Mamandur Cave Temple

going to see a temple built by The Pallavas Not one temple, 4 temples built in one location but there are 7 sanctums here There are many inscriptions in this temple Do you know whose are those? Those belong to The Rajaraja Chozha I Hello everyone. 

My name is Karna Today I am going to start this video with a couplet SEIVANAI NAADI VINAINAADI KAALATHODU EITHA UNARNTHU SEYAL Do remember this couplet, this will come along with you throughout the video If we say Tamil Kings, they are Cheras, Chozhas and Pandyas We can not leave the Pallavas either In this video we are going to see about a temple built by the Pallava Kings Not one temple, 4 temples built in one location Lets explore about the temple and history Come let us proceed to the video I told you there are 4 right, this is the first one, a rock cut temple That is a temple carved out of a hill's rock This is the first one out of the four temples here There are 4 pillars here, it appears like two right? 

This is also similar to a pillar, and is called Pilaster 1.....2....3....4 The temple was not finished then, what does the expert say They had tried to build this but due to some mistakes they couldn't complete this and they moved on Similarly they faced a fault in next one and four in total here in this hill On entering you can see the hill carved in the left You can easily see how far it was carved They did not carved a sculpture straight away, they carved step by step in cubical segments like here This is an incomplete temple and you can see that on entering in They have carved on the left for Dwarapalaks but did not completed This is the sanctum sanctorum but that too was not completed An incomplete temple, Ok now lets go to the second I have told you it was built by the Pallavas Which Pallava King?

Mahendiravarman I Mahendiravarman I was the first King to built stone temples he ruled during 600 to 630 A.D, that is 1400 years ago These temples were built during that time, He did not Chose Kanchi to built these temples eventhough it was his Capital He built that at Mandakapattu, If you dint saw that, please see, let me give you the link You will understand this easily after seeing that, now we are going to see the second temple 

2nd temple We have seen only the 4 pillars in the first without a sanctum The second temple is little improved by the Pallava King with 6 pillars In first there was only a hall, here there are two, let us go further There is a sanctum even, here arises a question, they might have built 2 or even 3 like Mandakappattu wherein there are Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma sanctums But here there are 7, so this was not a temple, there should be some other thing in the Pallava King's mind Steps are provided and there were doors too, see here the evidence we can see the arrangements for locking and with spaces for idols too but there are no idols here, let me try to explain why did they done this See the pillar here, in the first there was only square shaped pillars but here octagonal pillars too were tried Square in top and bottom, Octagonal in the middle The first temple was east facing but this one faces east and south We can say the second one is important due to these two openings See the curvature, the pillars are crafted with great workmanship This is the 3rd one, ASI says it is a bit complete, while entering see there are 4 pillars, with square and octagonal faces, two of them are pilasters after crossing that, first hall second one and next comes the sanctum, here there are 3 sanctums with Shiva in the middle There are Dwarabalagas, this was not installed By Pallava King, The Linga was placed little later There are no deities in the other two, another exclusivity here is the inscriptions Let me go one by one, please follow me, could you read this inscription here Do you know to which period it belongs to, The Rajaraja Chozha I I told you this is a rock cut temple, carved out of a hill, being inside the hill, see this This temple must be a completed one, see this carefully We can see the outer walls painted We can not say the Pallava King would have painted this and it may be even done in later years too but this is a completed one and very beautiful, the third temple The Pallava King should have predicted the rain water seepage So they have provided vents The hill was there up to this point, it was carved out step by step to built two halls and the pillars any small fault will ruin the structure they have carved a sanctum inside and worshipped, now let us go the last one which is nearby this If you observe this four temples sequentially, you can find a growth here you can see a growth or development in other words The first one could not be completed and in the next one only the two mandapas are there, in the third one they built up to the sanctums and there is lord shiva in one of those sanctums In fourth one they upgraded to steps to prevent rainwater from entering, the next stage They have completed this temple with steps at last Here there are no three sanctums but one, without the idol inside, we don't whether it was robbed There were doors here, we can see the arrangements made for that, and there is a separate sanctum for the main deity no idol but there are inscriptions here I have told you the structure has improved stage by stage in these four temples as they were learning sequentially, see here, they had started making designs in the pillars The pillar curves are beautiful with paintings, they had upgraded continuously, 

see here to be specific The ceiling and flooring structures are very beautiful The evolution of temples started from this, using it as a base pattern but Mahendravarman was the first to try this technology of carving a temple out of hill You can see the evolutionary growth, if you observe these four temples Archeological experts say that these temples got their final shape after three tries But History experts says that, it was used as a meditation spot during Pallava Era For example, what is the necessity of 2 entrance and 7 sanctums, so they should have used it as a place to get positive energy My guess, Just what my guess is that, One of the magnificent works of Pallavas was that Mamallapuram or Mahabalipuram, these must be their practice ground for that Just think about it, when others were building small temples using bricks If a King envisions this type of craftmanship, any sculptor can not give shape to the King's vision immediately They should have used these for example the Mandakappattu and these four temples as a practice ground to display the magnificence at Mahabalipuram Do you remember the couplet I told in the beginning of this video SEIVANAI NAADI VINAINAADI KAALATHODU EITHA UNARNTHU SEYAL It means that we have to assign a work to a person based on the nature and time available to complete it So the Pallava King effectively trained the sculptors We can see the next beautiful couplet IDHANAI IDHANAL IVAN MUDIKKUM ENDRAINDHU ADHANAI AVAN KAN VIDAL Says Thiruvalluvar beautifully He says that you should find a suitable person before assigning a task Similarly the Pallava King achieved the magnificence at.

Mahabalipuram after giving a complete training here Share this video to many, as they have to know the existence of such temple and history The history will be taken to next generation only if it is shared today A wonderful historical place which satiated the hunger of many people 1400 years ago, this must be a place of living and way of life for many sculptors and their families Their quest for food and art must have been quenched here A wonderful historical place Do come here with Family, let me give the google map.