn't be crueler. It wasn't always this way. Bengaluru once had leaders who, despite their flaws, were acutely aware of the legacies they would leave behind. Consider the Wodeyars of Mysuru. Yes, their rule was feudal and complicated, yet it held a genuine commitment to lasting change. Historian Ramachandra Guha, in his landmark book India After Gandhi, points out how Krishna Raja Wodeyar IV, guided by visionary engineer Sir M. Visvesvaraya, built the Krishnaraja Sagar Dam—not for short-term applause, but to ensure prosperity for generations. Janaki Nair, in her insightful book The Promise of the Metropolis: Bangalore's Twentieth Century, highlights how the Wodeyars granted vast stretches of land to establish institutions like the Indian Institute of Science, investing quietly yet profoundly in a future beyond themselves. Travel further back and you encounter the Hoysalas. Their extraordinary temples at Belur and Halebidu, as art historian Gerard Foekema describes in Architecture Decorated with Architecture: Later Medieval Temples of Karnataka, weren't mere vanity projects. They were deliberate gifts to future generations—cultural treasures still admired centuries later. Cut to today. Bengaluru's infrastructure is crumbling. Ambulances sit paralyzed in traffic, helplessly unable to reach those in need. Meanwhile, startup valuations and Shark Tank theatrics dominate headlines; IPL wins overshadow basic public safety. We've even embraced 'doglapan"—that shameless hypocrisy of our business and political elites—as a form of casual entertainment, further numbing us to the negligence and chaos unfolding around us. Yet beneath this glossy surface, our roads remain a cruel reminder of the city's neglect—daily accidents, broken commuters, mud mixing with blood, and ironic billboards promising utopia amid urban chaos. History, though, remembers differently. It records every choice, every moment of disregard. Bengaluru's rulers must realize that true legacies are built from mindful acts of responsibility that are performed consistently. Bengaluru's leaders need to think deeply about how history will remember them—not as overseers of a city in decay, but as mindful stewards who choose accountability and care over spectacle and neglect. History never forgets. It's time Bengaluru's leaders remembered this, too.
Hans India
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Forest is the stepping stone to leading a beautiful life: Khandre
Belur: Avoiding imitation of the West, Minister for Forest, Ecology and Environment Eshwara B Khandre called on today's youth to uphold our ancient and rich heritage. Speaking after inaugurating the Dashamanotsava programme of Sri Hulikallu Veerabhadreshwaraswamy Temple in Gonisomanahalli, Halebidu Hobli, he said that the Hoysalas who ruled Karunad flourished art in stone. They made a great contribution to the artistic heritage. He said that the heritage of Karnataka is rich and it needs to be made known to today's youth. Basavadi Sharan advocated the idea of equality and social justice for all in the 12th century, and his contribution to social change was unparalleled. He said that the contribution made by the Veerashaiva Lingayat Math to the progress of modern Karnataka was also unparalleled. He said that our Math, which provides shelter, food and letters to everyone without any discrimination of caste, religion or ethnicity, has made a great contribution to the field of education and health. Children should be introduced to culture. Today, young people are becoming addicted to alcohol and drugs. If mothers teach their children the verses from childhood, they will have a vision of life. The lives of children will be good, he said. Eshwar Khandre, who asserted that humans can survive as long as there is forest, if there is forest, there will be rain, if there is forest, there will be more green cover, it will be a stepping stone to a beautiful life in this era of global warming and climate change. 'Our ancestors saved the natural environment by building temples on hills and mountains. Since the temples are on hills, no one has destroyed those hills and mountains. He said that the foresight of our ancestors is invaluable.' He said that he has come to Hassan district for the 7th time after becoming the Forest Minister and is making sincere efforts to control the human-wildlife conflict here. Member of Parliament Shreyas Patel, MLA HK Suresh, former MLA Lingesh and others participated in the program. Sri Guruparadeshikendra Mahaswamiji of Keragodi Rangapur, Tiptur taluk, Pushpagiri Maha Sansthan, Somashekar Shivacharya Mahaswamiji of Halebidu were present.
