Orccha
On day two we started for Orccha 125 km from Gwalior. It is
15km from Jhansi by road. I love road trip for I can intimately connect to new
lands. It was a bright sunny day and almost all the fields along the stretch were
parched with no trace of standing crops. Bundelkhand, as the region is referred
to, is considered relatively dry since it receives modest amount of rainfall. We
travelled on the Agra-Mumbai highway to reach Orccha. Half way through we passed
Datia, a vibrant town famous for its forts, temples and other monuments. We
briefly stopped along the highway near Datia as we spotted a distantly located
fort on the top of a hill. Though we couldn’t actually visit the fort, we were
informed that the fort was built in 16th century by Bundela Chief
Raj Bir Singh Deo and the place was frequented by British Viceroys who loved
its architecture and grandeur.
Datia Fort
Orccha is a small town established by Rudra Pratap, a Bundela
Rajput Chieftain in 16th century and lies on River Betwa. Located on
a river bank it served as an ideal capital. It is a small town with numerous
shrines, temples, monuments strewn around the place. The town is known for its
meticulous architectural style. We first visited Ram Raja Mandir popular among
the locals and tourists where Lord Rama is worshipped. It was originally the
palace of Bundela King Madhukar Shah. His
wife Queen Ganesh Kunwari was a staunch devotee of Lord Rama. She through her
dedication brought the idol of Rama from Ayodhya by foot. She wanted to install
the idol in a temple and hence gave prior order before her travel to construct
a temple for installing the idol. But by the time she returned with idol the
temple was not ready. So she placed the idol in her palace. Once the temple was
ready, the idol wouldn’t shift from the palace. Since then the palace turned
into a religious shrine. Hence the architecture of this temple is akin to a
palatial residential complex. Ram Raja
temple is the only temple in India where Lord Rama is offered an armed
salutation and worshipped in a palace as a Raja.
Ram Raja Mandir
To the right side of
Ram Raja temple is Chatturbhuj temple, the shrine which was built as
per the orders of Rani Ganesh Kunwari to install Lord Rama. Since the
construction couldn’t be completed in time, the idol of Lord Rama was
worshipped in the palace itself while this temple was dedicated to Lord Vishnu.
Chatturbhuj temple is a marvellous piece of architecture, very spacious with a
huge mediation hall and hidden stair cases within to reach high elevation. The
original idol is missing but makeshift idols have been installed in the mandap
currently. The beautifully carved conical shikaras enhance the magnificence of
the structure. To reach the temple we had to climb a steep flight of stairs. The
temple offers a beautiful view of the Orccha Fort and is directly opposite to
Raja Mahal.
Chatturbhuj temple
Orccha Fort complex has three parts- Raja Mahal, Jehangir
Mahal, Rai Parveen Mahal. Just as we entered the fort complex on to the right
was Raja Mahal with raised balconies
and luxurious royal quarters with plain exteriors. This palace construction was
started by Raja Rudra Pratap in 1531 and was completed in the reign of Bharati
Chandra. The palace had a square plan and divided into two wings with five
storeys on three sides and four storeys on one side. The interiors had exquisite murals with bold, colourful
paintings and mirror inlay on ceilings and walls. Most of these paintings are
based on the mythological themes of Ramayana and Mahabharata. The inner corridors
lead to Sheesh mahal. The walkways are laurelled by domed pavilions giving it a
majestic appearance. We next moved onto
the Jahangir Mahal.
Jahangir Mahal was built by Vir Singh Deo who was
Emperor’s close friend to commemorate the visit of Emperor Jahangir to Orccha.
His mother Jodha was a Rajput princess so the palace in his reception was built
to display Bundela Rajput architectural
style. The palace is square in plan with five storeys and eight pavilions. The
overhanging eaves on the corners of the first storey were held by series of
elephant brackets at regular intervals on all sides of the palace. The
interiors were liberally embellished with intricate carvings, paintings and
decorations. The palace is adorned with graceful Chhatris and the top storey offers
a panoramic view of the town and its monuments. The fort complex is safely enclosed
behind high walls and is located in lush green environs amply irrigated by waters
of the Betwa River. Entire fort complex is located on an island of the river.
Behind the Jahangir Mahal is Unt Khana (shelter for Camels) a simple structure
and a view from its roof gives an encompassing landscape of the historical town.
Behind these Mahals are numerous ruins once shelters of military officers,
ministers etc.
