Mahadev temple at Tambdisurla.
A trip to the Mahadev temple at Tambdisurla was planned. From our place, it was slightly more than 70 kilometres, and we had to pass through Mapusa.
I am an avid photographer, so whatever I feel is an interesting sight, view of a building, statues by the town cross roads, etc, I click their photos, lots of them from the windshield or the side window of the car while on the move. That being so, you may find photos that have nothing to do with the Mahadev temple at Tambdisurla, but were taken en route to the temple. Travel time was approximately 2 hours.
No matter from where you start, an almost hour-long journey to the Mahadev temple at Tambdisurla is through lush green thick forest, and the last few kilometres are through the Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary. The scenic beauty of the lush green thick forest and the pleasure of driving through that stretch make you gladly accept the distance and the time taken to reach the temple. (Remember this visit is in the Monsoon)
No entry ticket for Mahadev temple, but the guard post of the forest department charges Rs 20/- as garbage cleaning fee.
Cars have to be parked at some distance from the temple. As is normal, there are restaurants around the parking lot. Hawkers are also selling flowers, Bel-pans, and coconuts for offering at the temple.
From the parking lot to the temple, there is a well-paved and well-maintained path,with a short bridge over the river Ragada. The path, again, is through a lush green dense forest. Walking along this scenic path is sheer delight. When on the bridge, the river and the forest view along the river are fantastic and like a picture postcard in its beauty.
The temple is an ASI-protected and maintained monument of National importance. The ASI is doing an excellent job in discharging both these duties. The garden surrounding the temple and its lawns are beautifully maintained and are a visual feast. And this needs special mention because any government department doing a good job is a rare happening.
Eventually, when you arrive at the temple, you see it is very modest in size, set in the centre of a beautiful garden, which is in a well-fenced gated courtyard. There is an information board installed at the gate of the courtyard which givesdetailedin formation about the temple. It is well worth the time spent in going through the info. The text of the information given on this board is given as a postscript at the end of this review.
When earlier, I said the size is modest, the reality is that it is a small temple. I think it is about 15 to 20 meters in length, 10 meters wide and 10 to 15 meters high.
This is the oldest surviving Kadamba-style temple dedicated to Lord Shiva in Goa. The temple survived the Islamic invasions and the Goa Inquisition due to its remote location, which was quite inaccessible and away from the main settlements of the time, in a clearing deep in the forest at the foot of the Western Ghats, which surround the site. However, the head of the Nandi and the top of the three tired shikhra is missing. There is no record of how or when these damages occurred.
Even though the lathe-turned pillars of the sabhamandapa suggest a strong influence of the Hoysala art, and even though contemporary with the Hoysala temples of Halebidu, Karnataka, the engravings and stone art appear very simple. The asthakona lotus engravings of the sabhamandap roof are quite good; other engravings are ok.
I strongly recommend the monsoon season as the best time to visit the Mahadev Temple at Tambdi Surla.
Post Script:
Information from the ASI installed board at the site.
Mahadev Temple, Tambdisurla
The temple is located in Molem / Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary on the left bank of a natural stream locally known as "vazar sakalacho whal' amidst lush green settings.
The temple is facing east and stands on a simple moulded plinth. It consists of a garbhagriha, an antarala and a pillared mukhamandapa where a stone sculpture of Nandi is seated. The mukhamandapa is accessible from three sides with balustrade entrances towards the east, north and south. The raw material used for the construction of the temple is chloritic schist, which is a soft stone on which intricate carvings are possible
. The mukhamandapa is embellished with four carved lathe-turned pillars and kakshasana on three sides and is externally decorated with rosettes. A relief scene of an elephant trampling a horse is carved on an eastern pillar, which is very prominent.
The capitals of pillars are carved with nagabandhas, and the ceiling is decorated with intricately carved lotus flowers of the ashtakon variety.
The perforated stone latticed screen with devakostas decorates the entrance of the garbhagriha, and the lathe-turned pillars of the mandapa suggest a strong influence of the Hoysala art.
The four devakostas facing the east, south and north, having miniature decorated pillars on either side, resemble the pillars of the mukhamandapa. The pinnacle is decorated with a miniature kadamba shikhara.
The exterior wall of the garbhagriha is simple and raised from the moulded adhisthana, ridged by simple ardhastambas. The two-tiered Kadamba-Nagra vimana was embellished with sculptures like Lakshmi-Narayan and Vishnu-Janardhan, besides Gajalakshmi flanked by Ganesh and Saraswati on the northern, dancing Siva and Siva-Parvati on the western and Bhairava and Brahma on the southern sides. The antarala and garbhagriha of the temple have a remarkable resemblance with kalleshwar temple at Balambid in Dharwad district and jain temple at Belgaum in Karnataka. All these temples have plain walls without niches, with two-tiered shikhara
The temple reflects the later Chalukyan and Hoysala architectural features and expresses synchronisation of faith revealed through the presence of Vaishnavite deities, although the temple is dedicated to Shiva, thus imparting a unique place in the Goa Kadamba temple architecture and is datable to the 13th century AD.
Archaeological Survey of India, Goa Circle.
This monument is at KrantiVeer Chowk, Mapusa. Dedicated to Freedom Fighters Shivram Rajguru, Bhagat Singh and Sukhdev Thakur.
