Big Temple Of Thanjavur

Brahadeeswara Temple, better known as 'Big Temple', conceived by the Great Emperor Raja Raja Cholan and built by his master architects. Regrettably the temple has gained repute within the state of Tamil Nadu but it extravagance is still not well known to the rest of the world. The Encyclopedia Britannica describes the Tamil speaking people as conceivably the greatest Temple builders in the world. It describes the great Big Temple as the "grandest Temple in India."

As you move toward the city of Thanjavur, the Immense Temple with its supercilious tower, is an eye-catching object, striking and elegant. Its base measures eighty feet square and the tower raises fourteen stories to the height of two hundred feet. The top stone is a huge monolith, brilliantly carved and weighing eighty tones. The courtyard are not covered over as any other temples in South India, but are open to light and air, and within the confines is a open square six hundred feet by two hundred feet. Here is the gigantic stone bull Nandhi, fifteen feet long and twelve feet height, in a couching stance. It rest upon a podium which you can climb by twelve steps, and has over it a large covering supported by granite pillars.

This bull consecrated to Lord Shiva, faces the glorious Temple, an quadrilateral building of red sand stone, with the enormous tower raising nobly over the place of worship. Further on the left, but within the enclosed space, is another but much smaller shrine, of beautifully engraved stone, and covered passage enclose the court, enclosed with common pictures of heroes. To the right side, within the court, is the temple of Lord Subramaniya : as superb a piece of decorative architecture, as it to be found in entire India. The steps up to its entry are supported by small carved elephants with men in Extraordinary attitudes, sitting on or falling from their trunk.

The successful completion of 1000 years of the construction of the architectural marvel and world heritage site, Brahadeeswara Temple, popularly known as Big Temple, by the Emperor Rajaraja Chola, will be celebrated in a grand manner in Thanjavur shortly. A decision to this effect was taken during the advisory committee meeting convened by the district administration to chalk out the plans to commemorate the special occasion.

According to the Archaeology Survey of India (ASI) sources, the construction of the temple, the structural marvel- started in 1006 AD and was completed in 1010 AD. The related festival of the Big Temple is now due in October. So, the district administration has now decided to celebrate the valediction of 1000 years of the construction of the Big Temple for a period of one week by June of July before the onset of the monsoon. Also decided to recommend the Government, to release the special postal stamps, coins and currency notes bearing the emblem of Big Temple for this occasion. The district administration would organize a photo exhibition, seminar, debate on the Big Temple and the history of Emperor Raja Raja Chola on this occasion.