Sunday, December 14, 2008

THOUSAND PILLAR TEMPLE, WARANGAL, INDIA

About 150 kms. from Hyderabad lies the ancient city of Warangal. Noted today for its beautiful lakes, magnificent temples and wildlife, Warangal possess the marvelous thousand pillared temple, built by King Rudra Deva in the 12th century. The famous Thousand Pillar Temple, built in 1163 AD, by king Rudra Deva is an important monument situated near the Hanamkonda-Warangal highway. One thousand richly carved pillars and a magnificent black basalt Nandi bull are unique to this temple which is dedicated to Lords Shiva, Vishnu and Surya.

The temple is in shape of a star and has three shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva, Vishnu and Surya. The temple is built on a 1m high platform on the slopes of the Hanumakonda hill, and has a majestic monolithic Nandi. The black basalt Nandi, a monolith, has a lovely polished finish. There are many small lingam shrines surrounding the gardens. The temple is famous for its richly carved pillars, screens and detailed sculpture.

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