Konark Sun Temple is dedicated to the Sun God or Lord Surya and is located in the city of Konark which is situated in the eastern state of Orissa at a distance of around 65 km from Bhubaneswar and 35 km from Puri. The entire temple was designed in the shape of a colossal chariot with seven horses and twenty-four wheels, carrying the sun god, Surya. The wheels of the temple signify the twelve months of the year and the horses signify the seven days of the week.
This stunning monument representing the Oriya architecture was built in 13th century by the Ganga King Narasimha Deva. This magnificent temple of Surya, the Sun God, is one of India’s architectural wonders and has been declared as a World Heritage by UNESCO in 1984. This temple is also referred as the Black Pagoda, since it was built in black granite.
Konark is actually a combination of two words, Kona (corner) and Arka (sun), which, when combined, means the sun of the corner. Konark was one of the earliest centres of Sun worshipping in India. Apart from the Puranas, other religious texts also point towards the existence of a sun temple at Konark long before the present temple. The temple fell into disuse in the early 17th century after it was desecrated by an envoy of the Mughal emperor Jahangir.
Konark Sun Temple Legend
Legend has it that t Lord Krishna's son Samba was suffering from leprosy due to a curse from his father. It was decreed that he would be relieved of the curse by worshipping the sun God on the sea coast north east of Puri. So in order to please Surya Deva and get relief from this curse he prayed for him for continuous 12 years in Konark situated near Chandra Bhaga river confluence. Surya Deva got pleased with his devotion and blessed to get relief from his disease. In gratitude, he decided to erect a temple in the honour of Surya. While bathing in the river on the following day, Samba found an image of God, made by Shri Vishwakarma. Samba installed this image in a temple built by him in Mitravana. Since then this place is considered to be sacred.
Konark Sun Temple Architecture
The Konark temple is widely known not only for its architectural grandeur but also for the exquisite stone carvings that cover the entire structure. It was constructed from oxidizing and weathered ferruginous sandstone and the walls of the temple contain spectacular carvings of divine and semi- divine, human and animal figures. There are images of animals, foliage, men, warriors on horses and other interesting patterns on the walls and roof. A flight of steps lead to the main entrance. Two lions guard the entrance, crushing elephants. The temple is comprised of a sanctum with a lofty sikhara, a jagamohana and a detached nata-mandira in the same axis, besides numerous subsidiary shrines.
The Sun Temple of Konark is also characterized by curvilinear towers, which are mounted by Cupolas. The main sanctum of the temple is about 229 feet in height. There are three images of sun god positioned to catch the rays of the sun at dawn, noon and morning. The pyramidal roof of the temple, made of sandstone, soars over 30 m in height. Today the main sanctum is in ruins, it is only the audience hall that survives till date. Besides, only a part of the Dancing Hall and the Dining Hall of the temple have survived but the Dance Hall and Audience Hall are intact.
Every year, thousands of devotees and travellers from other parts of the world come here to pay homage and explore amazing architecture of the temple. This magnificent temple is a living example of the architectural excellence and engineering dexterity of the people of the bygone times.