Indian Architecture (Buddhist and Hindu Periods) c28.24

c28.24

But the most representative examples of the "Middle Period" are two temples of monumental proportions, the Lingaraja (cir. A.D. 1000) at Bhubaneswar, and the Jagannath (cir A D 1100), at Puri, the former being not only the finest living example of the Orissan group, but it ranks as one of the foremost architectural productions of the country. (Plate LVIII, Fig. 4) The Lingaraja, or Great Temple of Bhubaneswar, occupies the centre of a large quadrangular enclosure measuring 520 feet by 465 feet, contained within a high and solid wall, on the inner face of which is a platform, so that on occasions it could be patrolled and defended. Within the enclosure many subsidiary "chapels" and shrines have been grouped around the main temple, contributions by ardent devotees as acts of merit. The presence of this great central building in the midst of numerous smaller replicas cannot fail to recall the practice of the Buddhists in congregating their votive chaityas around the large central stupa. Such an arrangement however not only applies to the system within the Lingaraja enclosure, but also in its wider aspect to the large concentration of temples within and around the town of Bhubaneswar itself, plainly indicating that this neighbourhood was a place of great veneration, a holy land of profoundly religious significance. It is not unlikely therefore that the locality was the site of a deserted sanctuary belonging to previous movements, either the sacred town of Tosali of the Buddhists, or the Ekrama Tīrtha of the Jains The ancient usage of these two creeds of grouping their shrines in this manner was therefore maintained by the Hindus