Difference between temples of north india and south india
Answers
Answer :
North – South is a very broad distinction. India has three types of temple architectures (broadly speaking). Nagara (between Himalayas and Vindyas), Dravida (South of Deccan) and Vesara (Deccan region). But for the purpose of this question, I will combine Dravida and Vesara as "South Indian". Here are the differences:
Size of Temples:
The first obvious difference you would see between North and South Indian temples is the sheer size. Southern temples are much larger in comparision. It is fair to say that, South Indian kings invested a lot in temples than their palaces, which is quite the opposite in the North. Srirangam Ranganathar temple in Tamilnadu occupies an area of 156 acres, making it the largest working worship place in the world. In perspective, the entire area of the country of Monaco (2 sq. km) can only hold three Srirangam temples. Vatican City can only hold 2/3rd of Srirangam temple. None of the North Indian temples are as grand as these structures.
Srirangam Raja Gopuram of height 239 ft is the tallest temple tower in the world
For a person travelling from South, the first impression of North Indian temples is “wait… that’s it?!”. South Indians aren’t simply accustomed to temples being in modest sizes.
Kedarnath Temple with a breath-taking backdrop
But who needs a grand structure when you have a backdrop with the million dollar view?! North Indian temples are truly gifted in the sense they have more natural beauty to them. The majestic Ganga flowing through Rishikesh, or the breath taking backdrop of Himalayas in Kedarnath and Badrinath adds serenity to these temples. In Sanskrit there is a beautiful word called ‘sanidhyam’ – which means feeling closer to God. North Indian temples are naturally gifted in sanidhyam.
Agamam (ritual modality):
South Indian temples follow very strict agamam culture. Agamam is a set of text that defines the worship, temple traditions and ritual protocols. There are three agamams: Saiva (for Shiva temples) and Vaikanasam & Paancharaatram (for Vishnu temples). Shaiva agamam are quite simple and less formal. In my opinion, rituals in Paancharatra agamam is very elaborate than Vaikanasa agamam. The exception to this agamic culture is Kerala temples where they perform tantric rituals.
Thirumanjanam (daily bath ritual) as per Vaikanasa Agamam in Tirumala temple presided by Pontiff
North Indian temples don't follow this agamic system. From what I have seen, North Indian temples have relaxed rituals. Moreover, the modality of rituals is not unified in all North Indian temples. This even allows common people to touch the idols. In Kashi, you can do abhishekam to Shiva Lingam, and even better, you can hug the idol of Pandurangan in Pandharpur. In south, only temple priests are allowed to touch the idols and perform the rituals because of strict agamam.
Narendra Modi performing abhishekam to Kashi Viswanathar
Forms of divinity in temples:
All South Indian temples have idols being both moolavar (made of stone) and utsavar (usually made of panchalogam – 5 metals – gold, silver, copper, iron, lead). Moolavar stays in the temple and is usually made of hard rock and is represented in black colour. Utsavar is used for temple processions and can be carried outside the temple during festivals.
Srirangam Moolavar and Utsavar. Moolavar in South Indian temples are usually made of black stones
Some Vishnu temples even have up to 5 representations of the main deity. They are called panchaperar namely: Moolavar, Utsavar (used for processions), Yaagaberar (used in yaagams), Kauthugar (metallic miniature of moolavar) and theerthaberar.
In most North Indian temples, the idols are a represented in a very humble way, and they don't have a utsavar idols for processions. White marble representation of deity is quite common in North Indian temples, which is the opposite in South India, where idols are made of black stone.
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Answer:
hii dear you gave a great question to solve . i would definitely help you out.
Explanation:
the temples of south India usually known as the Dravidian groups are much taller and beautiful then that of the northern temples. The reason for this is surely because the kings or the rulers of southern India do a large amount of investment on building to show their strength and popularity. They also believe in the gods. for example the meenakshi temple ,Ramanathaswamy Temple etc.
the another important diference is Rituals:-
The rituals performed in the North Indian temples are very simple when compared to the rituals performed in the South Indian temples. The South Indian temples are used to elaborate methods of rituals.
Architecture:-
Most of the North Indian temples do not contain surrounding corridors and halls, while many South Indian temples like the Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai contain surrounding corridors and halls.
In North Indian temples you can find that the tallest towers are constructed over the sanctum sanctorum. This is not the case with many of the South Indian temples.
Many South Indian temples have processional deities too made of panchaloha an alloy of five metals in additional to the principal deity. These processional deities are not seen in the North Indian temples.
there are many other points which can be discussed . and I love answering these questions because these are not from the books but i shows our interest and skills . hope you like my answer. Actually i am not giving you answer I am just discussing and you will get to know more about these things by archaeologist. ok bye and thanks for asking such a question