Village on the Bay of
Bengal in Orissa, approximately 40 miles east of Bhubaneshvar, the state
capital.
The Sun Temple in Konarak is well-known.
The temple was erected by king Narasimhadeva (r. 1238–1264),
a ruler of the Ganga dynasty, and is now in ruins.
The whole temple was designed to resemble the sun's chariot,
with twelve massive wheels engraved on the temple's lowest level and sculptures
of many huge horses in front of it.
The temple's lower levels, like Khajuraho's, are covered
with sexual engravings, leading to a variety of interpretations: Some interpret
the carvings allegorically as representing human oneness with the divine, while
others argue they condone sexual pleasure as a holy path.
Others interpret them as teaching that the desire for
pleasure must be conquered in order to reach the divine.
The temple was constructed on a grand scale.
The huge center spire, according to one estimate, would have
stood over 200 feet tall.
The sandy soil at the base of the spire would not have been
able to withstand the weight of such a massive construction, hence it is
unknown whether it was ever finished.
The most significant factor in the temple's decline has been
the unstable soil.
The jagamohan is the main building that has survived at the
site (assembly hall).
The hall was filled with sand in the nineteenth century to
keep it from collapsing further.
For further detail, read Roy Craven's Indian Art, published
in 1997.
You may also want to read more about Hinduism here.
Be sure to check out my writings on religion here.
