history of konark

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