Aihole

Durga Temple (13), Hucchimalli Gudi (5), Ladkhan Temple (7), Meguti Jain Temple (1), Ravana Phadi cave temple (7), Two-story Buddhist temple (1)

The village of Aihole (pronunciation: eye-HO-lee) contains over 125 temples from the Early Western Chalukya and later periods (6th - 12th century). Shown here, and on the following pages, are six Early Chalukya examples from the 6th - 8th centuries. The locations of a few other temples are marked with bold x's on the map, just to give an idea of the richness of the site. The architecture of Early Western Chalukya reflects diverse influences from neighboring areas. For example, as the Blue Guide (p. 331) explains, curved towers decorated with blind arches are found in central and western India; pilastered walls with panel inserts are a southern Indian style; while the Deccan style includes balcony seating, angled eaves and sloping roofs, and elaborately carved columns and ceilings. Readers can find, in the following pages, many examples of mixed styles, often on the same temple. For example, in the following temple (photo), the left hall is Dravidian (s. India); the middle hall is Rashtrakutan; and the tower is Deccan. By way of showing the unity within this diversity, Huntington (p.337) identifies some typical features of Early Western Chalukyan architecture. These include mortarless assembly, an emphasis on length rather than width or height, flat roofs, richly carved ceilings, and, sculpturally, an emphasis on relatively few major figures, which tend to be isolated from each other rather than arranged in crowded groups. The aesthetic sensibility of sculpture from this period also seems to retain a certain "classical" quality the term, by the way, is currently out of fashion whose impulse does not carry over into later periods of Indian art.

Aihole is located near Badami in the state of Karnataka. The names of the temples are based on recent usage, and do not reflect their original dedications.

Durga Temple
Aihole, late 7th century

The name "Durga" refers to a fort, not to the goddess; apparently at one time the building was used as a military outpost (durg). It is not known to which deity the temple was originally dedicated. The photo was taken from the southwest corner. It shows the south wall and curved west end (rear) of the temple. The entrance is east (next page). The temple's unusual apsidal form is thought to imitate the earlier Buddhist chaitya halls. An inner wall of similar shape encloses the sanctuary (plan). An incomplete tower (closeup) perches on the roof above the

Entrance Porch
Durga Temple, Aihole The porch faces east. Entrance stairs run up sideways, behind the frontal barrier wall in the foreground. The columns (next page) are decorated with couples.

Column decoration
Entrance Porch, Durga Temple, Aihole

Ceiling Medallion
Durga Temple, Aihole The medallion depicts a stylized lotus pond. A school of fish, encircled by a band of lotus plants, converges radially to a central nub. The design is symmetric, with plants arranged in alternating closed and open views. The formal pattern is much enlivened by the naturalistic rendering of its fish and plant motifs. Compare: Badami (Cave 2), and, from a different culture, a golden cup from Egypt's New Kingdom (reign of Thutmosis III, 1479-1425 BC).

Ceiling Medallion
Durga Temple, Aihole A naga king, his body coiled into a circle, is accompanied by female attendants. In his right hand, the naga carries a garland (not his tail, as it may seem at first). In his left hand, he bears an offering platter, which, like those of the attendants, is filled with fruits of the earth.

Celestial Couple
Durga Temple, Aihole These exquisite flying divinities emerge like a dream from the much-damaged ceiling.

Celestial City
Durga Temple, Aihole This paradise scene is from the lintel above the sanctuary entrance. Its foundations are supported by a gana bearing elaborate garlands.

Shiva with Nandi

Durga Temple, Aihole Eight-armed Shiva poses with Nandi in a sculpture from one of the niches in the colonnade. The location of this and the following sculptures, which are seen by proceeding through the colonnade in the usual counterclockwise direction, is indicated in the plan of the temple.

Narasimha
Durga Temple, Aihole The man-lion form of Vishnu lounges in tribhanga posture, his front right forearm casually supporting a club (missing).

Vishnu with Garuda

Durga Temple, Aihole The mount of Vishnu appears here in an odd-looking, dwarf-like form. Some wing feathers are visible to the right of the figure.

Varaha
Durga Temple, Aihole Vishnu's Boar avatar lifts Bhu Devi on the crook of his arm, while suppressing the snakes with his foot.

Durga
Durga Temple, Aihole Durga attacks the buffalo demon, as her lion grimaces fiercely from the side. The goddess's left leg and several arms are missing. As mentioned earlier, the temple is not named after this goddess.

Harihara
Durga Temple, Aihole Although many attributes are missing on right side, this figure can be identified by the gana at his lower right. Ganas are attendants on Shiva, but his opposite side is Vishnu (with conch and discus attributes, and attended by a female), so taken together this figure must be Harihara.

Hucchimalli Gudi
Aihole, India Hucchimalli is a 7th-century Hindu temple (gudi). The building faces west, and consists of a mandapa plus sanctuary.

Steep Tank
Hucchimalli Gudi, Aihole

Karttikeya
Hucchimalli Gudi, Aihole From the ceiling of the mandapa. Spear in hand, Karttikeya rides on his peacock vahana, surrounded by celestial attendants.

Slanted Roof
Hucchimalli Gudi, Aihole A distinctively slanted roof covers the circumambulatory passage around the temple shrine.

