PPT ON MEENAKSHI TEMPLE

by silpa.v 6/11/2016

sem-3 B.arch

MSPA-V

INTRODUCTION• MEENAKSHI AMMAN TEMPLE IS LOCATED ON THE SOUTHERN BANK OF

THE VAIGAI RIVER IN THE TEMPLE CITY OF MADURAI, TAMIL NADU,INDIA.• ITS AN DRAVIDIAN STYLE HINDU TEMPLE.• IT IS DEDICATED TO PARVATI, KNOWN AS MEENAKSHI, AND HER

CONSORT, SHIVA, HERE NAMED SUNDARESWARAR. • SURROUNDING AN AREA OF THE TEMPLE IS ABOUT 45 ACRES• THE TEMPLE WAS 1ST CONSTRUCTED SOMEWHERE AROUND THE TIME BY

KULASHEKARA PANDYAN.• 64 GENERATIONS OF KINGS BUILT FOR 800 YEARS.(VARIOUS KINGS

RENOVATED THE TEMPLE, LEAVING A DISTINCT IMPRESSION OF THEIR ARTISTIC TASTE. )

• A LARGE PART OF THE TEMPLE WAS DESTROYED DURING THE MUSLIM INVASION DURING THE 14TH CENTURY AND THEN WAS RESTORED TO ITS FORMER GLORY IN THE EARLY 17TH CENTURY.

• THE TEMPLE WAS REBUILT BY VISHWANATHA NAYAK ACCORDANCE TO SHILPA SHASTRA.

• THE AREAS PLACEMENT OF THE TEMPLE WERE ARRANGED ACCORDING TO THE HUMANBODY.

GOPURAMS• THE TEMPLE HAS HUGE GOPURAMS WHICH CAN BE SEEN FROM A FAR DISTANCE.• THERE ARE 14 OR 12 GOPURAMS RANGING FROM 45–50M IN HEIGHT.• THE OUTER 4 TOWERS ARE THE LANDMARKS OF MADURAI,WHICH ARE TALL WHEN

COMPARED TO OTHER GOPURAMS.• THEY ARE: • EAST TOWER HEIGHT 161'3“ & HAS 1011 SUDHAI FIGURES. (ITS THE OLDEST

GOPURAM BUILT BY MARAVARMAN SUNDARA PANDYAN DURING 1216-1238)• SOUTH TOWER HEIGHT 170'6“(, 51.9 METRES) & HAS 1511 SUDHAI FIGURES.

( TALLEST OF ALL)• WEST TOWER HEIGHT 163'3“ & HAS 1124 SUDHAI FIGURES. • NORTH TOWER HEIGHT 160'6“ & HAS LESSER FIGURES OF SUDHAI THAN OTHER

OUTER TOWERS. • ARE THESE 4 GOPURAM’S ARE NINE STOREYS & IS ORNAMENTED WITH

ELABORATE SCULPTURES. • AND THE OTHER TOWERS ARE INSIDE THE TWIN TEMPLES AND ARE SMALLER

COMPARED TO THE OUTER GOPURAMS. AND ASLSO THESE INNER GOPURAM SERVES AS THE ENTRANCE TO THE INNER ENCLOSURE SHRINES

MADURA STYLE

• THE TEMPLE IS HIGH WALLED & ENCLOSURED ON THE BOUNDERIES AROUND THE TEMPLES, INTERVENING COURTYARDS CALLED PRAKARAMS WHICH CONTAIN PILLARED HALLS, STORE ROOMS, OTHER SMALLER SHRINES AND SQUARE WATER TANKS FOR RITUAL BATHS.

• THE TEMPLE IS SQUARE SHAPED• THE TANK IS SURROUNDED BY A PILLARED CLOISTER AND HAS

STEPS LEADING DOWN TO THE WATER.

ARCHITECTURE PERIOD OF NAYAK RULERS

• DRAVIDIAN STYLE IS BEEN SEEN IN THE PERIOD OF THE NAYAK RULERS OF MADURAI WHO CONTINUED THE BUILDING STYLE AND TECHNIQUE OF THE PANDYAS AND IMPROVED ON IT.

