Khajuraho

Legend says that the Moon God fell in love with a maiden called Hemavati as she bathed in a river and they had a passionate affair. Before he returned to the celestial realm, he swore she would have a son who would build a temple that commemorated their “divine love.” This son was the founder of the Chandela dynasty whose kings were in the area from 900-1100 and there were 85 temples built at this sight. The temples were abandoned and forgotten until a British soldier/adventurer found them in 1838. Only 22 of these temples survive and are grouped into southern, eastern and western groups. Today, this UNESCO World Heritage sight is best known for the taboo breaking erotic sculptures.

Our guide for the day was Aloop, who was probably our best guide so far. He works part time as a writer for cartoon strips and comic books. He was excellent at telling the history but also letting us have some time to wander by ourselves, take photos, and just enjoy the atmosphere. This was the first time that I never felt rushed on by the guide… although, he did ask (just once though) if we wanted to visit such-and-such local store.

The temples are carved from local sandstone and follow the same basic design: they look like mountains (the home of the gods); are on a platform; have an entrance area and an inner sanctum with the statue of the god to whom the temple is dedicated. We began the day in the Western group of temples, which includes a functioning temple called Matangeshvar Temple. Of note, Varaha mandap has a large stone sculpture of Varha, the incarnation of Vishnu as a boar, which is carved with the images of hundreds of Brahman deities. The other large temples, including Lakshmana and Kandariya, are elaborately decorated with thousands of figures depicting the Hindu deities and images of daily life including women looking into mirrors, hunters on horseback, musicians, women removing thorns from their feet, women applying make-up, elephants, and, of course, the amorous images the temples are famous for. The sheer number of statues as well as the detail and variety of depictions are amazing. The Nandi pavilion has a statue of Nandi the bull, a companion of Shiva. There are also several lion depictions, which was the image associated with the Chandela kings. The statues are done in incredible detail and the sheer number of images is overwhelming. Interestingly, each block was signed by the artist so that they could get paid for their work. Thousands of people helped carve and create these temples. It is the kind of place that you could walk around for days and still find new depictions on every building.

We then had a good lunch at a restaurant called Sidartha and then back to the hotel for a short period of time. In the afternoon, we went to the smallest group of temples, the Southern group; which are more like single temples that you have to drive to. The Duladeo Temple is dedicated to Shiva with carvings that include crocodile riding figures and images from the wedding of Shiva and Parvati. The Chaturbhuj Temple has a statue of Vishnu. Between the temples, we caught some glimpses of people in their daily lives – women carrying bundles of twigs, young boys playing cricket, some toddlers playing in the dust in front of their dwelling, young girls in uniform at a local school, women pumping water and then carrying water home in large metal vessels on their heads, pigs rooting in the trash, men carrying bundles and cows and water buffalo grazing in the fields.

Early tomorrow morning, we leave at seven in the morning for a six hour drive to Bandhavgarh National Park, which is 168 square miles and home to approximately 70 tigers. Keep your fingers crossed that we will see some! We do not expect there to be internet service there… so I am not sure when our next post will be.