A
Trip To The Konark Sun Temple, Orissa
Travels In India ~ by
Rajdeep Bhattacharjee
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| July
2005
After a brief
stay at New Delhi, I decided to travel to Konark Sun Temple which is located
in the state of Orissa near the sacred city of Puri.The World Heritage
Konark Sun Temple is dedicated to the Sun God or Surya as it is pronounced
in India.
It was a warm
welcome at the Bhuvaneshwar Airport with temperature at 38-degree Celsius.
Soon after getting out of the airport, I moved to May Fair Lagoon, a better
hotel in the capital of Orissa and stayed inside my room to refresh myself.
It was early
next morning when I decided to travel to Konark temple, which is 65kms
away from Bhubaneshwar. It was the first time, that I traveled in a big
Ambassador Car and it was real fun traveling in it.
Konark derives
its name from Konarka, the presiding deity of the Sun Temple. Konarka is
actually a combination of two words, Kona (corner) and Arka (sun), which,
when combined, means the sun of the corner. |
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The temple
has amazing architecture and is in the shape of a chariot of the sun god
with 24 wheels, each about 10 feet in diameter, with a set of spokes and
elaborate carvings. Seven horses drag the temple. Two lions guard the entrance,
crushing elephants.
The carvings
on the temple give an insight of the royalty and social environment of
the 13th century. I could see some wonderfully carved images of hunts,
lovers, deities, dancers, birds, animals, and mythological creatures as
well as other intricate designs. The temple is also famous for its erotic
sculptures celebrating the joys of living. There are three images of the
Sun God, scientifically positioned to catch the rays of the sun at dawn,
noon and sunset.
Though the
motivation for building this majestic temple is not known, the tea stall
owners and few other locals told me that it is believed that King Narasimhadeva,
probably constructed it as a victory monument, after a successful campaign
against Muslim invaders.
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As
I was trying to capture some glimpses of the Temple, which is currently
under renovation, it was almost impossible to click the shutter because
of the extreme heat wave.
But, the trip
was good and while coming back from Konark, I took a break and got out
from the car at Chandrabhaga beach, which is close to the Sun Temple and
is not crowded and one can spend quite moments absorbing the beauty of
the surroundings. The beach comes to full bloom during February when the
Hindus celebrate Magha Saptami, the Chandrabhaga Mela, is celebrated with
much fanfare. On this day pilgrims from all over India come to take a holy
dip in the pool and then converge onto the beach to watch the sun rise
over the sea.
When To
Visit
You can visit
Konark throughout the year but the best time to visit is between October
and March. Don't make the mistake of traveling here during summer. |
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Getting
There
Indian Airlines
connect Bhubaneshwar from New Delhi. Other airlines and some of the newly
introduced budget airlines also connect Bhubaneshwar from Delhi and other
major points of India. Please check with your Travel agent for details.
If you are
already in India, you can reach Bhubaneshwar by Rajdhani Express from New
Delhi. Trains from other metro cities like Kolkata, Chennai, also connect
Bhubaneshwar.
Although it
was a 1-day trip, I felt good after visiting the Temple and shall try to
visit other places in Orissa once the summer is over.
The following
are Rajeep's previous articles for the magazine:
 Think
India - Think
Holiday At Kerala
Northeastern
India -Destination:
Shillong
Northeastern
India - Destination:
Guwahati
Escape
To Sundarbans…. Indian
Flexabiltiy
Rajdeep Bhattacharjee
is a Travel Writer and can be contacted at rajdeep@ecotourism.cc
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