Lecture 9Outline of Last Lecture I. The Five Basic Messages of the QuranII. The Five Obligations of a Good MuslimIII. The Dome of the RockIV. The Great Mosque V. AlhambraOutline of Current Lecture I. The Boar Avatar of Vishnu, VarahaII. MamallapuramIII. Lakshmana TempleIV. The Great Temple at ThanjavurCurrent LectureDate: February 24, 2015Title: Later South Asian ArtProfessor: Frederick AsherReadings:Readings: Art through the Ages, Book C, pp. 433-41Terms:- avatar (incarnation): In Hinduism, the incarnation of a deity in human or animal form to counteract some particular evil in the world- ratha: In Hindu temple architecture, a ratha is a facet or vertical offset projection on the tower- Hinduism: A religion of India that emphasizes freedom from the material world through purification of desires and elimination of personal identity. Hindus hold a strong belief in reincarnation- Vishnu: a Hindu God; the preserver of the universe and upholds Dharma. Vishnu manifests as many avatars- Varaha (boar incarnation of Vishnu): the avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu in the form of a boar- Shiva: Hindu god of the Yogis, also the destroyer of the world. One of the most important HindudeitiesWorks:- Boar Avatar of Vishnu, 401-02, sandstone, Udayagiri- Descent of the Ganges, c. 630, sandstone relief, Mamallapuram- Rock-cut temples, Mamallapuram, c. 630, sandstone, Mamallapuram ArtH 1001 1st Edition- Rajarajeshvara temple, 985-1014, granite, Thanjavur- Lakshmana temple, Khajuraho, 954, sandstone, KhajurahoRise of the Gupta dynasty=proclaimed themselves worshippers of Vishnu, ruled large territory in India, 319, started to sculpt first Hindu monumentsI. The Boar Avatar of Vishnu, Varaha- Story: The earth in India has been created multiple times. When toomuch evil exists, the earth is destroyed and recreated. When theearth was created, the weight of the Himalayas plunged the earthback beneath the waters. Vishnu, as the Boar Varaha, dove underthe water and saved the earth. - Allegory for how the Gupta dynasty “saved” the Earth from warfare- Two short walls- one woman standing on turtle, other on a crocodile(represents Ganges and Jamuna Rivers)II. Mamallapuram- Important port- Created by a king named MallamaDescent of the Ganges Relief- King’s kingdom suffered drought, so he went off to the Himalayas,where he suffered austerities in hopes that it would bring relief fromthe drought- Cleft in the middle is filled with serpent figures associated with water- As a result of his extraordinary penance, the God Shiva appeared tohim- God Shiva asks what he wants, he responds water for my people, soShiva created the Ganges- Lions are an emblem for the dynasty- Elephants & monkeys depict images of protectionReliefs: common idea is protection, both deal with water, water had to beinvolved in building of these reliefs (canals)III. Lakshmana Temple- Khajuraho - Circumnambulation-Ground Level-Scenes of warfare- Leave shoes outside- Don’t enter house of worship with shoes on- Erotic Figures near the Sanctum- Image of deity above erotic figures- Protection by loving couples- Loving couples on the bottom part - Word for intercourse is the same as the word for corner, the erotic figures are in a corner where two walls meetIV. The Great Temple at Thanjavur (Built by Rajaraja I)- 985-1015 Rajaraja’s reign- Rajarajeshvara - Chola Dynasty- The Lord who is Rajaraja- South side, juncture of WesternWall - Shiva-lord of dance, overcomesignorance, completelydemolishes the earth since theearth has accumulated too muchevil- Vishnu and Brahma having conversation, when great pillar appears, Brahma fliesup to see its head. Vishnu assumes Varaha to go find its origin. Neither couldfind top or bottom. Brahma lied, then the pillar explodes. The god is Shiva, andShiva lets temples be built for Vishnu, but since Brahma lied, no temples were to be built for Brahma. - Postulation: They piled on dirt around the temple to create a ramp so that they could put the stones in place. After a couple years of construction, the whole temple would have been buried, but the ramp would extend and could have reached 2km. They remove the dirt and reveal the