Musafir

We entered Warangal Fort and visited the Swayambhu Temple.

Just in front of the Swayambhu Temple is an vast open space which is used as sort of a museum. We bought our tickets and entered. Looking inside, any emotional history and art lover would be in tears; so was i. My friend was confused with my behaviour but as he understands me, did not interrupt.

Inside are various pieces of extraordinary art which were part of magnificent temples and buildings and placed here. They were destroyed during the invasion. We cannot even identify and match two pieces to one construction.

Parts of temples and palaces are collected from various places in the fort and displayed in this enclosure. The ASI need to be appreciated for this. Even though they are not properly maintained, at least they are available. These are the remains of a glorious kingdom.

There are tiles that might have belonged to the floor or ceiling of a building. Idols of various forms are just strewn here and there. The one that you see in the picture should be the beam designs of a temple, now broken, scratched and in ruins. There are various idols that are broken but still has the grace. There are so many idols over here that i cannot place all the pictures here. All of them are masterpieces within themselves. It feels awesome imagining the pleasure that the craftsmen would have got when their products were being worshipped or being used inside palaces.

The most magnificent of the structures in here is the stone chariot. This should have been here all these centuries considering its size. It would be extremely difficult to move a structure which is on the verge of collapsing. This structure, as any others  has been almost taken down save the pillars and a broken base. The most amazing thing that you find in this and nowhere else is the use of pink sandstone.

The ASI has constructed pillars recently to support the structure. The pillars are almost 20 feet in height and are carved with amazing designs. The entire chariot is made of black stone and pink sandstone is used for some of the designs as you see in the picture above.  You can see many other pieces of the chariot lying among the bushes and just  placed on a side. Some say that this construction is the throne of the king, but that is unlikely as it has wheels like a chariot.

The other significant pieces of construction are the four entrances that have been placed here. They are almost 25 feet in height and still intact without any damage. These entrances are the icons of Warangal and are decorated with minute carvings. There are pigeons, lions and peacocks on either side on the pillars.

Once should take at least a couple of hours visiting each idol and sculpture in this enclosure. You can find architecture which is very unique and cannot be found anywhere in South India. Even the broken pieces of art speak stories…

To be continued…