30-659: The Lakshmana Temple is a 10th-century Hindu temple built by Yashovarman during the Chandela dynasty located in Khajuraho , India. It is dedicated to Vaikuntha Vishnu - an aspect of Vishnu . As part of the Khajuraho Group of Monuments , and owing to its architecture and religious importance, the temple was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1986. This temple is located in
60-689: A rivalry between the two kingdoms. The Chandelas acknowledged the suzerainty of the Pratiharas, who were the rivals of the Rashtrakutas. The Kalachuris, on the other hand, had forged matrimonial alliances with the Rashtrakutas, and probably aided them in their anti-Pratihara campaigns. The identity of the Kalachuri king defeated by Yashovarman is not certain, because three Kalachuri kings ruled in quick succession as his contemporaries: Bala-Harsha, Yuva-Raja and Lakshmana-Raja. S. K. Mitra theorizes that
90-768: A scorching fire to the Gurjaras. These claims appear to be exaggerated, as similar claims of extensive conquests in northern India are also found in the records of the other contemporary kings such as the Kalachuri king Yuva-Raja and the Rashtrakuta king Krishna III. The ruler of the Gauda region (in present-day West Bengal ) is believed to be a Pala king, possibly Rajyapala or his successor Gopala III . The Palas attempted to resurrect their power through westward expansion, which might have resulted in their conflict with
120-636: A vast empire stretching from at least the Narmada river in the north to at least the Kaveri river delta in the south. A copper grant of 993 issued by the Shilahara king of Thana states that the Rashtrakuta control extended from the Himalayas in the north to Ceylon in the south and from the eastern sea to the western seas . This grant also states that when the emperor Krishna III mobilised his armies,
150-489: A water tank, which can be identified with one of the tanks in Khajuraho. Krishna III Krishna III (r. 939 – 967 C.E.), whose Kannada name was Kannara , was the last great warrior and able Rashtrakuta Emperor . He was a shrewd administrator and skillful military campaigner. He waged many wars to restore the glory of the Rashtrakutas and played an important role in rebuilding the Rashtrakuta empire. He patronised
180-431: Is Pancharatha on plan (top-view). Its shikhara is clustered with minor urushringas (refer images of temple top i.e. shikhara). The wall portion is studded with balconied windows with ornate balustrades . It has two rows of sculptures (refer images of temple's outer wall) including divine figures, couples and erotic scenes. The sanctum doorway is of seven sakhas (vertical panels). The central one being decorated with
210-681: The Lakshmana Temple at Khajuraho . Yashovarman was born to the Chandela ruler Harsha , who was a feudatory of the Gurjara-Pratiharas of Kanyakubja (Kannauj). His mother was Kanchuka, who came from a Chahamana family. By the time Yashovarman's ascension, the Pratiharas depended on their feudatories to a large extent. The Rashtrakutas , who were the main rival of the Patiharas, were busy in dynastic feuds. This offered
240-544: The Chandelas an opportunity to increase their own power. Yashovarman did not formally give up the allegiance to the Pratiharas, but he was practically independent. Yashovarman conquered the important fortress of Kalanjara , although the identity of his enemy in this campaign is not certain. One theory is that he conquered Kalanjara from his overlords, the Gurjara-Pratiharas. Another theory is that he defeated
270-644: The Chandelas. The Chandelas did not occupy Gauda, but their invasion further weakened the Pala power, possibly paving way for the subsequent usurpation of the power by the Kambojas . The Chedis in the Khajuraho inscription denote the Kalachuris of Tripuri. Although the Chandela-Kalachuri relations were friendly in the preceding years, it appears that the Kalachuri alliance with the Rashtrakutas led to
300-483: The Cholas decisively in a Battle of Takkolam in present-day North Arcot district. Krishna III was joined by his Western Ganga feudatory Butuga II in this campaign. Chola prince Rajaditya Chola was killed "while seated on his elephant with a well-aimed arrow". From the famous Atakur inscription it is known that Krishna III gave Buthuga II extensive Ratta territories near Banavasi in return for this victory. With
