An Artisans Timeless Affair.
Procrastinator. There are
times when I feel that I should engrave this word in big block letters on a
huge stone object and place it in my home on the display because no other word
can describe me as aptly as this one does. What do we call a girl who wants to
complete a lot of tasks and makes systematic lists about them but at the end of
the day does nothing and then suddenly wakes up from the slumber and completes
all the tasks at once at herculean speed – sounds like me? So, long story short,
I am back! With another exciting leaf out my life story and to take you lovely
people to a beautiful place of sunsets and temples. But first, statutory
warning, pack enough water because throughout the trip I always wished I had
more cold water with me and beware of the monkeys! I had almost forgotten to
write this blog but I recently watched the teaser of PS-
Having spent two years of
what are supposed to be a person’s best years of life, crying and frustrated at
home it came as a pleasant surprise and a much needed energy boost when a field
trip was announced for art & architecture students. A 3 day trip to Aihole, Badami
and Pattadakal does sound interesting and for me who missed a school trip to
the same places this trip was like a treat. Well, I don’t know how many of
you guys believe in this but I do believe that what’s written in one’s destiny
is bound to happen one way or the other. The place, the time and the people
related may change but the situation will always arrive as it is supposed to. In
short I believe that each person’s destiny is already written and we just
travel through the various roads. No matter which road we choose and how our
journey is we reach the destination meant for us. So that’s enough philosophy
for today, what I wanted to say was that the place I was meant to visit way
back in my school times I finally got a call from those places 8 years later.
So, all was planned and
scheduled and off we went enjoying the college trip environment that is sure to
make one feel high on life. Our first stop was Aihole, according to few Sanskrit
scholars the name of this town finds its origin in the term Aryapura while it
can be also related with Ahi Haya, the slayer of the snakes. This town stands tall with some subtle yet imposing Chalukyan architecture. Visiting the
temples in that town was a beautiful experience but what has captured by mind
and my heart since the moment I saw it is the Meguti temple situated on a
hill. One look at it and I was struck with the realization of time, the beauty
of the working of this universe and the existence of us all here. I know my sentences
may sound very foolish but that’s the thoughts that crossed my mind while I stood
on that hill top drinking the sight till my eyes and my memory was full to the
brink and yet I wanted to capture the sight more. It was truly a surreal experience,
something I can’t really express in words. In that moment I realized why the
poets write endlessly on the beauty and the aura of the moon, because that’s something
that can’t be captured in words. The cool breeze on the hilltop, setting sun,
and the calm in that place with that masterpiece in front of us, in that moment
I knew that places do call us towards them. I could only imagine the workers hundreds
of years earlier working on building that structure and passing time in the evenings,
talking common man’s talks and living a common life not knowing that what they were
creating was uncommon and would stand tall against the invasion of time to
retell the glory of Chalukyas.
To say that I was emotional
can be an understatement. Next day our trip to Badami started on a great note
with super early morning visits to the temples and finally our visit to the
great Badami. Great is the word Iam using to describe the place because that is
all I can think of when I saw the caves there. The artisans surely must have
been terrifying at their art and it feels like god himself has really manifested
himself in those sculptures. The picturesque setting is the perfect backdrop
for those caves. The monkeys there are nuisance and they are some cheeky thieves,
so it was quite a task to take care of the belongings while capturing the sight
in my mobile’s camera and being alert all the time. Nevertheless, it is worth
all the efforts.
Having disliked Mangalesha since
I was a child only because he went against my favourite Pulkeshi Ⅱ, I must
say that the man was definitely not alien to art and architecture. I have very
biased views towards him but his contribution is real and can’t be sidelined.
Our next stop was at Pattadakal.
The place has been called famously as the laboratory of Indian architecture. So
all of you can imagine the amount of fangirling I will do while describing the
place. Words like magnificent, grand, royal must have been made only to
describe this place. Visiting all the temples in that temple complex was a memory
I will treasure forever. Just outside one of the temples I promised myself that
I will visit this place again someday, to reread the never ending tales that
this place has to tell us, of royalty and art and of power and glory. Also,
never in my life will I ever forget that one of those temple have panels with Panchatantra
depiction on it (that was one traumatizing moment in my life).
After the tour ended and we
all were travelling in the bus, again the gentle breeze accompanying us, all I could
think was of the past, the bygone days when the artisans worked on these places
and made masterpieces out of stones. It truly felt like I was transported in
that era. And now enough of my fangirling over the Chalukyan architecture
because this blog sounds less like a travel post and more like a teenager writing
about feelings for their first crush ever.
The sun may set on the Chalukyan
dynasty but its shrines shine like the evening star on the horizon of Indian architecture.
(Me, March 2022).
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