Why Sun God is not worshipped in Sun Temple, Konark.## Famous story related to Sun temple which says about Defilement of Sanctity (Pavitrata par Kalank).
Sun temple ,Konark-presently
King Narasimha Dev ordered for construction of Sun Temple at Konark. Sibei Santara ,his able minister was given this task as he was a great architect .The Temple was scheduled to be completed in the 12th year in 1258 ending on the Baisakh Krishna Asthmi .Work was in progress in smooth way .
No worship at Sun Temple,Konark
Suddenly the king ordered his council to complete the Temple on Magha Saptmi falling on a Sunday that year .Magha Saptmi is the birth day of Sun god and it was falling on Sunday was regarded as most auspicious . The new date was 3 month earlier to the previous one .But the chief Architect Siebi Santara expressed his inability to complete the work. The king made alternative arrangement by appointing a new person Bisu Maharana to complete the job .Bisu Maharana ,newly appointed chief Architect was a stranger to the kalinga style of temple architecture . He made all attempts to change the original plan of upper portion of the temple and tried to place
the crowning stone in order to complete the temple by the schedule time. But upper portion was made according to the previous plan and new plan was not keeping pace with the gravity of huge structure, so the crowning stone could not remain stable on temple top and it fell down into pieces. On finding the delay, the king issued warning to the sculptors saying that they will be beheaded if they did not complete the work on desired time . Time passed away but sculptors could not place the crowning stone on the temple.
Part of Sun Temple,Korark in ruined state
On the last day Dharmpada, the 12 year old son of chief sculptor Bisu Maharana came to Konark in search of his father as his father had left home 12 years back when he was in the womb. Dharmpada was a very bright student and besides his usual learning he read palm leaf manuscripts depicting the shilpa shastra stored in his house and learnt a lot about temple construction. When he met his father he found him very worried. Dharmpada discussed a plan with his father. He chalked out several designs of the crowning stone and according to his instructions the sculptors prepared the crowning stone and placed it on the temple and thus the temple was completed by that night.
The sculptors were still afraid of the king. They were thinking
that if the king would come to know that 1200 sculptors were unable to fix the crowning stone and it was done by a child of 12 years, the king would not spare them. To save the sculptors Dharmpada committed suicide by drowning in the nearby sea.
In the book legend of Dharmpada it is stated that he committed suicide by jumping down from the top of the temple just after placing the crowning stone. Due to his act of suicide which was considered as an inauspicious beginning the sanctity of the temple was defiled and it was thus rejected.
Vachaspati Mishra in his book Tirtha Chintamani gives the description of sun worship in this temple. He highlights that one should make circumambulations round the temple and then worship the sun god in the temple with flowers.