330-459: The Gurjara-Pratiharas after their occupation of Kalanjara. The Khajuraho inscription also states that Yashovarman turned the rivers Ganga and Yamuna into his "pleasure-lakes", and that the waters of these rivers became muddy when his might elephants bathed in them. This suggests that Yashovarman controlled the area around present-day Allahabad . Yashovarman married Puppa, who was the mother of his successor Dhanga . Krishnapa, his other son,
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#1732771863943360-775: The Pratihara king became apprehensive about losing control over them. K. A. Nilakanta Sastri speculated that Yashovarman captured Kalanjara after allying with the Rashtrakutas and the Chedis ( Kalachuris of Tripuri ). However, there is no historical evidence attesting the formation of such an alliance. Despite these uncertainties, Yashovarman's conquest of Kalanjara is undisputed: his successors, including his son Dhanga , titled themselves Kalanjaradhipati ("Lord of Kalanjara"). A Khajuraho inscription dated 1011 VS (953-954 CE) credits Yashovarman with several other military successes. It declares: ...the illustrious king Yashovarman, who
390-459: The Pratiharas. Yashovarman may have captured the fort from the Rashtrakutas, which may explain why he continued to recognize the Pratihara sovereignty even after conquering Kalanjara. However, there is no definitive evidence of Yashovarman's victory over the Rashtrakutas. R. K. Dikshit points out that the Rashtrakuta claim is part of a possibly exaggerated poetic eulogy. It may not imply an actual conquest of these two fortresses, and may only mean that
420-700: The Rashtrakuta feudatories in Malava region at that time. The Koshalas might have been the rulers of the Dakshin Koshala region, possibly the Somavamshi allies of the Kalachuris. Yashovarman probably raided their territory. The claim of Yashovarman's successes against the Kashmiris seems to be a poetic exaggeration. L. F. Kielhorn translated the verse about the Khasas ( tulita Khasabalah ) as "equalled
450-542: The Rashtrakuta suzerainty, resulting in a military campaign against him. Thus, Marasimha must have also defeated the Paramaras. However, K. N. Sethi believes that Krishna III only targeted the Gurjara-Pratiharas: there is no evidence to show that Siyaka rebelled against Krishna III or faced a battle against his forces. At his peak, Krishna III ruled an empire that extended at least from the Narmada river in
480-607: The Rashtrakutas, dated about 964 is the Jura record (near Jabalpur ) in present-day Madhya Pradesh . The details of these victories are inscribed in this inscription. Two inscriptions of Marasimha, dated 965 CE and 968 CE, state that his forces destroyed Ujjayani (which lies in the Paramara territory of Malwa ). Based on this, some historians such as A. S. Altekar conclude that the Paramara king Siyaka must have rebelled against
510-549: The Rashtrakutas, who had captured Kalanjara from the Pratiharas. The Karhad copper-plate inscription of the Rashtrakuta king Krishna III states that "the hope about Kalanjara and Gurjara vanished from the heart of the Gurjara"; that is, the Gurjara-Pratihara king gave up all hopes of retaining control of Kalanjara and Chitrakuta . Based on this, H. C. Ray theorized that Krishna managed to capture these two forts from
540-695: The Western Temple complex in Khajuraho . Khajuraho is a small village in the Chhatarpur District of Madhya Pradesh , India It is a Sandhara Temple of the Panchayatana Variety. The entire temple complex stands on a high platform ( Jagati ), as seen in image. The structure consists of all the elements of Hindu temple architecture . It has entrance porch (ardh-mandapa), Mandapa , Maha-Mandapa, Antarala and Garbhagriha . Unlike other temples in Khajuraho , its sanctum
570-576: The defeated king might have been Bala-Harsha, who ruled for a very short period, and whose name has been omitted from some of the records of his successors. Yashovarman's achievements in Mithila are not certain; he possibly defeated a tributary ruler who occupied a small territory on the Pratihara-Pala border. The Malavas referred to in the inscription might have been the Paramaras , who were
600-997: The fall of the Cholas, he extracted tribute from the Pandyas and the Chera ruler of Kerala . He also obtained the submission of the King of Ceylon, extracted tributes from the Manadlika rulers, and erected a pillar of victory at Ramesvaram. This victory is narrated in Somadeva's writing Yashatilaka Champu of 959 as well. However, from location of the inscriptions it is argued that Krishna III had full control only of Tondaimandalam (northern Tamil Nadu ) as his inscriptions are not found further south in modern Tamil Nadu . After these victories he proclaimed himself "Conqueror of Kacci and Tanjai" (Kanchi and Tanjore). He exerted influence on Vengi (modern Andhra Pradesh ) by helping Badapa secure
