Khajuraho, India. Hindu, Chandella Dynasty. c. 930-950 C.E. Sandstone
Though the temple is one of the oldest in the Khajuraho fields, it is also one of the most exquistely decorated, covered almost completely with images of over 600 gods in the Hindu Pantheon. The main shrine of the temple, which faces east, is flanked by four freestanding subsidiary shrines at the corners of the temple platform.
Made of fine sandstone and ashlar masonry
Nagara style Hindu Temple
Consists of a shrine known as vimana and a flat-roofed entry porch known as mandapa
The shrine of Nagara temples include a base platform and a large superstructure known as sikhara which viewers can see from a distance
Chandela style temple
The temple is not a hall for congregational worship instead it is the residence of a God
Also use temple for cultural events and festivals
This was a way to spread cultural values
Devotees approach the Lakshmana temple from the east and walk around its entirety and this known as circumambulation
The central deity at the Lakshmana temple is an sculpture of Vishnu in his three headed form known as Vaikuntha who sits inside the temple’s inner womb chamber
Sculpture has a harmonious integration with the architecture
Figures are sensuous with revealing clothing
Depicts idealized female beauty was important for temple architecture and considered auspicious, even protective
Sculptures of loving couples known as mithuna (the state of being a couple) appear on the temple as symbols of divine union and moksha, the final release from samsara (the cycle of death and rebirth)
Erotic poses symbolize regeneration
The ertotic poses were not intended to be provocative, but instead served ritual and symbolic function significant to the builders, patrons, and devotees of these captivating structures
The Lakshmana temple was the first of several temples built by the Chandella kings in their newly-created capital of Khajuraho
The original patron of the Lakshmana temple was a leader of the Chandella clan, Yasovarman, who gained control over territories in the Bundelkhand region of central India that was once part of the larger Pratihara Dynasty
Yashovarman sought to build a temple to legitimize his rule over these territories, though he died before it was finished.
His son Dhanga completed the work and dedicated the temple in 954 C.E.
This temple is grouped with a series of other temples in Khajuraho
At one point in time over 80 temples existed at this site, including several Hindu temples dedicated to the gods Shiva, Vishnu, and Surya. There were also temples built to honor the divine teachers of Jainism (an ancient Indian religion).
