Land of Kashyapa - Page#19 - Sankaragaurisvara and Sugandhesa temple ruins

 Land of Kashyapa - Page#19

Sankaragaurisvara and Sugandhesa temple ruins

30 kilometers to the west of Srinagar and close to Baramulla are the ruins of the Sankaragaurisvara and Sugandhesa temples. Both places are less than a kilometer apart.

The morning we traveled to the place, the roads were abuzz with army movement. Lots of armored carriers and trucks were moving at a furious pace with sirens blaring. Just that morning and not far from our place there had been killings.

I was confused and surprised by the divide that existed in Kashmir. After decades of turmoil, on the one side, seemingly peace is prevailing as schools and businesses are running as usual, and on the other, there is an undercurrent of fear and apprehension about daily life with the threat from terrorists. Anyone could clearly see that the presence of the Indian army was important in restoring sanity and making life-as-usual possible.

To the critics of the Indian Army, I can only recall the famous line by Jack Nicholson as Colonel Nathan R. Jessup in the movie " A few good men" -

"I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom that I provide and then questions the manner in which I provide it. I would rather you just said thank you and went on your way, otherwise, I suggest you pick up a weapon, and stand a post out there"

About the two temples built by Shankaravarman of the Utapala dynasty and who rose to power in 883AD:

Kalhana does not give a favorable account of the king. "...after his successful digvijaya the king of Kashmir founded Sankarapura, and together with his wife, Sugandha, the daughter of Svamiraja, 'the ruler of the northern region' (udakpathaprabhoh), they built two Siva-temples there: Sankaragaurisa and Sugandhesa. As Kalhana remarks with his usual malice: 'Poets and kings of these modern times augment their own work by plundering the poems or the property of others. Thus this ruler, who possessed but little character, had whatever was of value at Parihasapura [the town built by Lalitaditya], carried off in order to raise the fame of his own city"

Kalhana adds: "King Avantivarman, the first king of the Utpala dynasty had a foul-mouthed son Shankaravarman who didn’t have taste for high poetry. He founded a new town called S’ankarapurapattana and built two temples at the place dedicated to Shiva. The new king named one of the temples after his wife Sugandha as Sugandhesa. After the early death of her two boy kings, Sugandha too got to rule Kashmir from 904 to 906 A.D."

However, Shankaravarman's adviser Jayanta gives a more favorable account of the King when he says "He is said to be 'supremely devoted to Siva', and 'merciful to all religious schools".

About the temple - Writer Chaman Lal Gadoo observes: "The final refinement of the form (during the golden age of Avantivarmans temple building) and a more polished look is seen in temples built by Sankarvarman (883-902AD) who succeeded Avantivarman. He shifted his capital to Sankarabattnam (Pattan) and built two temples, Sugandhesa and Sankaragaurisa These structures reveal a refinement in the handling of material, and treatment of ornamentation and have a more polished look."

The Sugandhesa temple ruins are larger and maintain great character. With the trees growing along and over the now vandalized pillars and beams it reminded me of Ta Prohm in Cambodia. About the Sankaragaurisvara temple - only the central sanctum walls are in place while the roof is missing. The temple ruins are now inside a park.

Alexander Cunningham founded the ASI and when he writes about the Sugandesa temple in 1847 notes that "the chambers of the temple measuring about 6 feet by 4 feet, once must have contained linga: for he found the pedestals of three of those emblems, which had been converted into Muslim tombs within fifty paces of the temple."

Sri Madhusudhanan Kalaichelvan prayed at the ruins of every Hindu temple. He observed that the aura of the lord who was in the sanctum ("moola murti") would continue to exist even when the place was violated and ravaged. It is important to respect that sentiment and remove one's footwear when stepping into the empty space of what once was a sanctum.

I have included a video with a timelapse at the end blending it with a somber Sivaranjani bgm. I also included a picture made at the Sugandesha temple - shot through the handle of the gate to the location. It looks like the hangman’s noose and is a metaphor for the deplorable acts of brutality, along with unbound fear and hatred towards Sanatana dharma by the ‘mlecchas’

Sriram(Hari)