Caption: The Cover Photo.
Dear friends,
This post is a member of the Mega - Series of 51 posts, about Mahabalipuram, created as a Total “Photo-Walk and Traveller Guide” covering all the “Tourist Destinations” of Mahabalipuram. The 51 POIs are grouped into 4 Zones & a few stand-alone monuments according to the location of monuments. In other words, if one visits 4 zones, all the important POIs can be covered.
List of POIs & Headings - Here.
| POI | POI (Monument) Name | GMaps | TG Posts’ | Heritage | Photos | Visit | Monument | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No | Links | Links | IMP | IMP | Priority | Type | (Minutes) | |
| ZONE -1 | ||||||||
| 1 | Murugan Temple | Here | Here | 4 | 4 | Low | Structural | 15 |
Introduction to Mahabalipuram:
Mahabalipuram is a picturesque historical coastal city in Tamil Nadu around 60 km from Chennai. One of India’s oldest cities. Mahabalipuram (Mamallapuram) stands at the top of the popular tourist destinations in Asia.
Mahabalipuram/Mamallapuram has its roots (records) from the Sangam age (1st century BCE). The Pallava kings ruled here from the 3rd to the 9th Century CE; the Pallava king Narasimhavarman I founded Mahabalipuram in the 7th century AD. Most of the important monuments are dated between the 7th & the 8th century AD. (Some interesting notes - Here).
The previous post (POI No -10) of this series about ’ Pancha Pandava Mandapam’ is Here.
The next POI No -13 is ‘Trimurti Cave Temple’, Here.
This POI: Arjuna’s Penance” & “Descent of the Ganges
Location: This POI comes in Zone -02, very close to the parking & behind Sri Sthalasayana Perumal Temple.
Zone Map:
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**Photo - 1. Caption: India Map & zone map of Zone - 2, Mahabalipuram.
“Arjuna’s Penance” and “Descent of the Ganges” refer to the same monument, but there are 2 different stories and many travellers get confused - to bring in clarity, both the names are referred/numbered to as different POIs -
Though this open-air relief was crafted to celebrate the victory of Narasimhavarman 1, his son Mamallan has created the architectural marvels at Mamallapuram, mostly in the 7th century. This east facing relief was created on two large boulders of pink granite measuring 15 by 30 metres. Including the natural cleft, the whole boulders are skillfully planned & sculptured. Many of the figures are life-sized and along with mythical narratives & natural scenes/events.
Arjuna’s penance
In one out of the 2 important interpretations, it is Arjuna (one of the 5 Pandava brothers) who is standing on one leg who did severe Tapas (penance) to please Lord Shiva & to procure the Pasupata Astra (the deadliest arrow) from Lord Shiva, for fighting the Mahabharata war (this story is from Kiratarjuniya of Mahabharata).
The story:
During Arjuna’s penance, the asuras (demons) sent a wild boar (named Muka) to kill Arjuna. Before the boar attacked Arjuna, Lord Shiva appeared as Kirata (hunter). Both Kirata & Arjuna shoot arrows at the boar and the boar was killed, but then a dispute arose that who has killed the boar - this led to another war between Arjuna & Kirata; Arjuna fought with all his might & could not defeat Kirata - Then Arjuna recognised Lord Shiva & surrendered to him; pleased by that, Lord Shiva revealed his original form and presented Pasupata Astra to Arjuna.
Descent of Ganges:
This story is about how Ganges (Goddess Ganga) came to earth from heaven through the penance of Bhagiratha who did Tapas on a single leg.
The story:
Bhagiratha, one of the forefathers of Lord Rama (of the Ramayana) was the King of Kosala (a kingdom in ancient India). At that time Ganges was in heaven and the earth suffered a lot due to the absence of the divine river. Even Bhagiratha’s ancestors could not get “Mukti” (freedom from worldly life) because of the absence of Ganga. So Bhagiratha did penance first to Ganga and she appeared & told Bhagiratha that if she falls from heaven, then the earth cannot afford her fall - she advised praying to Lord Shiva to accept her in HIS hair (tresses). Then Bhagiratha started the tapas (the posture in the rock relief) to please Lord Shiva. In the end, Lord Shiva grants his request - thus the divine river the Ganges reaches the earth.
There are many substories and details in different texts about this monument, connecting it from the Himalayas and other mythical depictions. Also, many guides have their versions too.
Photo - 2. Caption: Panoramic view of the Arjuna’s Penance. Whereas the mandapam on the left side is Pancha Pandava Mandapam.
Photo - 3. Caption: The Arjuna’s/Bhageeratha’s Penance.
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*Photo - 4. Caption: Reliefs of elephant & others.
Photo - 5. Caption: The highlighted is Bhagiratha’s or Arjuna’s sculpture.
Photo - 6. Caption: Side view of the astonishing relief.
Photo - 7. Caption: Close-up view of the sculpture where we can see some of the ruined sculptures too. Photo - 8.Caption: Closeup of an elephant sculpture which is part of the marvellous relief.
Accessibility: This POI is easily accessible by Wheelchair as the monument is at the roadside.
- The Google Maps link of the POI = Here
- Reference Link (Wiki) = Here
- Heritage Importance = 5/5
- Photographic Importance = 5/5
- Visit Priority = Very Important
- Monument Type = Bas-relief
- The Duration to see the POI = 15 minutes
- Entry: INR 40 for Indians and INR 600 for foreigners (the same ticket is valid for all monuments in Zone -02, except for the Museum & Lighthouse)
- Visiting hours: 6 am to 6 pm every day. (Kindly reconfirm the ticket rates & visiting hours, prior to your visit)
- Photography: Excellent for sceneries & Panorama; since this is an open base-relief, any time is suitable - however, shots during mid-noon can be overlighted. During festivals & tourism promotion periods, the monument will be colourfully lighted.
Flash photography is prohibited in all the monuments of Mahabalipuram.
@TPattanaik @SholaIB @Zuhralc @Gezendunyali @Rohan10 @AjitThite @Tripathisudeep @AnshukMitra @Tejal @Erna_LaBeau
