Madan Kamdev: Khajuraho of Assam
A beautiful and historic temple of Assam dates back to the 10th and 12th century AD which tells us about the medieval period of Assam.
Madan Kamdev, an archaeological site dates back to the 10th and 12th century AD, is situated at Baihata Chariali of Kamrup in Assam. it is one of the popular places of heritage and considered as one of the most beautiful temples ever to built in Assam. Madan Kamdev is a fascinating open-air museum. There is also a museum that displays artifacts uncovered from the hillside.
Kamdev or Madan is the Hindu God of Love, and according to folklore, he had incurred the wrath of Lord Shiva for disturbing his tapas and was turned to ashes. But on the advice of his wife Parvati, Lord Shiva restored Kamdev to his original form. The site where Kamdev regained his original form came to be known as ‘Kamarupa’ (in Assamese). Kamdev reunited with his wife Rati, on a hillock, where he built a temple to Lord Shiva. It is this very temple that we know today as ‘Madan Kamdev. The temple has beautiful carving of dancing nymphs and fairies, Gods, goddesses, demons, and griffins, animals, flowers, and men and women. Steeped in an erotic carpet of sculpted stone and it's erotic iconography has given it the nick name 'Khajuraho of Assam'. Further underlining its erotic nature is the ruined garbhagriha (sanctum sanctorum) of a medieval temple. It houses a large stone idol of Shiva and Parvati in an intimate embrace or ‘Alingan’ posture. Among the ruins are also broken parts of huge pillars covered with flowers and cosmic figures; a six-headed Bhairava; a four-headed Shiva; and statues of the Sun, Ganesha and Vidyadhara, the latter celestial beings who are believed to possess great wisdom.
In 1977, the Directorate of Archaeology, Assam, recognized the significance of the Madan Kamdev temple complex and, under its care, scores of sculptures and structural components of the temple were unearthed. Excavations at the site reveal the ruins of at least 24 temples, large and small, all of which were covered in dense foliage for centuries. The sculptures they found consisted of Surya, Ganas and Vidyadhara, in addition to niches and pillars decorated with statues of men, women and animals, and moulded blocks. The most striking artifacts unearthed were three monolithic models of temples of the North Indian Nagra style. Roughly 1 mt tall and known as angashikhara, these models had been used to decorate the base line of the temple’s dome. Archaeologists determined that the other objects salvaged from the site too belonged to the Madan Kamdev temple complex and that the way in which the ruins lay scattered suggested that the temples had been destroyed by an earthquake.
Madan kamdev is not only an archeological wonder, it's also an eden inside the green forests of Dewangiri hill. The scenic beauty and chirping birds around the ruins of temples make it heavenly. The river Madankuri flows below the hill and also a vast swampy land extends to the Gopeswar hill on the west.
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