SUN TEMPLE KONARK: HISTORY LIES BEHIND THIS

Ok, so today’s topic is about Konark Sun Temple, Orissa. This is one of famous heritages in India and there is a long history behind this temple. I went there on 24th November 2018. What I came to know, I want to share with you. The Konark Sun Temple is about 35 kilometres towards northeast from Puri. So I booked a car for a round trip, Puri-Konark-Puri because my hotel was in Puri.

The temple was made by king of Eastern Ganga Dynasty, Narasingha Deva 1 in about 1250 CE and this temple was dedicated to one of the gods of Hindu religion, Lord Surya (Sun). If you see the temple from drone view, you can recognize that this sun temple looks like a chariot with 24 wheels and is being pulled by 7 horses. Those 7 horses were named as Brihati, Gayatri, Jagati, Ushnih, Pankti, Trishtubha and Anustubha. Konark Sun Temple is about 200 ft high and designed completely in the style of Orissa’s style of architecture, also known as Kalinga Architecture. Whenever you come to Puri, you must visit this place.

But the most interesting thing is that Lord Sun has never been worshipped since the temple was made. It took 12 years and 1200 workers to build the temple. At the top temple there was Golden framed round about called DADHI NAUTI which needs to be installed. After so many tries they were unable to fix it. Chief Architect Bisu Maharana was in immense tension because pressure and tension because King Nara Singha Deva I has already given a deadline to finish the temple and if they fail, he would kill all the 12 workers.

On the last night before the deadline Dharmabrata, a 12 year old boy came to Bisu Maharana and introduced himself as his son. This was the first time Bisu saw his son in last 12 years. Dharmabrata climbed up to the temple and installed the DADHUI NAUTI and gave his life by jumping from the temple top to the river Chandrabhaga, that was flowing just beside the temple. Since then the temple became unholy and that is the reason Lord Sun had never been worshipped in the temple. People say that Dharmabrata was the Avatar of Lord Sun to demolish the ego of King Nara Singha Deva I.Inside the temple, there is complete iron structure and the Idol of lord Surya(Sun) was made from the alloy 8 metals, which is known as ASTADHATU (ASTA – 8 & DHATU – Metal), There is no base of the idol. It was completely suspended into mid air by powerful magnets. Now the idol is not there. Why the magnets were there? Those are the highly powerful magnets, therefore the compasses of the ships were not showing the proper direction and as a result of that they couldn’t find the temple. But Kalapahad, the great destroyer foundthe temple and took the DADHI NAUTI from the top of the temple and destroyed so many areas around the temple. Now if you go there, you can see that Chandrabhaga River has gone away near about 2 km from Konark Sun Temple. Due to climate change and other natural changes the sculptures of the temple are being faded or destroyed day by day. The Government is working always to keep this heritage in its place

If you put attention on the architecture of the temple you will find different designs for the people of different age groups. For the kids you can find sculptures of elephants, horses and other animals at the bottom area of the temple by calculating the height. For the young age groups there are sexual designs. The Famous KamaSutra is being portrayed on thewalls of the temple not only that, what are the effects of doing so much sex, after delivery of baby how the ladies make themselves clean, what the ladies use at the time of their periods and so many other daily life routines are being designed as sculptures on the outside wall.

You can say this is just a trailer of a movie. If you go there, there are some govt. Registered guides to describe the history. They describe it in very short but still it takes one hour to do one round of the temple. Please share you valuable comments about this.

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Hi @ayanghosh_22 ,

Thank you so much for sharing, this place looks incredible!

I love the details that were put into the work like the elephant carvings, it’s so impressive what they were able to do so many years ago.

The whole place gives me the vibe of an Indiana Jones adventure with the son sacrificing himself and the magnets installed to disrupts the compasses of passing ships.

I really enjoyed reading your post, it has an interesting story behind it.

When would you say is the best time of year to visit the sun temple?

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@MortenSI Thank you for spending your time to read my article and sharing your valuable feedback.

I would prefer October to March as the best time to visit Konark Sun temple, because in the summer the place use to be so hot and humid.

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Hi @ayanghosh_22 ,

I have just released your post from the Spam Filters. I would like to apologize for your post being marked as spam. Our filters run 24/7 and they can be a little harsh at times. You can take a look at this article to learn more - Why was my Connect post marked as spam?

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@RadieN Thank you for making me aware about this. It is a hard work to do research on a historical place. and after all the efforts if it goes to spam, then it becomes so demoralizing. Yeah there might be some glitches if the program runs 24/7.

Thank you once again.

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You’re welcome @ayanghosh_22 and sorry again, we appreciate your efforts.

Thank you very much for sharing this interesting and informative post! The architecture of this temple is truly impressive. I know that there are many gods in Hinduism, but I’ve never heard about lord Surya. It’s great to learn something new everyday!

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My pleasure @RadieN yes there are so many gods and goddesses in Hinduism and lord surya is one of them. Hindus worship him for fame. As I have already written 2 posts on Orissa state of India, I will share one more thing about this state i.e. the famous Jagannath Temple of Puri. I am working on it. Your appreciations inspire me a lot

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Thanks for the tip @ayanghosh_22 !

As a Scandinavian it doesn’t take much heat for me to start sweating, so I would avoid the hot summertime at any cost.

Is it possible to combine a visit to the sun temple with other attractions in the area?

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That’s great @ayanghosh_22 , I’m looking forward to see it. :slight_smile:

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Very informative and historical post @ayanghosh_22

Thank you for sharing with us.

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@MortenSI Definitely. The base are is Puri, where you will 100s of hotels to choose. From Puri you need to travel via car to Konark, Nandan Kanan Zoo, Khandagiri Cave, Dhaulagiri Temple and Udaigiri hill top. Apart from that The Puri sea beach itself is a wonderful place. It has a market in the beach where you can find lots of local handicraft products in cheaper rate. If you are planning to come here, please let me know. I will help you to travel Orissa

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@AbdullahAM My please and thanky so much for spending your valuable time in reading my post

It seems there are plenty of things to do around Puri @ayanghosh_22 , thank you for the tips.

I could easily see myself visit this place for a weeks time.

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Yes sure 1 week is definitely needed

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