My Seven Wonders - World Heritage Day Special

Happy World Heritage day!

Every year 18^th of April is celebrated as the world heritage day.  Since 1982, when ICOMOS (International Council for Monuments and Sites) came up with the idea of celebrating ‘International day for Monuments and Sites’ with few other resolutions to protect and conserve the heritage monuments and sites, which then was accepted by UNESCO in 1983 and over the period of time is celebrated as the ‘World Heritage day’.

On hearing the word ‘Heritage’ some might feel that heritage is just meant for the elite people. But the fact is heritage is something that is much more inclusive than anything one could think of. Heritage is not only just respecting the arts, it is also about respecting the artisans and livelihood based on the form of art materials.

We all are part of the precious heritage of our vast country with various natural resources and cultural diversity. As an individual, everybody is equally responsible for the protection of our heritage and also there is a provision for the same in our constitution. 

This year I feel more enthusiastic about heritage, thanks to the awareness I found because of my course in INTACH (Indian National Trust for Arts and Cultural Heritage). Over the last one year, I have been studying and reading a lot about heritage. One of the things that stuck me was the great heritage sites and monuments of ancient India that seem to inspire even after all these centuries. 

I was also going through the list of the ‘seven wonders of the world’ and was disappointed at how less India was represented. The current seven wonders of the world include

-The Great Wall of China

-The statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Jeniro

-The peaks of Machu Picchu in Peru

-The Chichen Itza in Mexico

-The colosseum in Rome

-The Taj Mahal in India; and

-Petra in Jordan

If you notice, this is clearly an unequal and imbalanced representation. That comes to the question of why are these ‘wonders’. Are they only because they are old and ancient? Do they have any value? Or have they just been hyped and promoted? Thanks to great tourism and travel packaging and marketing. 

When I saw these, I thought what if we had to make our own list of Indian wonders from the vast variety of heritage, both tangible and intangible. Then nobody would be able to beat that list. So I decided to make my own list. 

I would like to start with the ancient megalithic Kailasanath temple in Ellora, that was carved out of a single rock. Did you know that it is sculpted top to base? It is 164ft deep, 109ft wide and 98ft high and it took over 400 years to sculpt it. The whole temple complex is filled with intricate sculptures. It is still mind-boggling to think how our ancestors achieved this!

Ellora - photo from onecheaptrip.com

Then comes the ancient city of Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu. The capital of the Pallava Kingdom, was once a rich junction of culture and commerce. Did you know the great Buddhist monk Bodhi Dharma was born in Kanchi in 450 AD and took Buddhism to China? Kanchipuram is a town of 100s of temples even today. Amongst all these is the beautifully kept ancient temple of Kailasanatha. It is a brilliant piece of craftsmanship that reflects the great patronage of the Pallava kings. Filled with exquisite sculptures, Kailasanatha temple is a must-visit when you go to Tamil Nadu.

 

Kanchi Kailasanathar temple

When you think of Khajuraho, you only see the erotic sculptures, thanks to western tourists who can’t seem to think of anything else. Do you know, there is much more to Khajuraho than these sculptures? Built by the rulers of Chandela dynasty, these temples are located in Chattrapur district of Madhya Pradhesh. Initially there were supposed to have been over 85 temple, but today only 25 survives. The main temple is Kandariya Mahadeva, dedicated to lord Shiva. Out of all the temples, about six temples are dedicated to lord Shiva, eight temples to Vishnu, one to lord Ganesha, one to sun god and three to Jain Teerthankaras. Built according to numerous Aghamas, these temples are some of the finest examples of architecture.

Khajuraho - mptourism.com

If you have the newly introduced 100 rupee note, take a closer look at it. The design is inspired by one of India’s greatest stepwells in the town of Patan in Gujarat, on the banks of the Saraswati River. This Rani Ki Vav basically means a queen’s stepwell. Who was this queen? Her name was Udhayamathi, daughter of Naravaraha Khangara, a Chalukya ruler. For many centuries this well was under the earth, after it got flooded and covered in silt. It was only unearthed in the 1980s by the ASI (Archaeological survey of India). Measuring approximately 65mts in length, 25mts in width and 28mts in depth, the well can be reached all the way to the deepest level. There are over 200 pillars inside the stepwell. The corridor has compartments at various intervals with different pavilions. Some of the finest and most beautiful and delicate sculptures can be found in here. There are more than 500 big sculptures and over a 1000 small sculptures of gods, goddesses and celestial beings and so on. 

Rani Ki Vav - photo from wikipedia

Can you imagine that one can build a 216ft Vimana without using a single binding material? Come and visit the magnificent temple of lord Brihadheeshwara in Thanjavur. Built by the great Raja Raja Chozhan, this temple is an epitome of Dravidian architecture. In its haydays the temple patronized over 400 Devadasis and countless musicians, scholars and artistes making Thanjavur, the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu. This temple unlike many others is not a monument, but a living heritage as it continues to function even today. The huge edifice is awe-inspiring and breathtaking even today. Though it was attacked the armies of Malik Kafur, who looted the gold plating over it, the temple is still in a great shape after all these centuries.

Brihadheeshwara temple Thanjavur

The next beautiful wonder is the 13^th century Sun temple at Konark in Odisha. This temple is attributed to the king Narasimha Deva, the first of the eastern Ganga dynasty. In ancient India sun temples were a common feature. Konark was one of the finest temples that looks like a huge chariot with massive wheels drawn by horses, all of it carved in stone. The temple was invaded and destroyed several times by Islam rulers. It is one of the finest examples of Kalinga architecture. The traditional portrayal of the sun god is that of one riding a chariot driven by seven horses. The Konark temple is built like a huge chariot driven by seven horses. There are 12 pairs of wheels corresponding to the 12 months of the Hindu calendar. There are 24 such wheels carved, each wheel has a diameter of 9ft and 9inches with eight spokes. The entire complex is worth visiting and taking a closer look to enjoy the beauty of Odisha’s fine architecture.

Konark Son temple - photo from wikipedia

Hampi was the capital of the largest Hindu kingdom in the world, which is the Vijayanagara Empire. Hampi finds a mention in the Kishkintha Kanda of Ramayana. This is where lord Hanuman was born. This became the capital of the Vijayanagara kingdom and under the rule of the Vijayanagara kings, Hampi blossomed into a great cultural capital. From the stone chariot that inspired the new 50 rupee note, the musical pillars, Virupaksha temple, the Hazara Rama temple, the huge statue of Lakshmi Narasimha, the holy hill of Anjanadri and the beautiful Tungabhadra River, Hampi is filled with wonders. A lot of these were destroyed after the battle of Talikota, when the Vijayanagar empire to the attacks of Islam invaders. Hampi is a place every Indian must visit at least once in their lifetime. 

Stone Chariot - photo from wikipedia

I have only shown you seven which came to my mind now. By no means these represent everything in India. In fact, every state in India has its own set of awe-inspiring wonders. Maybe, some other time I will write about those also. When you see all of these, you wonder why a glorified graveyards like the Taj Mahal represents our country. Why is that counted as the wonders of the world when these are not so popular outside India? The mistake lies with the state and the system that constantly promoted the wrong things to gain cheap political mileage. On World Heritage day, I would make an appeal to all my esteemed readers to visit the places that I mention and discover the true wonders of India and let the world know that India can be represented far better than what it is right now. 

Yours East Gaterr