• THE NOTABLE FEATURES OF THE NAYAK ARCHITECTURE ARE :

• THE HUNDRED PILLARED MANDAPAS

• THE LOFTY GOPURAMS (WITH FIGURES WITH MINUTE DETAIL)

• THE CLOSED PRAKARAMS WITH HUGE PILLARS ON EITHER SIDE

• THE CORBEL BRACKETS

POTRAAMARAIKKULAM

• THE TEMPLE HAS A WATER TANK CALLED POTRAAMARAIKKULAM WITHIN THE TEMPLE COMPLEX AND THIS IS SURROUNDED BY CORRIDORS DEPICTING MURALS OF THE TIRUVILAYADAL PURANAM.

• IT IS OF 50 M BY 37 M IN SIZE

VIMANA• THEY ARE TWO GOLDEN SCULPTURED VIMANAS, OVER THE

GARBHAGRIHAS FOR THE MAIN DEITIES.

SHRINE

• THESE TEMPLES ARE SEPARATELY SURROUNDED BY FOUR SMALLER GOPURAMS.• MEENAKSHI’S SHRINE IS LOCATED TO THE SOUTHWEST OF SUNDARESWARAR’S

SHRINE AND SUNDARESWARAR’S SHRINE IS LOCATED IN THE NORTH EAST• MEENAKSHI SHRINE AND THE SUNDARESWARAR SHRINE ARE HUGE TEMPLES

WITH THEIR OWN SETS OF 2 PRAKARAMS MAHA MANDAPAMS AND GOLD PLATED VIMANAMS.

• THE SHRINE HAS A 3-STORIED GOPURAM GUARDED BY TWO STERN DWARAPALAKAS AND SUPPORTED BY GOLDEN, RECTANGULAR COLUMNS THAT BEAR LOTUS MARKINGS.

• THE AREA COVERED BY THE SHRINE OF SUNDARESWARAR IS EXACTLY ONE FOURTH OF THE AREA OF THE TEMPLE AND THAT OF MEENAKSHI IS ONE FOURTH THAT OF SUNDARESWARAR

• WITHIN THE SUNDARESWARAR TEMPLE COMPLEX IS A SHRINE TO NATARAJA – THE RAJATA SABHA OR THE VELLIAMBALAM

MANY MANDAPAS

• THERE ARE NO.OF MANDAPAMS IN THIS TEMPLE.• PROMINENT AMONG THEM ARE:• ASHTASHAKTI MANDAPAM• MEENAKSHI NAYAKAN MANDAPAM• AAIYIRAM KAAL MANDAPAM• KILLI KOOTU MANDAPAM• KAMBATADI MANDAPAM• PUTHU MANDAPAM• OONJAL MANDAPAM• VIRAVASANTHARAYA MANDAPAM• IRUTTU MANDAPAM ETC….,

• EACH OF THESE MANDAPAMS HAS A HISTORY OF THEIR OWN.

ASHTA SHAKTI MANDAPAM

• ASHTA SHAKTI MANDAPAM IS THE FIRST HALL OF THE TEMPLE AND WAS ENTRANCE OF MEENAKSHI SHRINE TOWER NEAR TO EAST TOWER

• WAS BUILT BY THIRUMALAI NAYAKAR'S WIVES.• THIS HALL WAS ONCE USED TO DISTRIBUTE FOOD TO THE DEVOTEES

WHO CAME FROM FAR OFF PLACES. • THE PILLARS IN THE HALL ARE CARVED WITH LORD SIVA'S TIRUVILAYADALS

AND THE LIFE STORY OF MEENAKSHI, AS THE PRINCESS OF MADURAI.

• THE PASSAGE WAS NAMED FOR EIGHT FORMS OF GODDESS SHAKTI CARVED ON ITS PILLARS.

• OTHER SCULPTURES AND PAINTINGS WERE ALSO THEIR RELATING TO THE TIRUVILAYADAL ,MAHABHARATA, THE PANCHA PANDAVAS AND THESE CAN BE SEEN IN THE PANCHA PANDAVA MANDAPAM.

