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Mahabalipuram is renowned for its series of charming rathas and the spectacular carved relief depicting Arjuna's Penance. The magnificent Shore Temple, built by king Rajasimha in the seventh century, is a unique temple that houses the shrines of both Shiva and Vishnu while the Varaha Cave is one of the many rock-cut caves in Mahabalipuram..
Mahabalipuram is one of history's intriguing enigmas. The mystery of Mahabalipuram lingers, unraveled, but its sculptural extravaganza is a living testament of the virile artistic temperament of the Pallavas who were trendsetters in South Indian art. The lone temple, that guardian of the shore, is a becalmed spectator. It has been an apathetic witness to this impassioned spectacle every dawn for the last 1,200 years.
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Things not to be missed:
Arjuna's Penance
Arjuna's Penance, an enormous relief made on two huge boulders, is the universe itself in stone, throbbing with a vastness of conception. This colossus of art, 27 metres long and 9 metres high, is perhaps the world's largest bas-relief. The two large elephants are remarkable for their artistry, and so are the scenes from the Panchatantra.
Caves
The Varaha Cave, a small rock-cut Mandapam is a faceted and finished gem with two incarnations of Vishnu-Varaha and Vamana. Particularly noteworthy here are four panels of the famous Pallava doorkeepers. The Dharmaraja Cave, built in the early seventh century, contains three empty shrines. The Mahishasuramardhini Cave (mid-seventh century) has fine bas-reliefs on its panels of enduring beauty. The Somaskanda sculpture radiates peace, power, and wisdom.
About 5 km north of Mahabalipuram is another cave called Tiger Cave, a rock-cut shrine possibly dating back to 7th century.
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Pancha Rathas
A group of structures lying at the southern extreme of Mahabalipuram, amidst casuarina trees, are the famous Rathas (chariots). The Pancha Pandava Rathas, as they are called, are five in number. Out of these, four are carved out of a single rock, while the fifth on the west is scooped out from a small rock. The square Draupadi and Arjuna Rathas, the linear Bhima Ratha, the taller Dharamraja Ratha and the apsidal Nakula-Sahadeva Ratha, constitute the complex.
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It is here that one sees architecture in action and every crucial stage of its evolutionary process. A closer look at the shrines will enable to see how the artist carved each shrine out of the living rock, beginning from the top and working downwards. Chisel markings and unfinished parts of the shrine add much to our admiration of the Herculean task of cutting the hard granite rock, from top to bottom, chip by chip, to fashion an entire temple.
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Krishna Mandapam
The Krishna Temple is one of the earliest rock-cut temples of Mahabalipuram. The walls of the temples depict scenes of pastoral life, one with the image of Krishna lifting the Govardhan Hill in his fingertips to protect his people from Indra.
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Shore Temple
This is a structural temple, built block by block rather than cut out of stone as in the case of the Rathas. The compound wall of this temple is lined with charming sculptures of Nandi the bull while the figure of Vishnu is present in the sanctum sanctorum. Built in the 7th Century the temple has suffered the effects of erosion by wind, rain, and sea although a rock wall now keeps the sea back..
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