Rajarajeshwaram - The pinnacle of Chozha architecture - 1

Rajarajeshwaram or Brihadheeshwara temple aka Big Temple of Thanjavur, is one of the magnum opus of the great Chozha Emperor Raja Raja Chozhan. The Kumbabhishekam of this temple is going to happen of 5^th February, 2020. I’m very much excited to witness the divine occasion of this great temple. Also on the other hand, excited to share with you that I’d be posting very interesting truths and history of this architectural marvel of Raja Raja Chozhan.

The Rajarajeshwaram

This temple once was partly destructed by Malik Kafur, which is very shocking that, how this barbaric Sultanate eunuch chief reached and looted Brihadheeshwara temple and Srirangam which were such remote place at that time.

Rajarajeshwaram v/s Taj Mahal

Our ancestors were such geniuses and great scientist who used amazing techniques to build great temples. People who consider The Taj Mahal as a world wonder have not seen my Brihadheeshwara temple it seems. It took 17 years for Shah Jahan to build the decorated Taj Mahal with white marbles, whereas it just took 6 years for my great King Chozhan to build this real wonder of the world, not just decorating but also showcasing the skills and the rich arts practices of that period with many interesting sculptures that were made in hard granite stones and beautiful murals as well. These are just some simple facts about the temple. This temple has much more mind boggling science and traditional building techniques.

Thanjavur & Chozhas

Vijayalaya Chozha, the first king of this dynasty, succeeded the Mutharayars, a feudal king under the Pallavas dynasty in 850 A.D. Vijayalaya Chozhan also established a temple for Goddess Nisumbasudhini in Thanjavur after that. Since then Thanjavur always remained as a strong capital for the Chozha dynasty for at least 200 years. During these centuries, this dynasty spread up to the Tungabadhra River in the north, Sri Lanka in the south and Maldives and Lakshwadeep in the southwest.

Karuvurar Thevar, Shaivite saint and Guru of Emperor Raja Chozhan, describes Thanjavur as "Inji Soozh Thanjai" (இஞ்சி சூழ் தஞ்சை) in his 'Thiruvisaipa', which means that the main city of Thanjavur was surrounded by a moat and a fortified wall during the 11^th century. We can still see the moat that runs surrounding the temple as well covering some part of the city. But it is in bad shape now. The city was getting its water supply from the Vadavar River.

Rajarajiicharam

The name of the temple originally called by the Chozhas is “Rajarajiicharam”, as per the inscriptions found from the temple. Rajarajeshwaram is the correct grammatical pronunciation of the name. The name Brihadheeshwara temple is derived from 'Brihath & Ishwaram' which indicates the big size Lingam of this temple. Another reason that this Rajarajeshwaram got its ‘Big temple’ name is because of the tallest Vimana.

  

The main architect of Rajarajeshwaram as found from the inscriptions of this temple is Veerachozha Kunjaramallan – Rajaraja Perunthachan.

Location & Panchabhootam

Location of the temple and moat around the city

The temple is located at the heart of the Thanjavur city, which was then the capital of Chozha dynasties. The temple’s location seems like a strategic location. As per the local legends, no natural calamities can harm the temple. There are 5 temples of Lord Shiva, each one dedicated to one Panchabhootam (5 Elements), this Brihadheeshwara temple in Thanjavur is one temple unlike others where all the 5 Panchabhootam are integrated.

Foundation of Rajarajeshwaram

The foundation of the temple is another surprising factor. The height of the Vimana of this temple is 216 ft. whereas the foundation is just 6 ft. The foundation of this temple is built in lime deposit, because of this which the temple can survive any strong earthquakes as well. The lime deposit underneath the temple will adjust itself to the changes of tectonic plates which is caused by earthquakes. The famous Thanjavur Thalayatti Bommais’ represents this scientific model of the temple. The special Thanjavur toys comes to rest after shaking for a while, that’s how the foundation of the Brihadheeshwara temple also works.

There are many rumors that still prevails among the people about this temple. Next post will elaborately talk about the rumors that revolve the temple. Stay tuned!!!

Yours East Gaterr