Impossible Engineering ! Unique pillars of Cheluvanarayan Temple, Melukote, Karnataka, India

This is the main mandap hall of the Chelua Narayana Swami temple. Here we can see there are three rows of pillars. The central pillars, all these pillars have very unique carvings. We have visited a large number of temples in South India as well as various other parts of India. However, the intricacy of carvings in these pillars is mind-boggling. We have never seen such beautifully carved pillars anywhere in India. This Ranga Mandapa at the Chelua Narayana Swami temple was constructed during the Vijayanagara Empire in the year 1458. The construction of this Ranga Mandapa was started after the Maha Mandapa went into disuse and collapsed. This Ranga Mandapa was constructed by Timanna Dandanaika and his wife Ranga Ambika Timanna. Timanna Dandanaika was the commander of the Vijayanagara king named Mallikarjuna. Timanna Dandanaika was ruling over Nagamangala as a representative of the Vijayanagara king Mallikarjuna. And this commander and his wife who were devout worshippers of Lord Vishnu got the Ranga Mandapa constructed in the year 1458. They also granted many villages in the service of the temple free of any charge i.e. Sarvamanya. They also gave donation for maintenance of the Ramanuja Kuta i.e. free food service which was in this temple. Because of the construction and donations to this temple by Timanna Dandanaika, he was also known as Yadavgiri Jirno Dharka. This Ranga Mandapa has some very beautifully carved pillars and the type of sculpture is not found in any other temple in India or elsewhere. This Ranga Mandapa is in the northern corridor inside the Prakara and has three rows of very beautifully carved pillars. Melkote, this town also has 93 inscriptions and 55 of these inscriptions have been found in this Narayana Swamy temple on their walls, pillars as well as on the temple utensils. Out of all these inscriptions, almost every inscription is in Old Kannada called Hale Kannada and there is one inscription in the Sanskrit language. However, the script is called the Grantha script. The oldest inscription found in the temple dates back to the time of the Hoysala King Vishnu Vardhana who ruled between 1106 to 1142 AD. The last inscription in this temple is of the time of the Wodeyar Kings i.e. King Krishna Raj Wodeyar III of the Mysore who ruled between 1799 to 1868. This temple also has mentions in various literary works such as the Stala Purana, Narada Purana, Matasya Purana and Padma Purana. The Stala Purana is probably dated after the visit of Ramanuja to this temple and Stala Purana probably is written between the 14th to the 16th century AD. This temple has also reference to the various Sri Vaishnava hagiologies like the Kashi Mahatmya and Eshwar Samhita. These were written around 9th century AD. The Guru Paramparai written by Pinbalagya Perumal Jiar is probably of the 13th century and the Divya Surcharita and the Darpan Amritam probably of the 16th century which has a reference of this temple at Millakutte. This temple also finds mention in a literary work carried out by the Mysore King Chikkadev Raja Wodeyar who ruled between 1672 to 1704 AD. This book or the literary work is known by the name of Chikkadev Raya Binay. So as we can see this temple has been constructed by various dynasties over a period of time. However the most beautiful part of this temple called the Rang Mandapa was constructed during the Vijayanagara period. The interesting thing about these pillars is that these pillars have been made out of the hardest stone known to men that is granite. The question is how the ancient sculptures were able to carve such beautiful carvings depicting various anecdotes from the Puranas, the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the manner in which these pillars have been carved leaves one spellbound. The beauty of the pillars in this Mandapa is that none of the pillars are same. The amount of labor which would have gone, the thought process, the design, the tools which were used we shall never be able to know about them. But these pillars are a historical evidence of the great Indian civilization which had existed in the southern part of India where our architecture, sculptures tell us of a past which was unparalleled anywhere in the world. These type of carvings particularly made from monolithic stones is unheard of anywhere in the world. We shall be showing you the detailed videography of the various pillars in this Mandapa of the Cheluvar Narayan Swami temple. Very few people are aware of a place called Melukottai which is in the state of Karnataka in the Mandya district. Unlike Elabedu or Belur or Sringeri, this temple is not in the tourist map of the people of the state of Karnataka or even that of India. There is a need to publicize the beauty of this ancient temple to large number of audience so that they can plan and visit this place and enjoy and appreciate our ancient heritage. Melukottai is a temple town and this town is situated on a hilly terrain. There are two major temples in this town, the most important temple being the Cheluvar Swami Narayan temple. There are many step wells or Pushkarnis in this temple which tell us the story of the system of water harvesting, rainwater harvesting in the ancient times. Melukottai is situated at a distance of 50 km from Mysuru and 135 km from Bangalore. It is a historical town located in the Pandvapura taluka of the Mandya district also known as Thiru Narayanapuram. It is one of the popular pilgrimage places in Karnataka. There are two popular temples in this town, one is Cheluvar Narayan Swami temple and the other is Yog Narsimha Swami temple. The town derives its name from two words, Nelu means top and Kottai means fort. According to history, Sri Ramanujacharya lived here for 14 years in the 12th century and it became an important center of Vaishnava sect. There are three ponds in the town, two on the foothills and another on top of the hill. Of these, the Kalyani pond near Sri Cheluvar Narayan Swami temple is the largest and is surrounded by beautiful stone-carved pillared mandapas. Raya Gopura, about 300 meters from Cheluvar Narayan temple is a beautiful place. This place is also known as Gopala Raya entrance. This probably Raya Gopura is an incomplete structure leading to the Melukottai hill. It has four tall pillars and looking similar to Mamalapuram Raja Gopuram. This temple entrance was built by Hosala king Vishnu Vardhana and is said to have been built overnight. These temples existed even before Sri Ramanujacharya. The main temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu and is known as Thiru Narayana or Cheluva Raya. The Usavamurthi or possession idol of the deity is referred as Cheluva Pille Raya whose original name appears to have been Rampriya. The temple has been under the patronage of the Mysora royal family and is endowed with valuable jewellery given to the lord by the warders. Two beautiful crowns have been gifted to the lord by warders known as Krishna Raja Mudhi and Veera Mudhi. The Veera Mudhi festival is held in the month of March to April, is the main festival of Sri Cheluvar Narayan Swami temple and is attended by a large number of people. On this day, the main deity Thiru Narayana is adorned with diamond crown and taken out in procession. Melkote that is fort on high ground is a town that is lesser known compared to its other illustrious neighbouring districts, places in Mysore. The town has beautifully articulated places and beautiful landscapes that are often punctuated by pools of water. The embedded water collection system defines the geography and the landscape of the Melkote region. Unlike other towns, Melkote has an identity that is uniquely its own. The temples, the mandapas and the tanks are crucial to the experience of Melkote. Gopuram or the entrance to the temple adorns a triangular tower. The main entrance is decorated with pillared structures with another gopuram designed on top of it. Outer walls of the entire temple have a pillared corridor where these pillars have intricately carved sculptures decorated on them. The temple came to be expanded under the Vijayanagara and the Mysore rulers. They later presented the temple with many costly jewels including Vairamundi, a diamond studded crown. Melkote is a great centre of traditional Sanskrit learning. Melkote is a culturally rich settlement and is a home to heritage complexes including many ancient temples. The temple is located in the heart of the city of Melkote.