GOPS CREATIVE ARTS & PHOTOGRAPHY - CAPTURING THE SIMPLICITIES & COMPLEXITIES OF LIFE
Jan 20
by GOPAN NAIR in Indian architecture & Heritage 11 comments tags: angkor wat, Bali, blog, BRIHADISWARA, Chola, CHOLAN, CHOZHA, Combodia, Darasuram, dynasty, Gangaikondacholapuram, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops.org, Great, heritage, hindu, history, india, Living, Nadu, Perumthachan, Perunthachan, photography, RAJA RAJA, Rajendra, ruler, shiva, Tamil, Tanjore, Temples, Thanjavur, tourism, unesco, WORLD, கோயில், பெருவுடையார், ராஜராஜ சோழன், പെരുന്തച്ചന്‍

THE GREAT LIVING CHOLA TEMPLES, PART 2 of 3 : GANGAIKONDA CHOLAPURAM (கங்கைகொண்ட சோழபுரம்)

‘The Great Living Chola Temples’ is the name given to a group of three architectural wonders built in the Medieval Chola period, that remain intact till date at Thanjavur, TamilNadu. These three temples, viz., Brihadiswara (<click), Gangaikondacholapuram and Darasuram (<click) are unique for their dravidian architecture, advanced scientific knowledge and incredible artistic skills. I think you may please go through the story of Raja Raja Chola and the mighty  Brihadiswara Temple built by him, before reading this page. Rajendra Chola-I (இராசேந்திர சோழன் 1012-1044 AD, son of the Great Rajaraja-I)  who ventured into the North of India upto the Ganga river and brought the water back with him was known as Gangaikondacholan ( The Chola who brought Ganga) . Having one of the best Naval armies of their time, Rajendra started expanding his father’s Kingdom further across the oceans. He was one of the most famous Chola Kings whose Kingdom spread across most parts of Southern India and regions in Northern India like Kalinga (current day Orissa), Bihar, Bengal/Bangladesh, foreign areas like Sri Lanka, Burma, , Bali, Java, Sumatra, Kadaram (now Kedah in Malaysia) and Cambodia. The Hindu traditions being followed in Indonesia and Angkor Wat temples in Combodia are the […]
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Jan 20
by GOPAN NAIR in Indian architecture & Heritage 6 comments tags: angkor wat, Bali, blog, BRIHADISWARA, Chola, CHOLAN, CHOZHA, Combodia, Darasuram, dynasty, Gangaikondacholapuram, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops.org, Great, heritage, hindu, history, india, Living, Nadu, Perumthachan, Perunthachan, photography, RAJA RAJA, Rajendra, ruler, shiva, Tamil, Tanjore, Temples, Thanjavur, tourism, unesco, WORLD, கோயில், பெருவுடையார், ராஜராஜ சோழன், പെരുന്തച്ചന്‍

THE GREAT LIVING CHOLA TEMPLES, PART 1 of 3 : BRIHADISWARA (பெருவுடையார் கோயில்)

‘The Great Living Chola Temples’ is the name given to a group of three architectural wonders built in the Medieval Chola period, that remain intact till date at Thanjavur, TamilNadu. These three temples, viz., Brihadiswara, Gangaikondacholapuram (<click) and Darasuram (<click) are unique for their dravidian architecture, advanced scientific knowledge and incredible artistic skills. During my journeys through the reminiscences of Chola empire, I could witness the birth, growth and death of a dynasty that ruled almost all of Southern India for the longest duration. Though the exact origin of Chola dynasty is not known, it is believed that they were contemporaries of Ashoka during 300BC and continued the reign until 1279 AD. Like most of the remarkable civilizations built around rivers, Chola land was also developed around the Kaveri river basin and their glorious past is still evident from the mighty temples they left behind in the region. Raja Raja Cholan and his son Rajendra Cholan were the most prominent among them all who marked the golden period during the 460 years of Chola rule. Cholas possessed one of the best Naval powers of their time and that helped them conquer the Northern half of SriLanka in 996 AD . […]
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Jun 01
by GOPAN NAIR in Indian architecture & Heritage, travel 8 comments tags: achyutharaya, ancient, anegondi, anegundi, Anjanadri, Bali, birth, blog, boulder, bukka, cave, dynasty, Gagan Mahal, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops photography, gops.org, hakka, hampi, Hanuman, Hazararama, hill, india, karnataka, Kishkinda, Kishkindha, krishnadevaraya, mathanga, Onake Kindi, paintings, Pampa Sarovar, photography, place, Ramayana, Rishimuka, ruins, Shabari, Sugreeva, Sugriva, temple, tungabhadra, Vali, Vali Quila, Vijayanagara, vittala

THE RIVER AND BEYOND… ANEGUNDI

Let’s embark on a time machine… It is going to be a journey back into the past to witness history spanning 5000 years or more. The story begins with river Pampa (Tungabhadra),  the lifeline of a great civilization that existed in the southern state of Karnataka in India. Anegundi is a peaceful little village situated just opposite to Hampi, on the northern bank of river Tungabhadra; a place where evolution, history, mythology and folklore co-exist.  Anegundi (or Anegondi, ಆನೆಗುಂದಿ/ಆನೆಗೊಂದಿ) is a Kannada word which means “Elephant pit”. It was the early  capital of Vijayanagara empire, before it got shifted to Hampi. It was probably named after the king’s elephant stables originally located here. Read more about Hampi & Vijayanagara empire here >> As per earth scientists, the rock formations in this area could be 3000 Million years old, making it one of the oldest plateaus on our planet. That means it was one of the first places to get solidified during earth’s cooling process. Traces of early human settlements have been located in certain parts of Anegundi. Neolithic (Stone-age) burial grounds and primitive cave paintings found here attract research students, historians and geologists alike. You may please go through my blog […]
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