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Title:
Volume 12 - Issue 1
Date:
1958
Table of contents:
- p. 2-5: Anand, Mulk Raj, K.F., Homage to Orissa [Editorial] | The Orissa ruler Narasimha Deva I (1230-64) was probably inspired in the design of the Konarak temple by the Surya Sataka verses of Mayura Bhatta, the court poet of King Harshavardhana (600-47). The design is rooted in the age-old (vedic and later) worship of the sun as the source of life, light, purity, and health. The motif of the rath (celestial chariot) is related to the Indian building tradition and occurs in ancient literature, south Indian -- Chola and Vijayanagara -- shrines, and the car festival of Lord Jagannath in Puri. However, the form acquired a unique perfection in the monolithic Konarak temple, with its symbolic forms and illusion of flight.
- p. 5-26: Portfolio: The Rising Splendour of the Sun | A conjectural view of the Sun Temple at Konarak (c. 1250) is accompanied by photographs of sculptures from the temple.
- p. 27-32: Mansinha, Mayadhar, Reflections on the Wonder and Enigma of Konarak | The colossal temple at Konarak was built by King Narasimha Deva in the 13th century. The ancient site, with the holy river Chandrabhaga, was -- and still is -- a place of worship every 7th day of the bright fortnight of the Lunar month Magh (January-February). In the time of Narasimha Deva, it was also a prosperous sea-port for trade with Ceylon and the East Indies, as depicted by a sculpture panel. The temple is also a monument of Narasimha Deva's victory over the Muslim invaders, symbolized in the sculptures representing warscenes. Besides, the temple is a grand poem on life and its three central factors of war, worship, and love. It is an example of exceptional engineering skill, and could rate as the world's 8th wonder. The article ends with a narration of the legend concerning the sacrifice of the master builder's son, and the temple's final completion.
- p. 33-43: Fabri, Charles, The Sculpture of the Sun Temple -- A Study in Styles | Following an introduction of the Hindu temple as a total work of art, and the baroque style of the early medieval period as a reflection of the contemporary taste of kings and the laity, the writer distinguishes the sculptures at the Konarak temple (Orissa, c. 13th century) into 7 styles on the basis of varying workmanship.
- p. 44-58: Anand, Mulk Raj, The Great Delight -- An Essay on the Spiritual Background of the Erotic Sculpture of Konarak | The article attempts to remove the misconceptions regarding the Konarak sculptures, and explains the Indian belief that the whole of creation is a result of the union of the male and female principles. The spontaneity of desire expressed in the sculptures is explained in the light of religious and philosophical thought, and the cult of sun worship.
- p. ii, [Supplement to Vol. 12, No. 1]: Anand, Mulk Raj, Prolegomena to Contemporary Indian Painting | The article attempts a revaluation of modern Indian painting. The emphasis of early art teachers like E.B. Havell and Abanindranath Tagore was on recapturing the spiritual past of India. However, the revivalist art of their pupils had disastrous results. Amrita Sher-Gil attempted an integration of the Western strains with indigenous art, and a parallel development occurred in Ceylon with George Keyt. In India, a new direction was imparted to modern art by Rabindranath Tagore and the Calcutta Group. Another development was the revolt by younger artists in Bombay, Delhi, and Madras against revivalism and orthodoxy.