Surya: The God and His Abode Most of us believe Konark to be the only sun temple. There are others for whom the sun temple in their vicinity is second only to the one at Konark. Yet, there are more than a hundred sun temples dotting the length and breadth of the country, while there are several others spanning the globe. It is surprising that most of the sun temples have fallen into oblivion, while the sun continues to be an object of reverence. The present book covers six of the sun temples in India, namely Konark (Orissa), Modhera (Gujrat), Katarma) (Uttarakhand), Deo (Bihar), Arsavalli (Andhra Pradesh), Surya Pahar (Assam) and Wat Arun in Bangkok (Thailand). In addition, a chapter on the advent of sun worship with an introduction to the sun cult is also included. Each of these chapters begins with a verse from the Aditya Hridyam, duly translated by the author into English. The verses in the Aditya Hridyam are dedicated to the Surya and comprise the Ramayan written by Adikavi Valmiki. In the course of his research on the subject, the author traveled to various places, spending a week on average at each of these temple sites. This enabled him not only to capture the architectural beauty of these temples on camera, but also their essence that has been carried through the generations in the form of beliefs and faith. Most often he. found that it is not the bricks and mortar, but the belief and faith that make the temple. |
