About the Book :
Kanchi, the ancient capital city of the South, teems with historic temples of great beauty and grandeur. The magnificent temple of Lord Varadaraja, situated in Vashnu-Knachi, has played a remarkable part in fostering the growth of Sri-Vaishnavismn and has justly been ranked with the famous temples of Srirangam and Tirupti as the holiest of the holies.
This is the first comprehensive and illustrated treatise on this hoary temple, focussing attention on the various aspects like the origin and the growth of the temple, critical review of the temple traditions, the role of the temple in the growth of Sri-Vaishnavism, the association of the acharyas like Ramanuja with the temple, besides the pivotal role the temple has played in the social and cultural life of the community. The vast literature that has grown round the temple and the five hundred and odd inscriptions that crowd the wall-spaces of the shrines provide a sumptuous sources material for this study.
One of the largest temple complexes of South India, the temple persents interesting variety of architectural and sculptural styles of different schools. The temple is particularly rich in Vaishnava-iconography. The book provides a detailed study and interpretation of these features with the help of hitherto unpublished photographs and drawings. The book also brings to light the presence of fine paintings of the Vijayanagar times that are found in the dark cloister around the sanctum.
The book is a distinct contribution to the field of historical and architectural studies of ancient Indian temples.
About the Author
D.V. Raman (b.1934) took his M.A. Degree in History from the University of Madras. He was awarded Master of Letters Degree for his Thesis on The Early History of the Madras, which he has since published. Subsequently, he received his Doctorate (Ph.D.) Degree for his dissertation on Varadarajaswami Temple, Kanchi, Which is being published now. In 1972, he delivered Sir S. Subaramania Iyer Endowment Lectures on Some Aspects of Panadyan History which has been published by the University of Madras. He joined the Archaeological Survey of India in 1957 and has conducted several explorations ands excavations in different historical places of the country. His discoveries in Kanchi and Kaveripattinam are notable among them. He was for some years on the teaching staff of the Post-graduate Department of History, Madurai University. He has worked closely with scholars like Prof. K.A. Nialkanta Sastri whose work on the Cholas, he has translated into Tamil. He has contributed more than thirty papers to the various seminars and learned journals on history, archaeology, art and architecture. He is at present Deputy Superintending Archaeologist in the Archaeological Survey of India.
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