Tanjore and Trichy -- Tamil Nadu

Friday, January 23

This morning started with flat omelets (Claire’s preference) and excellent coffee (a little bit of really strong coffee and hot steamed milk mixed in is fabulous here – I want to know the secret).

My first agenda when I get reconnected to my own coffee pot in England will be to practice the art of South Indian coffee (Lord knows I’ll need it with all that damp cold!).

Our guide for the day was a salt and pepper haired man who was fabulous at explaining things and engaging the kids – good thing, as we spent 12 hours with him!

First we headed to Brihadishwara Temple (yes, same name as mentioned in yesterday's discourse, different venue) in Tanjore (Thanjavur). Our guide relayed information re: the Hindu religions that made it easier to understand – so many gods/idols (idol worship), each god presenting itself in different forms to convey different messages, each with different vehicles (bull for Shiva, for example).

And different types of temples – Vishnu for those following that god, Shiva for Shiva followers (determined by family lineage). The former are vegetarians, the latter non-veg.

Three main gods: Brahma (creator), Shiva (destroyer of evil), Vishnu (sustainer). Then other gods, Ganesh (elephant god) etc.

First temple of the day was a Shiva temple (most in South India are Shiva temples, per our guide). A granite temple, it is the “finest example of Chola architecture” per eyewitness travel guides – and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was completed in AD 1010, built by Rajaraja Chola I as a symbol of the “unrivalled power and might of the Cholas.” (Politics and religion have mixed for a long time, haven’t they?)

This temple has the 2nd largest bull of any temple in India. It is carved out of a single block of granite that weighs 25 tons and is 20 feet long.

At the temple was another elephant whose Tamil name means “White Mother” in English. She is 53 years old (factoid: elephants live as long as humans). She’s been at the temple since she was a baby. Her trunk is freckled; apparently that happens as elephants age. All 3 of us got blessings from her and Claire put money in her trunk.

We then went to the Royal Palace, now a museum, with beautiful granite and bronze statues from the 9th-18th centuries. A mix of gods/goddesses from temples and archaeological digs. We went to the “tower” (really just one level up in the complex) for a better view and there saw a whale skeleton that seemed to go on forever.

Then we checked out India’s oldest library, housing palm leaf manuscripts and old European books collected by one of the rulers. Each manuscript looked like a group of neatly stacked leaves with intricate writing on them.

The library also houses old maps and some paintings from colonial days (London as it appeared in the 1800’s). Once just a resource for royals, the library is now available to the public for visiting and doing research.

After our library stop we went to a government controlled shop and got a hard sale from a nice young salesman who REALLY thought I should buy lapis lazuli (sp?) necklaces. I passed but did get a lovely bracelet; Claire and Ava were served chips and coke, I had jasmine tea and Claire had a nice chat with one of the salesmen about semi-precious gems.

Kids each got pretty carved ornaments made in Kashmir – most items in the store
(75%) were made by local artists, we were told, 25% from N. India. Many of the tourist shops I’ve seen in India in general carry silver jewelry; Ramu told me it’s for tourists as most Indian women prefer gold gold gold, and of course the wedding dowry must feature gold.

I’ll take the silver.

After disappointing the sales staff at the shop by leaving plenty of merchandise for other tourists, we stopped at a bronze and painting “factory” – a village workshop where 2 artists sit on the floor in a single room working.

The painter, who has won national awards and traveled outside India to showcase his work, showed how he paints on glass and wood. With glass he must paint the image in reverse using oil paints. He was working on a large scene featuring Hindu gods when we were there. Most of his works incorporated the gods, though he also had some family and rice farming scenes.

On wood he paints in the area’s traditional fresco style – natural paints derived from plants and limestone, mixed with water.

The bronze sculptor, we were told, is the only artist of his kind still creating bronze statues like those made in the 11th century and earlier. Five different metals were traditionally used – silver, copper, zinc, tin and gold (gold given its cost is less commonly used today, except to produce higher value items). A 5th metal is instead incorporated but I can’t remember what it is).

He gave us a demonstration, start to finish:

- 1st he showed us a bees wax/resin figure (he heats both materials so they mix and are pliable).

