SEVAI School Special Children visited Thanjavur Big Temple

SEVAI School special children visited Thanjai Periyakoil

SEVAI Special educators’ team under IED Project had gone to Thanjavur with 42 special children on a field trip to the Thanjavur Big Temple to teach them how to find a monument, look at it. Divakumar, then coordinator of SEVAI of IEC Project reported “The teachers and children seemed very interested in the temple architecture.Thanjavur, a calm town tucked away in the interiors of Tamil Nadu now, once was capital to a sprawling Empire that extended from the fertile plains of Kaveri river to Mekong Valley. The Cholans who ruled the major part of Southern India for almost 1500 years, built this massive temple - Brahadeeswara Temple or Big Temple.The perfect symmetry of the structure, the elaborate arrangement of impeccably sculpted stone figures adorning the outside walls and the visual symphony of the large stones meticulously placed one atop another with amazing mechanical precision - is breathtaking. Cholan Temple architecture's hallmark is the Vimana Tower surrounded by a richly ornamented Gopuram gateway constructed out of granite stones. The main temple at the time of completion in the year 1010 consisted of a Sanctum Sanctorum tower known as Sri Vimana, a big rectangular mandapa with an intervening vestibule known as Mukha Mandapa. The Sri Vimana has a large granite stone structure as the basement to lend structural stability for the massive towers upon it. The temple tower - Vimana is one of the tallest towers of a temple and has a monolithic octagonal stone cupola weighing 82 tons. There is a stone bull (Nandi) looking at the main deity - Shiva - inscrutable and eternal. Raja Raja Cholan constructed this before 1000 years with out any technical instruments. i am say this is 8th world miracle. The Kumbam (structure on the top) of the temple is carved out of a single stone and it weighs around 80 tons in this kumbam shadow never falls in ground The Lingam measures 9 ft in height, 23.5 ft in circumference. The Lingam was brought from the shores of Narmadha River. This Lingam is also called as "Raja Rajeswara Mudaiyan" because of its bright appearance.
Nandhi: The Nandi ,the divine vehicle of Lord Shiva, is a monolith measuring 12 feet in height, 19.5 feet in length and 18.25 feet in width, it weighs about 25 tons. This is the second biggest Nandhi in India. On the ceiling of the Nandi Mantapam, are colorful frescos that are over 1000 years old and still maintain their magnificence.. The Brahadeeswara Temple, is one of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, completed in 1010 AD and dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple entrance has an imposing gateway on the east, on either sides of which stand two small shrines dedicated to Ganapathi and Murugan and further through there is another Gopuram 90 feet high. This way leads into an outer court.A second and magnificent Gopuram further leads into the main court in which the temple is built. The inner court is about 500 feet long and 250 feet broad, is well paved with brick and stone. The court is surrounded on all sides by a cloister. The temple basement is covered with inscriptions that give details of the temple’s administration and revenue, and provide valuable historical information on Chola society and government”. Govin