The Ancient and Medieval Architecture of India: A Study of Indo-Aryan Civilisation c21.45

c21.45

Dârâsuram in the Tanjore district (Pl. LXXX) may be said to reflect something of the austere intellectuality of Sankarâcharya's teaching. The strength and simplicity of the structural design and the comparative reticence of the ornament stand in striking contrast with the almost riotous profusion of the Khajurâho temples, though the magnificent *tout ensemble* of the latter may be more impressive. These two buildings are contemporary documents which give a faithful record of the life of the times when the intellectual and spiritual centre of Aryan India had moved from the northern to the southern provinces.