This photo is of Shree Hanuman Natya Grah, located on Hutatma Chowk, Mapusa, before AI editing.
Intrigued by the thought process of those who chose this name for a 'Natyagrah'
This photo is of Shree Hanuman Natya Grah, located on Hutatma Chowk, Mapusa, after AI editing.
Intrigued by the thought process of those who chose this name for a 'Natyagrah'
Motor launches and yachts on the Mandovi River. Photo taken from Atal Bridge.
Crossing the Atal Setu, Goa.
The Atal Setu, Goa.
The white domes and pink walls made for an interesting sight. This photo of Masjid E Noorani was taken from the flyover portion of Panjim - Belgavi Main Road from a moving car.
This photo of Sunni Shahi Madina Masjid was taken from the flyover portion of Panjim - Belgavi Main Road from a moving car. Sunni Shahi Madina Masjid.
Thick, dense forest, Ragada River, beautiful and serene landscape in the Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary.
Further on, the Mahadev Temple is on the bank of the same River
Entry gate to Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary.
Entry Point Mahadev Temple Tambadisurla.
A well-paved and well-maintained scenic path from parking lot to the temple.
A well-paved and well-maintained scenic path from the parking lot to the temple.
Photo from the bridge over Ragada/ Ragoda River, on the way to Mahadev Temple.
The scenic beauty and the calm, serene surroundings are simply mind-blowing.
Bridge over the Ragada/ Ragoda River, on the way to the Mahadev Temple.
Photo taken from the "ghat" made on the river for purification before 'darshan'.
Bridge over the Ragada/ Ragoda River, on the way to the Mahadev Temple.
Photo taken from the "ghat" made on the river for purification in the river before 'darshan'.
ASI information board at Mahadev Mandir.
The Mahadev Temple, Tambadi Surla, First view.
Mahadev Temple, Tambdisurla.The temple is located in Molem National Park/ Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary on the left bank of a natural stream locally known as "vazar sakalacho whal' amidst lush green settings. The temple is facing east and stands on a simple moulded plinth. It consists of a
1. garbhagriha (here at the extreme right three storied pyramid structure),
2. AN antarala (Here, the single-story middle structure and
3. A pillared mukhamandapa (here, extreme left with sloping roof).
The mukhamandapa stands on four carved stone pillars as if some of their portions were made on modern lathe-like machines.
Stone sculpture of Nandi.
How and when the Nandi lost its head is not on record.
Very well lit and decorated Linga of the God Mahadeva in the garbhagriha of Mahadev Temple in Tambdisurla. Very pretty sight.
The garbhagriha.
The devakostas ("niche of the gods", These are ornamental niches carved into walls) of Shri Ganesh on the gate of garbhatraha.
The perforated stone latticed screen with devakostas decorates the entrance of the garbhagriha,
On both sides, there are Intricate King Cobra Carvings
The perforated stone latticed screen with devakostas decorates the entrance of the garbhagriha,
On both sides, there are Intricate King Cobra Carvings
The Mukhamandapa
The Mukhamandapa is accessible from three sides with balustrade entrances towards the east, north and south. The raw material used for the construction of the temple is chloritic schist, which is a soft stone on which intricate carvings are possible
. The mukhamandapa is embellished with four carved lathe-turned pillars and kakshasana on three sides and is externally decorated with rosettes. A relief scene of an elephant trampling a horse is carved on an eastern pillar, which is very prominent.
The capitals of the pillars are carved with nagabandhas, and the ceiling is decorated with intricately carved lotus flowers of the ashtakon variety.
A diagonal View of Mahadev temple.
Side view.
The exterior wall of the garbhagriha is simple and raised from the moulded adhisthana, ridged by simple ardhastambas. The two-tiered Kadamba-Nagra vimana was embellished with sculptures like Lakshmi-Narayan and Vishnu-Janardhan, besides Gajalakshmi flanked by Ganesh and Saraswati on the northern, dancing Siva and Siva-Parvati on the western and Bhairava and Brahma on the southern sides.
Two such devakostas ("niche of the gods", these are ornamental niches carved into the exterior walls of the garbhagriha or the surrounding shrine walls)can be seen on this facade
The synchronisation of faith is revealed through the presence of Vaishnavite deities, although the temple is dedicated to Shiva, thus imparting a unique place in the Goa Kadamba temple architecture.
Another angled view.
The two-tiered Kadamba-Nagra vimana was embellished with sculptures like Lakshmi-Narayan and Vishnu-Janardhan, besides Gajalakshmi flanked by Ganesh and Saraswati on the northern, dancing Siva and Siva-Parvati on the western and Bhairava and Brahma on the southern sides.
Four such devakostas ("niche of the gods"; these are ornamental niches carved into the exterior walls of the garbhagriha or the surrounding shrine walls)can be seen on this facade
The synchronisation of faith is revealed through the presence of Vaishnavite deities, although the temple is dedicated to Shiva, thus imparting a unique place in the Goa Kadamba temple architecture.
The mukhamandapa stands on four carved stone pillars as if some of their portions were made on modern lathe-like machines.
A relief scene of an elephant trampling a horse is carved on an eastern pillar, which is very prominent.
The mukhamandapa stands on four carved stone pillars as if some of their portions were made on modern lathe-like machines.
The capitals of the pillars are carved with the nagabandhas, and the ceiling is decorated with intricately carved lotus flowers of the ashtakon variety.
