Solar decor in Modhera

Just when the arc of the rising sun becomes visible, the first rays light up the entrance of the Sun Temple at Modhera. The floor of the Sabha Mandap glows through the exquisite toran gateway. As the rays penetrate into the main temple and hit the garbha griha (sanctum sanctorum), it appears to burst in flame. The deep pit, where once stood the golden idol of Sun God, blinds one with sheer brilliance of its illumination. This is on March 20, the spring equinox when sunrays fall directly on the Tropic of Cancer.

Anyone visiting this 11th century temple would be spellbound during spring and autumn equinoxes. Built by the Solanki ruler Rishabh Bhimdev I in 1026 AD, the sandstone structure has outstanding craftsmanship.

The Solankis were considered to be the descendants of the Sun God, the Suryavanshi Gurjars. The temple is built in a way that the first rays of the sun during equinoxes fall directly on the idol of the god.

Sadly, history says that the temple was destroyed and its images were defaced by marauders like Alauddin Khilji and Mahmud of Ghazni. Nobody knows how the idol made in gold got lost. He was shown riding on a chariot drawn by seven horses. The temple complex was also partially damaged by the Bhuj earthquake of the most recent times. The main temple complex remains unscathed as it was built to survive any earthquake.

Always a beauty
Though it is a spectacular sight during the equinoxes, the Modhera Sun Temple is nothing short of its sheen even otherwise. It’s like paying homage to the architectural legacy of the Solanki reign, one of the mighty dynasties of Gujarat. The temple precedes the more popular Konark Sun Temple in Odisha by 200 years.

Once buzzing as a commercial city, the village of Modhera today is a peaceful place, thus making a visit there more enchanting. A pleasant two-hour drive from Ahmedabad leads to this sparsely populated village. A lovely garden now surrounds the main temple complex that’s situated on the banks of River Pushpavati.

The first thing that strikes us is the zigzag pattern of the steps of a rectangular tank, Surya Kund. In the ancient texts of Skanda Purana and Brahma Purana, the area surrounding the temple was called dharmaranya (forest of righteousness), associated with the era of Ramayana. Hence, the locals refer to the tank as Rama Kund.

The descending steps have intermittent shrines. On one corner is Ganesha, while in the centre of three sides are the shrines of Natraja, Vishnu on Sheshnag and Shitala mata. There were 108 small and medium shrines in between the stairs dedicated to various gods. Some remain now. We see turtles swimming in the tank, which once might have meant for ablutions before entering the main temple.

The temple ceases to be a place of worship for it no longer features the sun god idol. It is, however, an architectural marvel. We ascend the steps to an octagonal structure called Sabha Mandap (gathering hall) through an exquisitely carved keerti toran. The horizontal bar is missing. The entrance faces east to welcome sunrays. Also known as Rang Mandap, here’s where people gathered for worship, dancing, meetings, public functions and other cultural activities.

Our guide, Girish Goswami, then asks us to closely see the carvings on the 52 pillars that adorn the mandap. They represent the weeks in a year. I could see engravings of a tribe of monkeys throwing stones, a representation of Hanuman’s vanara sena building the bridge across the ocean. With other scenes like Sita sitting in Ashoka Van, Kumbhakaran with a gada, war scenes and so on, one can almost see a slide show of the Ramayana depicted on stone. There’s baby Krishna as makhan chor and also lifting the Govardhan parvat on his finger, and Arjun at his swayamvar. Around the inner chamber are 12 niches depicting 12 adityas, manifestations of the sun. This also represents the months in a year.

Just behind the Sabha Mandap is the main temple. As we circle the main temple, we see that it rests on a plinth sculptured like an inverted lotus. The lotus opens with sunlight and closes at sunset.
Above them is a frieze of elephants. The temple is said to be erected on gajpeethika (back of the elephants). Above this is a horizontal band of sculptured figures of human beings engaged in various stages of life. From conception to last rites, all find expression in stone. From demons to deities, mundane stuff to erotic sculptures... all are recreated.  

Our guide points at something else. One of the Sun God sculptures is shown wearing gumboots. Strange, but the guide says it’ s because of Persian influence ­— Irani Sthapatya Shaili. This temple’s architecture shows both Maru-Gurjara (Chalukya) style and Persian influences.

Some sculptures are educative, like the sitting posture of a woman during childbirth and water birth. As ‘water baby’ is trending again, it’s surprising to see the water birth depiction on the temple walls, showing Indians knew it a long time back.

Another aspect here is the sculptures of women with varied hairstyles and ornaments. A woman is shown with ornaments on her side bun, beaded necklace and bajuband (upper arm bracelets). From costumes to ornaments, one sees a fashion-conscious society of the 11th century.

References many
It’s interesting that our ancient temples were just not places of worship but an educational tool for social and cultural life. Dharma, artha, kaama and moksha ­­ — the sculptures depict all aspects of life. There’s reverence to elements like fire, air, earth, water and sky, and the respective gods can be seen in eight cardinal directions along with the Vedic gods. The temple premises have been a hub of art and culture. Every January, the legacy of yesteryear is carried on with the Modhera Dance Festival. Goswami’s friend Vipul Rawat shows a picture of the dancers in the background of the temple that looks resplendent in colours.