- From this mixture, he forms a figure, 1 part at a time (the example he was working on was the elephant god Ganesh; he’s first done his stomach, then an arm, trunk, etc.) While we were there he formed an ear with his hands and a tool, then took a narrow, hot rod from the fire and heated both the ear and side of elephant’s head where it would be placed. He applied it, then told us it would be covered with clay once the little figure hardened.
- To illustrate the next step he took a wax figure that was already hardened and made a watery paste with some kind of herb, whch was poured over the figure. Apparently it has a property that helps ensure a good impression.
- A big ball of wet clay was then applied all around the figure, with a hole made from figure outward.
- The ball sits in the sun for 2 weeks until dry.
- The ball is then heated so that the wax drains out.
- Once drained, metals – melted in a vessel placed in a charcoal oven at some absurdly hot temperature -- are poured into the newly formed mold through the hold in the clay ball.
- I think the artist said after a day or 2 the outside of the ball can be broken off. He gave each of us a hammer to remove the coating of one that was ready.
- Out came an undetailed but surprisingly smooth, well formed statue of a baby!
- The final step is the carving of all the details – fingers,jewelry, hair, etc. – and polishing.

After the demo we were escorted to his private show room, where figures of all shapes and sizes were displayed. He said most of his statues are sold in local shops; we saw several of them at the government controlled store.

Eventually I felt compelled (huge sales pressure) to walk away with something so we are now proud owners of a small Ganesh, the elephant god that represents properity.
From that shop we drove to Trichy (Tiruchirappalli). Situated on the banks of the river Cauvery, it is the fourth largest city in Tamil Nadu. It was a citadel of the early Cholas which later fell to the Pallavas. The town was built around the Rock Fort by the Nayaks of Madurai.

There we had lunch w/ our guide, who did the ordering. I had a fabulous vegetable curry and flatbread along with chicken and rice, served in a clay pot (a traditional serving method to retain heat and add flavor, I was told). That dish was particularly good. And the kids enjoyed their fried fish. The guide ate entirely with his hands; the three of us were brought silverware -- apparently they figured we wouldn't know where to start with shoveling rice in sans a fork.

Afterward we went to a special area of the river used for prayer at funeral time. We saw the stalls where priests pray with families of deceased as chickens wandered by (they're used at special times for cock fighting, we were told).

At the river we saw many people along the banks and in the water, washing themselves and their clothes. Brightly colored garments hung on fences while sunlight glinted on the water.

We then stopped at another shop. Here arts and crafts made by women are sold; the kids each found lovely necklaces and I a pendant.

Then we walked through the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, the largest temple complex in the world:

It was built on an island in the middle of the Kaveri and covers an area of 2.5 km. Enclosed by seven rectangular walled courtyards, this temple has 21 gopurams, the largest of which was completed in 1987 and measures 73 m in height. The temple is replete with excellent carvings and numerous shrines dedicated to various gods. It is believed that Sri Ramanujar the Vaishavite saint and philosopher is embalmed inside the temple premises in the Sri Ramanujar Sannidhi.

Some of its many towers were being painted so were covered by thatched “roofs,” thus looked like dingy haystacks. One beautiful temple, uncovered, was kept in its original style – a cream colored stone one that is now a World Heritage site. We climbed up to a special viewing area for a closer look and watched a lovely orange-red sunset.

We ran out of time to hit the city’s fort, a little “mountain” – we passed by it twice, though – a lovely focal point of the city with what appears to be a great view.

The spectacular Rock Fort Temple, the landmark of the city, is on the shores of the Kaveri. It is perched on a massive rocky outcrop at an altitude of 83 m above sea level. The Thayumanaswamy Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, is situated halfway to the top. It has a 100-pillar hall and a vimana covered with gold. On the southern face of the rock are several beautifully carved rock-cut cave temples of the Pallava period.

We did, however, find time to seek out South Indian sweets – the 3rd shop we hit had what our guide was seeking to share with us – some kind of cashew milk candy. Yum! I bought a box of various S. Indian sweets to enjoy during our travels.
Then back to Tanjore for the night.