Konark (Odia: କୋଣାର୍କ) is a small town in the Puri district in the state of Odisha, India. It lies on the coast by the Bay of Bengal, 65 kilometers from the capital of the state, Bhubaneswar.It is the place of the 13th-century Sun Temple, also known as the Black Pagoda, built in black granite during the reign of Narasimhadeva-I. The temple is a World Heritage Site. The temple is now mostly in ruins, and a collection of its sculptures is housed in the Sun Temple Museum, which is run by the Archaeological Survey of India.
History of konark:
One of the most remarkable world level monuments of religious significance, a true
masterpiece of architecture proudly stands in the form of Sun Temple at Konark.
Built in 13th century by the King Narasimhadeva, the temple is designed in the
shape of a colossal chariot with seven horses and twelve wheels, carrying the
sun god, Surya, across heavens.
Located at a manageable distance from the seat of Lord Jagannath, Puri at 35 kms;
the temple is 65 kms from the temple city
of Bhubaneswar.The name of Konark temple is an mixture of two
words--Kona meaning corner and Arka meaning the Sun. That is to say that the
Sun god worshipped in Ark Kshetra is called Konark.
Mythological belief:
The mythological reference states that Lord
Krishna's son Samba was smitten with leprosy due to his father's curse. The
former underwent severe penance for 12 years at Mitravana near the confluence
of Chandrabhaga River with the sea at Konark and ultimately succeeded in
pleasing the God Surya, the healer of all skin diseases, and was cured of his
illness. In gratitude, he decided to erect a temple in the honor of Surya.
While bathing in the river on the following day, he found an image of God,
fashioned out of Surya's body by Viswakarma. Samba installed this image in a
temple built by him in Mitravana, where he propitiated the God. Since then,
this place has been regarded as sacred.
worship is a custom , it develop from ancient time
In ancient times worship of Sun god was in vogue and the people were accustomed
with the worship of some Supreme
deities--one mother Earth as Dharitri Maata , air, water and the other the Sun,
the Dharam devata. Sun god is regarded as the supreme lord of the universe and
the prime object of life giving energy, being the healer of diseases and
bestower of desires.
Surya has been a popular deity in India since Vedic period. Therefore, it is
described in Rig Veda regarding Prayer of Sun God as follows. It was dedicated
to the Sun-God (Arka) popularly called Biranchi-Narayan, and the tract in which
it is situated was known as Arka-Kshetra as well as padma-kshetra. Among the
five great religious zones or Kshetra which were located in Odisha (Orissa),
Konark was considered to be one, the other four being Puri, Bhubaneswar,
Mahavinayak, and Jajpur.
There are several smaller shrines situated in the neighborhood of the Sun
Temple. In them are found Rameswar,Chitreswara,Tribeniswara, and Utpaleswar,
all Siva-lingas; and Ramachandi Rudrani, Khileswari, Charchika and Chitreswari,
various forms of Goddess Durga. Legends embodied in the Kapila Samhita, the
Madala Panji, and the Prachi-mahatmya, take the sanctity of Konark back to
mythical times. The legends of these late texts are an obvious adaptation of a
much earlier tradition as recorded in the Bhavisya Purana and the Samba Purana.In the course of time Konak along with its
temples and sacred spots have lost their glories. It can neither be definitely
said as to how long this temple stood in the fullness of its glory and
splendour nor the causes of its decay. There are however, many speculations on
this. The exact date and reason for the fall of this magnificent monument is
still in mystery. History is almost silent about it. Scholars also differ in
their opinions. In support of their views they putforth varied views. The
various speculations made as to the possible cause of the fall of this
magnificent temple are given below.
Downfall of konark temple : Some
historian said that due to early death of the king Langula Narasimha Dev, the
builder of the Konark temple, the construction of the temple had been left
half-hazardly. As a result of this the incomplete structure collapsed in course
of time. But this view stands without any basic data. It is rather established
from the records of Madala Panji of Puri Jagannath temple as well as from some
copper plates that the 1278 A.D. and the king Langula Narasimha Dev reigned
till 1282.
It
is stated by some that according to the legend of Dharmapad, due to committed
suicide of Dharmapada on the temple just after placing its crowning stone, the
temple lost its sanctity and considered as an unfortunate (Asuva) element and
was thus rejected. But it is recorded in the Madala Panji and many historians
are of opinion that Sun god had been established in the temple and was being
worshipped regularly for years together. So this argument is also not
acceptable, being unfounded on history.
The great poet of Orissa Sri Radhanath Ray in
his Kavya 'Chandrabhaga' has narrated a story about the cause of the fall of
temple. According to that Kavya, Sumanyu Risi (saint) cursed the Sun god for
his ill-behavior towards his daughter Chandrabhaga, who committed suicide.
Hence the temple of the Sun god fell down. But such an imaginary story cannot
be taken as a historical occurrence.
An the opinion of some Engineers, as usual
with the progress of construction of the temple walls, its outside and inside
were being filled with sand. After completion of the temple when the sands were
cleared both from inside and outside, due to imbalance of pressure of walls the
temple fell down. But many scholars do not agree with this argument, when they
find the existence of a throne of the Sun god inside the temple.
Some scholars are of the view that due to earthquake the temple fell
down. It is also not impossible on the part of a strong earthquake to demolish
such a large structure at a moment.
But there is no proof in support of occurring such an earth quake in this area. There is also no sign of suppression of the
foundation of the temple at any direction. Had there been any such a strong
earth quake causing the fall of the Sun temple, it could have also created a
devastation in Konark area. And such an occurrence could have been remembered
by the people as they have remembered the story of Dharmapada, Ramachandi and
Bisu Maharana. Nowhere there exists such a devastating statement.
The arguments that the temple was affected
due to Thunderstruck is also not acceptable. Since the temple walls are of 20
to 25 feet in thickness it is not at all possible on the part of any
thunderstruck to disturb it in any manner.
To know more about konark temple
AC PRADHAN (odisha history book)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Konark_Sun_Temple
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yQf2EChaAI
