Remarkable and Previously Unknown Treasures Revealed by Tsunami

[Dover]

The Times


From Catherine Philp in Meyyurkuppam, Tamil Nadu

Rock carvings and parts of buildings lead to claims of mythical city of Mahabalipuram being discovered, and a Buddhist sage sits underneath the tree yards from the sea from which he was plucked

http://images.thetimes.co.uk/TGD/picture/0,,203487,00.jpg

...When the giant wave crashed into coastlines across the Indian Ocean, it took thousands of lives with it, erasing villages, destroying bridges, roads and fishing fleets.

But on this little stretch of the Tamil Nadu coast, it brought treasures too, unearthing ancient ruins and sending unfamiliar idols into the arms of the faithful.


At Mahabalipuram, when the tsunami fell back from the shore it took with it tonnes of sand from the beach, laying bare the forgotten ruins of a 7th-century temple and a rock covered with beautiful carvings of tigers, elephants and horses.

Archaeologists say that the new find indicates a “giant superstructure” that once stood on the beach, dating from the Pallava period from which Mahabalipuram’s other temples also date.

While important, however, they are causing nothing like the fuss of the other tantalising glimpse into the past that villagers here believe the tsunami showed them.

As the waters of the sea receded 500 metres from Mahabalipuram’s beachfront temple, mesmerised observers say that they saw very clearly on the ocean floor a series of pagoda-like temples apparently swallowed up by the sea in the past few hundred years.

“I saw them there as clearly as I see you here now,” Krishnan, a shell vendor, said. “We stared in awe and then we ran for our lives.” Archaeologists believe that the ruins could be part of the mythical city of Mahabalipuram, which legend says was so beautiful that the gods sent a flood that engulfed six of its seven temples....cont'd

http://travel.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,10295-1635303,00.html

The tsunami giveth and it taketh away....

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Temples Of Mahabalipuram



South Indian temple architecture has its origins on the sandy beaches of Mahabalipuram. The style, which started here, went on to reach incredible heights in the temples in Kanchipuram, Thanjavur (Tanjore), and Madurai. The sculptural extravaganza of Mahabalipuram is a living testament of the artistic temperament of the Pallavas who were the trendsetters in South Indian art.

Mahabalipuram is supposed to be the handiwork of three monarchs: Mahendravarman I (AD 600-630), Narasimhavarman I (AD 630-666), and Narasimhavarman II (AD 700-728). Hence, there are three distinctly discernible styles of sculpture reflecting progressive degrees of refinement. One school of thought attributes this wonderland in stone entirely to the multi-faceted artistic genius of Rajasthan, though the coastal village itself derives its name from Narasimhavarman I, hailed as Mamallan or Mahamalla (great wrestler).

The story behind the foundation of Tughlaqabad is an interesting one. Ghazi Malik, the founder of the Tughlaq dynasty, was once a slave of Mubarak Khilji, the last Khilji sultan. One day, while walking by the area where the Tughlaqabad Fort is now located, Ghazi Malik suggested to his master that the rocky prominence would be an ideal site for building a fort. The Khilji sultan laughed at his slave and suggested that the slave build a fort there when he became a sultan. When Ghazi Malik, as Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq, founded the Tughlaq Dynasty in 1321, he did just that-Tughlaqabad is Delhi's most colossal and awesome fort, even in its ruined state.

http://www.touristplacesinindia.com/temple-tours/other-temples.html

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Interesting discussion about these legendary undersea temples and reference to some books on the subject here:

http://www.grahamhancock.com/features/maat_methods-p5.htm

[neweurope]

1. Fascinating. There usually is a least a tiny shred of truth

in old legends. I'd like to see a better picture of this rock; it seems to be quite beautiful.

--------------

Remember Fallujah

Bush to The Hague!

[anitar1]

2. Thank you, Dover.

You always turn up the most interesting articles . Nice to read about something besides the usual for a change.

[Dover]

4. Thanks. It's nice to get reminders of the "magic" and wonder of life

It does us all a world of good.

[LostInAnomie]

3. That's neat.

[gate of the sun]

5. I hope it ends up showing us something

wonderful about ourselves......not that that can change suffering.

[Dover]

That top picture is reminiscent of the final scene of Planets of the Apes

where the statue of liberty is sticking out of the sand.



Such are the larger planetary cycles...civilizations come and gone.

[Dover]

6. .

[AlphaCentauri]

7. Great post

thanks