MEENAKSHI NAYAKAN MANDAPAM• THE MEENAKSHI NAYAKKAR MANDAPAM HAS TWO ROWS OF PILLARS

CARVED WITH IMAGES OF YALI (MYTHOLOGICAL BEAST WITH BODY OF LION AND HEAD OF AN ELEPHANT), COMMONLY USED AS THE SYMBOL OF NAYAK POWER.

• IT IS SITUATED TO THE NORTH OF SUNDARESWARAR FLAG STAFF HALL AND WAS BUILT BY ARIYANATHA MUDALIAR IN 1569.

• THE 'MANDAPAM' OF THE TEMPLE HAVE 985 PILLARS. • EACH PILLAR IS UNIQUE. • AT THE ENTRANCE OF THE HALL IS THE STATUE OF ARIYANATHA

MUDALIAR SEATED ON • EACH PILLAR IN THE HALL IS A CARVED MONUMENT OF THE DRAVIDIAN

SCULPTURE. • THE MORE PROMINENT AMONG THE CARVED FIGURES ARE THOSE OF

RATI (WIFE OF KAMA), KARTHIKEYA, GANESHA, SHIVA AS A WANDERING MENDICANT AND ENDLESS NUMBER OF YALIS (MYTHICAL FIGURES OF LIONS).

• SOME OF THE PILLARS ARE MUSIC PILLARS, WHICH PRODUCE MUSIC WHEN TAPPED.

• THE SPECIAL FEATURE OF THESE PILLARS IS THAT THEY ARE MADE OF SINGLE STONE.

• THE TEMPLE ALSO HAS AN ART MUSEUM. • IT CONSISTS OF ICONS, DRAWINGS AND PHOTOGRAPHS WHICH WERE

DATED FROM 1200 - YEAR - OLD HISTORY OF INDIAN TEMPLE ARCHITECTURE IN THE SOUTH.

•

KILIKOONDU MANDAPAM, KAMBATADI MANDAPAM, & PUTHU MANDAPAM

• THE CORRIDOR SURROUNDING THE MEENAKSHI SHRINE IS CALLED KILIKOONDU MANDAPAM

• THE KAMBATADI MANDAPAM WITH NANDI IN IT AND HAS VARIOUS MANIFESTATIONS OF SHIVA CARVED AND ALSO CONTAINS THE FAMOUS "MARRIAGE OF MEENAKSHI" SCULPTURE.

• THE PUTHU MANDAPAM WAS CONSTRUCTED BY TIRUMALA NAYAK WHICH CONTAINS LARGE NUMBER OF SCULPTURES.IT IS SITUATED OPPOSITE TO THE EAST GOPURAM.

VIRAVASANTHARAYA MANDAPAM, OONJAL MANDAPAM & IRUTTU MANDAPAM

• THE VIRAVASANTHARAYA MANDAPAM IS A LARGE HALL WITH HUGE CORRIDORS.

• TO THE SOUTH OF THIS HALL IS THE KALYANA MANDAPAM, TO THE SOUTH OF THE PILLARED HALL, IS WHERE THE MARRIAGE OF SHIVA AND PARVATI IS CELEBRATED EVERY YEAR DURING THE CHITHIRAI FESTIVAL IN MID-APRIL.

• THE GOLDEN IMAGES OF MEENAKSHI AND SUNDARESWARAR ARE CARRIED INTO THE 16TH CENTURY OONJAL MANDAPAM (SWING CORRIDOR)

• MUDALI PILLAI MANDAPAM OR IRUTTU MANDAPAM (DARK HALL) IS A WIDE AND LONG HALL BUILT BY MUTHU PILLAI DURING 1613.

REFERENCE

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meenakshi_Amman_Temple• http://indyakaleidoscope.com/blog/2010/06/ancient-indian-architecture-

2-the-madurai-meenakshi-temple/• http://sangamhotels.com/history-of-madurai-meenakshi-amman-temple/• http://www.madurai.org.uk/religious-places/meenakshi-temple.html• http://templenet.com/Tamilnadu/madurai/architecture.html

• THANK YOU