Page:History of Indian and Eastern Architecture Vol 2.djvu/175

 CHAP. IV. KHAJURAHO. 141 Next in interest and extent to the Bhuvane^war group is that at Khajuraho, the old capital of the Chandellas, in Bundelkhand, as before mentioned 1 (p. 49). At this place, about 150 miles south-east from Gwaliar, there are now to be found some thirty important temples, all of which, with the exception of the Chausath Jogint and the Ganthai, described when treating of Jaina architecture, are of nearly the same age. Nor is it difficult, from their style and from the inscriptions, to see what that age was. The inscriptions range from A.D. 954 to A.D. 1 002 ; 2 and though it is not always clear to what particular temple they apply, we shall not probably err much if we assign the whole twenty-eight temples enumerated to the century beginning 950 and ending 1050, with a margin of a few years either way. What renders this group more than usually inter- esting is, that the Khajuraho temples are divided between the three great Indian religions : about one-third being Jaina, one- third Vaishnava, and the remainder vSaiva ; and all being nearly contemporary, it conveys an impression of toleration that pre- vailed at that period. In each group there is one or more larger temples with smaller ones scattered about. In the 5aiva class it is the Khandarya Mahadeva, and in the Vaishnava series it is the Chaturbhuja or Ramachandra. A curious result of this toleration or community of feeling is, that the architecture of all the three groups is so similar that, looking to it alone, no one could say to which of the three religions any particular temple belonged. It is only when their sculptures are examined that their original destination becomes apparent, and even then there are anomalies which it is difficult to explain. A portion, for instance, of the sculptures of the principal Saiva temple the Kandarya Mahadeva are of a grossly indecent character ; 3 which is understood to be com- paratively rare in 5aiva temples, but not unusual on Vaishnava shrines. But here the fact may be added to many others to prove how mixed together the various sects were even at that time, and how little antagonistic they then were to each other. The general character of these temples may be gathered from the annexed representation (Woodcut No. 341) of the great Saiva temple, the Kandarya Mahadeva. As will be seen from the plan (Woodcut No. 342), it is 109 ft. in length, by 60 ft. 1 We are indebted to Gen. Cunning- ham for most of our information about this place, and it is from his ' Reports ' and from photographs that the following account has been chiefly compiled. 'Archaeological Reports,' vol. ii. pp. 412- 438 ; vol. vii. pp. 41, 42, 55-58 ; vol. x. pp. 16-213 an< 3 vol. xxi. pp. 55-69. Ten photographs of the temples are given in Griffin's ' Famous Monuments,' plates 48-57. 2 ' Epigraphia Indica,' vol. i. pp. 121- 153- 3 Cunningham, ' Archaeological Survey Reports,' vol. ii. p. 420.