On to the left side of the fort complex lies a three storied
structure, Rai Parveen Mahal built by
Raja Indramani who was smitten by her charms of Rai Parveen, an accomplished
dancer, poetess and singer. She was paramour of Indramani. Enthused by stories of
her beauty and charisma Emperor Akbar summoned her to his court. Locals say that
Rai Parveen impressed the Emperor with her purity of love for King Indramani
and so she was sent back to Orccha. The mahal is now surrounded by thick
vegetation and hence we dropped our plans of visiting it. Scorching sun played
a damp squib by weakening our enthusiasm. Our Orccha trip was in the first of October
and still the obstinately high temperatures refused to sink. We had a brief
halt at the Betwa Retreat, a M.P Tourism Resort for lunch and then headed
towards the acclaimed Cenotaphs or Chhatris lying along the Betwa river front.
These are group of fifteen Chhatris built in commemoration of
Bundela kings and members of their clan. The complex housing the Chhatris opens
into a well maintained garden with Chhatris built opposite to each other with a
Shivling in the centre. The symmetrical view of cenotaphs within in the complex
was breathtaking. Cenotaphs were built on elevated a square platform. Sanctum
sanctorum is also square shaped and in the centre. The upper portion has been
made angular with arches. The peak is patterned in Nagara style of temple
architecture. To have a better view of the place we climbed the stairs within
the Chhatris. But due caution must be exercised as the monuments shelter bats
and insects. Vultures, the endangered
species in India are omniscient in Orccha. Right next to these Chhatris are two
monuments on the river bank which are almost in ruins and one of them is a
dilapidated Shiva temple.
Cenotaphs or Chhatris
We next visited the Lakshmi
Narayana Temple on the outskirts of Orccha. It was built in 17th
century by Vir Singh Deo and the temple was dedicated to Goddess Lakshmi. Its
construction is an engineering marvel with unique blend of temple and fort
architecture. As we stepped inside, it opened up into a triangular corridor
leading to the sanctum sanctorum which is on an elevated square platform. The
idol of the main deity has been removed but the interiors had vibrant murals
with exquisite wall paintings each depicting Dasavataras and stories of
Ramayana. Luckily most of the paintings are well preserved retaining their original
colour and vivid quality. Coverings of walls and ceilings had a variety of religious
and secular subjects. As we circumambulated the sanctum sanctorum, we observed
that the inner chambers are built in octagonal shape. This temple has
intriguing design and must visit during the trip. Few attractions, which we
missed out and must be accommodated in the travel plan, are the light and sound
show of the Orccha Fort and availing the provision of home stay in Orccha. Home
stay enables a person to stay with a resident family and enjoy local
hospitality.
These consummately beautiful architectural marvels of Central
India are undoubtedly the most precious jewels with poignant history. In Orccha
some of the monuments are well maintained and perhaps deserve to be included in
the UNESCO list of World heritage centres alongside Khajuraho. The medieval town
of Orccha is frozen in time with its palaces and temples vibrating in the original
grandeur and splendour. It is a silent town devoid of hustle and bustle of
crowded cities and an excellent place to fathom the glory of medieval India. With
deep reverence towards the rulers who patronised the art and endeavoured to
build mammoth structures we returned Gwalior via Sonagiri.
Orccha
Sonagiri
Temple number 57
Few thoughts:
During the course of travel through remote villages I was
terribly upset at the sight of large number of unemployed youth. India is a
young country with 65% of the population under 35 years of age. Unfortunately
most of them are jobless; hence dejected and misled and are allured by easy
money. Unemployment of youth is a greatest scourge on nation and has dangerous repercussions
on the society and country at large. Government under the banner of extending
subsidies is indirectly breeding laziness among the youth. Majority of youth in
the rural areas are unskilled and semiskilled and except for the peak harvest
season of the crops they remain unemployed and unoccupied. Though schemes have
been designed to provide guaranteed employment during the slack season,
prolonged execution of these schemes will have a dampening effect. Since the
aim of these designated programs is providing daily wages, youth are no longer
motivated to upgrade their skills. Without working skills, they are bound to
depend on government forever. Wish the government considers revising the
existing schemes and /or consider annulment of such programs. Instead it would
be pertinent for government to focus on skilling the youth and ride on the wave
of huge demographic dividend. Skilling millions
of young and energetic Indians should be the mission to march towards progress
and prosperity.
2 comments:
well versed Description I can not under take this journey but enjoyed your narration as though am in your vehicle good keep it up
Thank you very much for a very positive feedback.
Post a Comment