History of Mediaeval Hindu India (being a History of India from 600 to 1200 A.D.) v3.c41.s13.2

v3.c41.s13.2

Of course there were besides temples in every town and village dedicated to different deities in which idols of stone or metal were placed and worshipped. Kings, queens, ministers, rich merchants and even mendicant Brahmin ascetics who secured large donations made in reverence to their holy character, vied with one another in building superb and stupendous temples to their tutelary deities, chiefly Śiva and Vishnu and India was in this period full of such temples throughout its length and breadth. The idols placed in these temples were usually of stone, but these were sometimes of silver and gold and even of precious stones; and bigotry came to the help of opulent kings and merchants by prescribing different merit and fruit to the construction of idols of different precious materials. Al-Beruni, probably quoting from Varāhamihira, details this different merit as follows: "The benefit of a statue made of precious stone will be common to all men and women of the empire. A golden statue will bring power to him who erects it; a statue of silver will bring him renown and one of bronze will bring him increase of rule, while one of stone will bring acquisition of landed property" (ditto p. 121). Thus were rich kings and merchants prompted to make statues of gold and silver and even precious stone inviting marauders and conquerors to commit sacrilege. Al-Beruni, however, cleverly adds that the Hindus honour the idols on account of those who erected them and not on account of the material of which they are made. Thus a stone idol was as good as a golden one for the devotee and precious idols were useful only to the plunderer and the thief. In spite of the plundering of temples and the removal of golden idols by Mahmud, the Hindus, however, still continued to make golden idols and to decorate stone idols with precious ornaments during this sub-period as inscriptions already noticed prove. This rage of decorating idols still continues though perhaps the fashioning of golden idols is no longer in vogue.