| Temples & Legends of Himachal Pradesh |
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| Temples & Legends Of India |
CHAMBA |
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follows another richly carved, round moulding and a frieze decorated with a winding
creeper. The inner jambs, likewise ending in late Kashmiri capitals, aredivided by
flower-scrolls into four medallions, each framing the figure of a dancing apsara. Finally
a frieze of scroll-work frames the door of the sanctuary proper.The lintel, capped by the
ornamented mouldings next to the extreme door-jambs, connects the highest niches and
capitals of the middle set of jambs. It consists of five miniature chapels separated by a
screen of short pillars dissolving into plaitwork ornaments (or interlaced snakes?). Each chapel consists of an image niche enclosed by a depressed arch resting on two slim fluted columns, while on the crown of the arch a kalasa ending in a high pinnacle stands; this niche again iscovered by a towering gable, either of the Kashmiri type; i.e. two superposed cappedtriangles, with a bird in each of the lateral corners, and an amalaka on top; or of a more archaic type, a central ogival vault resting on two short pillars, and two lateral half- vaults, i.e. the front of an early Buddhist chaitya-hall. In the niches five deities are seated, cross-legged (from left to right): (1) a crowned four-armed god on a lion, holding a staff and rosary, vessel, and hand in abhayamudra; (2) a similar deity, but with attributes inverted; (3) a crowned four- armed god sitting on garuda, holding arrow and trident, vessel and battle-axe(4) a figure without crown, big head, protruding eyes and grinning mouth, sitting on a lion holding staff and sword, trident and shield possibly Rahu (5) a crowned, two-armed god sitting on a prostrate yaksha, one hand holding a staff, the other in tarjani- mudra (threatening). The chapel gables project from a frieze of hansas (geese) carrying a long pearl string in their beaks; this frieze is continued over the capitals of the middle jambs. |
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