Opening Kailasanatha : the temple in Kanchipuram revealed in time and space / Padma Kaimal.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kaimal, Padma Audrey, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Kailasanatha Temple (Kānchipuram, India).

Temples--India--Kānchipuram.

Temples.

Hindu art--India--Kānchipuram.

Hindu art.

Hinduism--India--Kānchipuram.

Hinduism.

India--Kānchipuram.

Physical Description:

xv, 256 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color) ; 26 cm

Place of Publication:

Seattle : University of Washington Press, [2020]

Summary:

Stone figures hardened by ascetic discipline and heroic effort face north in deep shadow. There they meet the gazes of the same gods and goddesses but with gentler bodies enacting grace, warmth, seduction, and marriage, drenched in sunlight, facing south. These figures adorn the eighth-century Kailasanatha temple complex in southeastern India, built by rulers who were both warriors and ascetics, engaged in the work of this world and in spiritual quests. They designed their temple as an exuberant visual feast to sustain both modes of being. In 'Opening Kailasanatha', Padma Kaimal deciphers the intentions of the monument's makers, reaching back across centuries to illuminate worldviews of the ancient Indic south. She reveals how circling the complex in a clockwise direction focuses the mind and spirit on worldly engagement ; in a counterclockwise direction, on renunciation and ascetic practice. This pairing of highly charged, complementary pathways enabled devotees to grasp these counterpoised opportunities in their own listening, gazing, moving bodies. By focusing on the material form of the complex - the architecture, inscriptions, and sculptures, along with the spaces they carve out that guide light, shadow, sound, and footsteps - Kaimal offers insights that complement what surviving texts tell us about Shaiva Siddhanta ideas and practices, providing a rare opportunity to walk in the distant past.

Contents:

Preface & Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter 1. Order and Improvisation : The elements of the Pallavas' Kailasanatha Temple Complex

Chapter 2. Looking North and South : Celibacy and intimacy, struggle and grace

Chapter 3. Looking East and West, With and Without Sons : Deities, royalty, family, and lineage

Chapter 4. Circumambulating This Way and That : Complementarity set in motion

Chapter 5. Word - Image Tango : Telling stories with words and sculptures

Conclusions

Appendix 1. Inscriptions on Rajasimha's Prakara

Appendix 2. The Foundation Inscription of the Rajasimheshvara, Rajasimha's Vimana

Appendix 3. The Foundation Inscription of the Mahendravarmeshvara, Mahendravarman III's Vimana

Appendix 4. The Foundation Inscriptions around Vimanas C, E, and G, Marking Donations by Pallava Queens

Glossary of Sanskrit terms

Notes

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

"McLellan book"--Jacket flap.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 197-239) and index.

ISBN:

0295747773

9780295747774

OCLC:

1151531550