Doddabasappa Temple () is a 12th-century Western Chalukyan architectural innovation in Dambal,

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

state,

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Dambal is about southeast of

Gadag Gadag-Betageri is a city municipal council in Gadag district in the state of Karnataka, India. It is the administrative headquarters of Gadag District. The original city of Gadag and its sister city Betageri (or ''Betgeri'') have a combined cit ...

city and southwest of Ittagi in

Koppal ''Koppal'' is a district headquarters of Koppal district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Koppal is surrounded on three sides by hills. It was known as Kopana Nagara. The town has historical landmarks such as the Koppal Fort, Gavimath (a rel ...

district.Cousens (1926), p. 114 The sanctum contains a Shiva ''

linga A lingam ( sa, लिङ्ग , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary ''murti'' or devotional im ...

'', the symbol of the presiding deity, God Shiva. The temple interior is a standard construction and consists of a sanctum (cella), a vestibule (''antarala'') and a main ''

mantapa A mandapa or mantapa () is a pillared hall or pavilion for public rituals in Indian architecture, especially featured in Hindu temple architecture. Mandapas are described as "open" or "closed" depending on whether they have walls. In temples, ...

'' (also called ''navaranga'' or hall). The vestibule connects the sanctum to the ''mantapa''. The Western Chalukya monuments, regional variants of existing dravida (South Indian) temples, defined the Karnata dravida architectural tradition.Hardy (1995), pp. 6–7

Temple plan

Stellate plan

The temple is based on a very original 24-pointed uninterrupted stellate (star-shaped) plan and uses

soapstone Soapstone (also known as steatite or soaprock) is a talc-schist, which is a type of metamorphic rock. It is composed largely of the magnesium rich mineral talc. It is produced by dynamothermal metamorphism and metasomatism, which occur in the zo ...

as its basic building material. Contemporary stellate plans of the

Bhumija Bhumija is a variety of north Indian temple architecture marked by how the rotating square-circle principle is applied to construct the ''shikhara'' (superstructure or spire) on top of the sanctum. Invented about the 10th-century in the Malwa regi ...

shrines in central India where the inspiration for this temple came from, were all 32-pointed interrupted types. No temples of the 6-, 12-, or 24-pointed stellate plans are known to exist in

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

, with the exception of the Doddabasappa temple, which can be described as a 24-pointed uninterrupted plan.Foekema (2003), p. 60 In an 'interrupted' stellate plan, the stellate outline is interrupted by

orthogonal In mathematics, orthogonality is the generalization of the geometric notion of ''perpendicularity''. By extension, orthogonality is also used to refer to the separation of specific features of a system. The term also has specialized meanings in ...

(right-angle) projections in the

cardinal direction The four cardinal directions, or cardinal points, are the four main compass directions: north, east, south, and west, commonly denoted by their initials N, E, S, and W respectively. Relative to north, the directions east, south, and west are at ...

s, resulting in star points that have been skipped.Foekema (2003), p. 63 Dodda Basappa Temple Nandi facing Shrine

The Doddabasappa temple marks the mature development of the Chalukyan art which originated from basic ''dravida'' architecture of South India. Its departure from conventional ''dravida'' plan used in the Virupaksha temple in

Pattadakal Pattadakal, also called Paṭṭadakallu or Raktapura, is a complex of 7th and 8th century CE Hindu and Jain temples in northern Karnataka (India). Located on the west bank of the Malaprabha River in Bagalakote district, this UNESCO World Heri ...

is so extreme that it would be very difficult to find similarities without detailed examination. A star shape is obtained by rotating a square about its centre. The star points form equidistant projections. The angles and re-entrant angles thus formed make the perimeter of the outerwall of the shrine. The star projections are carried right up the superstructure (tower over the shrine — ''

Shikhara ''Shikhara'' (IAST: '), a Sanskrit word translating literally to "mountain peak", refers to the rising tower in the Hindu temple architecture of North India, and also often used in Jain temples. A ''shikhara'' over the ''garbhagriha'' chamber ...

''), giving it an exotic look, though it loses strength in comparison to the square superstructures found in conventional ''dravida'' plans. The storied arrangement of the superstructure found in ''dravida'' plans is not easily distinguishable here.Cousens (1926), p. 115 The upper tiers of the seven-tiered (''tala'') superstructure look like cogged wheels with 48 dents.Foekema (2003), p. 61

Other details

The pillars in this temple are finely chiseled and "complicated" but lack the elegance of those at the Kasivisvesvara Temple in

Lakkundi Lakkundi, also referred to as Lokkugundi, was a major city prior to the 14th-century, and is now a village in Gadag District of Karnataka, India. By 10th-century, it was already a major economic and commerce center with mint operations for South ...

. The entrance to the shrine has above it a decorative

architrave In classical architecture, an architrave (; from it, architrave "chief beam", also called an epistyle; from Greek ἐπίστυλον ''epistylon'' "door frame") is the lintel or beam that rests on the capitals of columns. The term can ...

with space for images (now missing) of the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Gods

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...

and

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

. Depending on the dedication of the temple, either Vishnu or Shiva would take the central position in this arrangement. The entrance to the sanctum is elaborately decorated on either side with designs that are floral containing tiny images of dancers, musicians and even a

mithuna Maithuna (Devanagari: मैथुन) is a Sanskrit term for sexual intercourse within Tantric sex, or alternatively to the specific lack of sexual fluids generated, while mithuna is a couple participating in such a ritual. It is the most impo ...

couple (

Gemini Gemini may refer to: Space * Gemini (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac ** Gemini in Chinese astronomy * Project Gemini, the second U.S. crewed spaceflight program * Gemini Observatory, consisting of telescopes in the Northern ...

). In the main

(hall) there are three images, one of the "five headed" Brahma and his vehicle (''

vahana ''Vahana'' ( sa, वाहन, or animal vehicle, literally "that which carries, that which pulls") denotes the being, typically an animal or mythical, a particular Hindus, Hindu God is said to use as a vehicle. In this capacity, the vahana ...

''), the goose, and two images are of

Surya Surya (; sa, सूर्य, ) is the sun as well as the solar deity in Hinduism. He is traditionally one of the major five deities in the Smarta tradition, all of whom are considered as equivalent deities in the Panchayatana puja and a m ...

, the Sun God. The temple has two doorways each with a porch, one facing south and the other facing east. The east facing door has on either side the remains of what must have been elegant

lintel A lintel or lintol is a type of beam (a horizontal structural element) that spans openings such as portals, doors, windows and fireplaces. It can be a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented structural item. In the case of w ...

decoration, and an open hall type of pillared extension containing a large recumbent image of

Nandi Nandi may refer to: People * Nandy (surname), Indian surname * Nandi (mother of Shaka) (1760–1827), daughter of Bhebe of the Langeni tribe * Onandi Lowe (born 1974), Jamaican footballer nicknamed Nandi * Nandi Bushell (born 2010), South Afri ...

(bull) which faces the shrine.

Notes

External links

Dambal

References

* * * {{Hindu temples in Karnataka 12th-century Hindu temples Hindu temples in Gadag district Chalukya dynasty Western Chalukya Empire 12th-century establishments in India