North Shrine
Hucchimalli Gudi, Aihole The tower of this small detached shrine appears to be fashioned in pyramidal style, unlike the curving tower of the main temple. The pierced stone screen between porch and shrine is a later addition.

Ladkhan Temple
Aihole, late 7th - early 8th century

The north face of the temple is shown. The temple's sloping two-tiered roof, which imitates wood construction, is furnished with stone "logs" that cover the joints between the roofing slabs. The temple's design contains other unusual features (plan). The porch fronts a square mandapa. In the center of the mandapa, a Nandi faces the small interior shrine, which abuts the rear wall of the mandapa. Instead of the usual tower, a rooftop shrine (the structure on top of the roof in this photo) is positioned over the center of the mandapa. Notes: Michell, p. 333, relates the positioning of the interior shrine to similar arrangements in the cave temples at Badami. Huntington, pp. 335-337, is a good source for additional photographs and information

Porch
Ladkhan Temple, Aihole The porch, which faces east, is decorated with pot motifs and couples (following pages).

Balcony Decoration
Ladkhan Temple, Aihole Decoration on the outer balcony of the porch includes pots (center), river goddesses (left), and couples (right, closeup).

Chalukya Emblems

Ladkhan Temple, Aihole Emblems of the Chalukyas found on the temple include a boar, a curled-up lotus stem (behind the boar), a solar disk above, and a circular object (mirror?) on a stand to the right.

Column Decoration
Ladkhan Temple, Aihole The decoration combines motifs of kingship and fertility. Below a canopy with royal symbols (parasol and crossed chauris) are two registers with lotus flowers. Beneath those, a design with dwarf pipers (ganas) and kirttimukhas.

Nandi
Ladkhan Temple, Aihole

As usual, Nandi faces the temple's shrine.

Couple
Ladkhan Temple, Aihole The affectionate pair is framed by a lunette, with a maid at their feet. The composition is wellfitted to its defined space. The man's back and head conform to the curve of the lunette. His rear leg extends into one corner of the arch, while the figure of the maid fills the opposite corner.

Meguti Jain Temple

Aihole, India

East side. The temple, dated by inscription to 634, was built without mortar and faces north (photo right). The tower (south) and porch (north) are later constructions. The niches (photo left) were left without sculptures. Huntington (pp. 322-324), while noting several affinities between Meguti and the rock-cut Badami Cave 3 of only a generation earlier, points out that other temples, contemporary with Meguti, are more elaborately decorated; the plain style seen at Meguti develops in parallel with, not earlier than, a more ornate style which is seen in other temples of the period.

Ravana Phadi Cave Temple

Aihole, India The 6th century cave temple is dedicated to Shiva. A broken column lines up with the cave entrance, which opens to the southwest. The cave is dramatically recessed on a deep ledge, with free-standing shrines on either side.

Ravana Phadi Cave Temple

Aihole, India This photo was taken on the ledge, looking away from the cave towards the broken column (see previous page). A Nandi sculpture, lined up with the column below the ledge, faces towards the cave entrance. The column's pincushion-shaped capital is displayed in the center of the lawn. In the lower left corner of the photo, fresh blocks are being cut for restoration.

Small Shrine
Ravana Phadi Cave Temple, Aihole Another free-standing shrine is located below the ledge and to the right as you face the cave entrance. Extensive restoration work is taking place in front of this shrine, and on the ledge above (view from the ledge).

Shiva Dancing
Ravana Phadi Cave Temple, Aihole

Shiva, in his ten-armed form (compare Ellora Cave 29), dances beside Ganesh and Parvati (left, hidden behind pillar; closeup). The panel is located in a shallow chamber on the left side as you face the linga shrine. Shiva's elongated torso, high hat, and pleated garments are markers of the Early Western Chalukya style in sculpture. The panel is considered by Huntington (p. 283) to probably depict Shiva's triumphal dance after he defeated the demon Andhaka. Here though, the elephant skin, under which Shiva usually dances, is replaced by snakes.

Shiva and Harihara

Ravana Phadi Cave Temple, Aihole Two large carved figures stand to the right as you face the entrance to the linga shrine. The figure at photo left is a form of Shiva; he wears a skull in his headdress, and his right hand bears a staff with entwining snake. Another snake appears above his left shoulder. The figure at photo right is Harihara, a deity that is half-Vishnu, half-Shiva. The figure has four arms, the upper arms being faint and shallowly carved. His right upper hand bears a snake, and the right half of his headdress bears a crescent moon, both symbols of Shiva. His left upper hand bears the conch, a symbol of Vishnu.

Shiva Guardian
Ravana Phadi Cave Temple, Aihole

This large figure guards the left side of the entrance to the linga shrine. The trident and snake are typical emblems. The guardian's left leg is turned out to the side. In his left hand, he holds the end of a swag of cloth.

Ceiling Decoration
Ravana Phadi Cave Temple, Aihole The couple, seen as human from the waist up, but with indeterminate lower bodies, seem to emerge from sprays of foliage. Compare Ellora, Cave 15. If you have additional information about the subject, kindly contact me.

Buddhist Temple
Aihole, India The two-story temple dates from the 6th century. It is partly rock-cut (excavated into the surrounding rock), although the porch shown in the photo is evidently structural (built using quarried stone.)