Temples in Bahur

Bahur is a small village situated in the union territory of Pondicherry. It lies about 12 miles (19.31 km.) from the town of Pondicherry on the road to Cuddalore.

Sri Mulasthanam Udaiyar temple

In the 8th century a.d., it was a great centre of Sanskrit studies; the Vidyasthana there had provision for Chaturdasa Vidya—fourteen branches of learning (i.e. the four Vedas, the six Vedangas, Mimamsa, Nyaya, Dharma Sastra and). In the 8th year of the Pallava king Nrpatungavarman, a grant of three villages as endowment to this Vidyasthana was made by the minister of the king, Marttandan alias Nilai-tangi; their revenues were to be enjoyed by the residents of this great seat of learning (vide the Bahur Plates).

Bahur is known in inscriptions as Vahur in Vahur- nadu included in the division of Vesalippadi. The name Vahur gets an alternate name, Sri Alagiya Chola Chaturvedimangalam, from the 25th year of Rajaraja I onwards. The presiding deity of this temple is called Sri Mulasthanam Udaiya Perumandigal or Parames-varar. The earliest inscriptions on its walls are six of Kannara-deva (Krishna III, Rashtrakuta), ranging from his 22nd to his 27th years. One of his 26th year (172 of 1902: SII, VII, 799) mentions a gift of four stone-slabs towards the construction of the padai (a tier or layer) of this temple by one Naminakkan Sankaran. From this it may be inferred that the temple built of stone was nearing completion about this time. Hence it should be considered a temple built in the latter part of the 10th century, the period of Parantaka I and Krishna III.

There are six inscriptions of Kannaradeva, three of his 22nd regnal year, one of his 26th year, and two of his 27th year (SII, VII, Nos. 802, 804, 799, 810 and 811).

There is also an inscription of the fifth regnal year of Kop-Parakesari “who took the head of the Pandya” i.e. Aditya II. It records the gift of a perpetual lamp by Nambi Damodaran (SII, VII, No. 800).

The temple has undergone modifications in later times; but the walls of the sanctum and the devakoshta figures of Dancing Ganesa (south) and Brahma (north) can be considered parts of the original temple. The pilasters have a square shaft with kalasam, kumbham and palagai, and the brackets are angular in profile. Below the cornice, there is a bhutagana frieze. The cornice has kudus semi-circular in shape with a human head in the centre and a simha head at the top. Sacred bulls adorn the four corners of the floor of the griva.

There are a number of dancing figures on the walls of this temple.

The late Jouveau-Dubreuil considered this temple as one marking the transition from the Pallava to the Chola style of architecture.^[1] It can be safely included among the Early Chola temples of the latter half of the 10th century.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Vide Revue Historique de L’Inde Francis, Vol. VII, 1948 pp. 162-168 and plates I to XIX.