630-532: The famous Kannada poets Sri Ponna , who wrote Shanti Purana , Gajankusha, also known as Narayana, who wrote on erotics, and the Apabhramsha poet Pushpadanta who wrote Mahapurana and other works. His queen was a Chedi princess and his daughter Bijjabbe was married to a Western Ganga prince. During his rule he held titles such as Akalavarsha , Maharajadhiraja , Parameshvara , Paramamaheshvara , Shri Prithvivallabha etc. At his peak, he reigned over
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#1732771863943660-474: The forces of the Khasas". However, according to R. C. Majumdar , in this context, the word tulita means "treated with contempt", not "equalled". The Khasas were the neighbours of the Kashmiris, and this too, seems to be poetic embellishment. The Kuru region was a part of the Pratihara territory, so the claim about the Kurus also seems to be an exaggeration. However, it is possible that the Chandelas clashed with
690-670: The kings of Chola, Bengal, Kannauj, Andhra and Pandya regions used to quiver. He slew the Western Ganga ruler Rachamalla II and made his brother-in-law Butuga II the king of the Gangavadi territory. He fought the Gurjara Prathihara and captured Chitrakuta and Kalinjara regions. He defeated his family relations, the Kalachuris of Tripuri (Chedi) when they had turned against the Rashtrakutas. Later he invaded
720-524: The north and stretched south covering large parts of present-day northern Tamil Nadu in the south. The Prathihara , the Paramara , the Seuna (ruled by Vaddiga) and the northern Kalachuris were his feudatories in the northern Deccan and central India. This enmity with the northern Kalachuris of Tripuri proved fatal to the empire towards the end of his rule. Krishna III was also perhaps reckless in giving large fiefs (land grants) to his commanders. He gave
750-575: The southern Deccan and recaptured Kolar and Dharmapuri from the Banas and Vaidumbas who had given shelter to Govinda IV due to his matrimonial relations with the Cholas . Though he initially may have experienced setbacks, Tondaimandalam was secured by 944. He defeated the Cholas and captured Kanchi and Tanjore , according to the Siddalingamadam plates of 944. In c. 949, he defeated
780-562: The ten incarnation of Vishnu. The Lintel depicts goddess Lakshmi in the centre flanked by Brahma and Vishnu. The sanctum contains four-armed sculpture of Vishnu. One of the niches has the image of the sculptor and his disciples at work. Main image is of three-headed & four-armed sculpture of Vaikuntha Vishnu . The central head is of human, and two sides of boar (depicting Varaha ) and lion (depicting Narashima ). Yashovarman (Chandela dynasty) Yashovarman ( IAST : Yaśovarman; reigned c. 925–950 CE), also known as Lakshavarman,
810-531: The throne against his competitor Amma II. Later, Danarnava of Vengi became his feudatory. While Krishna III focussed on southern Deccan , the Chandelas had captured Chitrakuta and Kalinjar. This prompted Krishna III to send his Western Ganga vassal Marasimha II , son of Butuga II , to retrieve the lost areas. Marasimha defeated the Gurjara Prathiharas. The northernmost Kannada inscription of
840-474: Was a king of the Chandela dynasty of India. He ruled in the Jejakabhukti region ( Bundelkhand in present-day Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh ). He practically established the Chandelas as a sovereign power, although he formally acknowledged suzerainty of the Gurjara-Pratiharas . His major military achievement was the conquest of Kalanjara (modern Kalinjar). He is also notable for having commissioned
870-676: Was a sword to (cut down) the Gaudas as if they were pleasure-creepers; equalled (or treated with contempt) the forces of the Khasas; (and) carried off the treasure of the Kosalas; before whom perished the Kashmiri warriors; who weakened the Mithilas; (and) was as it were a god of death to the Malavas; who brought distress on the shameful Chedis; who was to the Kurus what a storm is to trees; (and)
900-484: Was probably deputed to oversee the territory on the Chandela-Parmara frontier. Yashovarman's reign marked the beginning of the famous Chandela-era art and architecture. He acquired a prestigious statue of Vaikuntha Vishnu from his overlord Devapala, and commissioned the Lakshmana Temple at Khajuraho . This is the earliest example of Nagara architecture at Khajuraho. He is also said to have commissioned
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