Virupaksha Temple

Virupaksha Temple

Chalukya Dynasty, 745 CE

         Chalukyans were bitter enemies of the Pallavas of Kanchipuram.  They fought each other for two hundred years. The balance would tilt at times in favour of the Pallavas, at times in favour of the Chalukyans.  

        Raja Vikramaditya II (r. 733-744 CE) captured Kanchipuram thrice in his life. Even as a Crown Prince he had subdued the might of the Pallavas.  As a king, he conquered them twice. 

       His wife, Queen Lokmahadevi built the Virupaksha Temple in order to commemorate the King's victory over the Pallavas. The temple is the finest example of Early Chalukyan architecture at Pattadakal.  Ironically while the temple commemorates the defeat of the Pallavas, yet the Virupaksha Temple is a based on the Kailashnath Temple at Kanchipuram.  The conqueror had no hesitation to learn from the conquered. This clearly proves the liberal spirit of the Chalukyan mind. 

       The temple is a huge one, divided into different parts. It is the first temple in Karnataka to have a large entrance gate, a precursor to the lofty "gopuram " which will mark later Kannada architecture.  Since the temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva, it has a huge statue of Nandi, the bull in the " Nandi Mandapa", or a temple dedicated to Nandi. 

        The temp is profusedly decorated with episodes of Lord Shiva.  But dedication to Lord Shiva did not exclude depiction of stories from the Bhagwat Purana, the Ramayan,  and the Mahabharata all of which deal with Lord Vishnu.  This clearly reveals the catholic vision of the Chalukyans.  While devoted to Lord Shiva, they were equally respectful towards Lord Vishnu. 

        Pattadakal also has a Jain shrine. Thus different religions could peacefully co - exists without any conflict or confrontation.  The magnanimous vision of the Chalukyans is woefully missing today. We have much to learn from them.