History of Orissa from the Earliest Times to the British Period v2.c46.122

v2.c46.122

Like the Vaital Deul the Rājā-Rāṇī is a temple in another style—the Nāgara. The Vaital stands in the centre of the village of Bhuvaneśvara to the S. S. E. of the Liṅgarāja, while the Rājā-Rāṇī lies E. N. E. of the main gate of that temple compound. The difference in the style lies in the contour of the Śikhara, which is different from that of the Paraśurāmeśvara and the Liṅgarāja. Once more the contour of the Śikhara is a gradually inclined curve, but this outline is broken by sharp projections, in the shape of numerous miniature *Śikhara*, which are added to the main *Śikhara* in regular rows for its ornamentation in relief. This temple is empty and has been thoroughly repaired by the Government. It consists of a *Vimāna* and a *Jagamohana*. While the exterior of the *Vimāna* is covered with beautiful human figures and other decorative *motifs*, that of the *Jagamohana* is severely plain, a fact which led the late Mr. Ganguly to observe that the latter is a subsequent addition¹. The *Jagamohana* possesses a stone window on each side. These and the front door are flanked by massive Nāga pillars of the type of those at Gandharāḍi. The Rājā Rāṇī is famous for the beauty of its decorative art, a subject dealt with in the next chapter. The late Mr. Ganguly was of opinion that the Rājā Rāṇī was a Vaiṣṇava shrine, because there is a lotus carved on the floor, a factor common in all Hindu and Jaina temples of the Southern Maratha country.²