Chausath Yogini Temple, Morena
– The Temple
The temple is located on a hill
which is about 100 feet (30 m) in height and there are 100 steps to climb
leading to the entrance of the temple. It is often stated that Delhi's Parliament House which
was built in the 1920s has been patterned on the lines of this circular-shaped
temple. There is, however, no reliable basis for this. This circular
temple commands a splendid view of the cultivated fields below. The Temple is
also called as Ekattatso Mahadeva Temple. This temple is so named because of
the presence of multitude of Shiva Lingas inside its cells.
The temple consists of a
circular peripheral wall which shows different courses of constructions in
different times. The topmost course of the wall, composed of bricks and
limestone, was the addition during the conservation activities taken up by the
Gwalior Archaeological Department. On this outer wall are placed various small
niches, at regular intervals, many of which are empty now and few are equipped
with couples in different poses.
It is externally circular in
shape with a radius of 170 feet (52 m) and within its interior part it has
64 small chambers, each with a mandapa which
is open and a facia of pilasters and pillars. The roof of the
entire structure is flat including that of another east facing circular temple
within the outer circular wall. A large passage or courtyard lies between the
outer enclosure and the central temple which is dedicated to Lord Shiva. There
is an open porch entrance to this temple. The exterior surface of the outer
wall has carvings of Hindu deities.
Each of the 64 chambers in the
outer circle has an image of Shiva deified in it. However, recent
investigations have confirmed that originally these had a Yogini image deified
in them and hence the temple is known as Chausath Yogini Temple ('Chausath'
here means "Sixty-four"). It is said that the roof over the 64
chambers and the central shrine had towers or shikharas which
were probably removed during later modifications. Within the main central
shrine there are slab coverings which have perforations in them to drain
rainwater to a large underground storage. The pipe lines from the roof lead the
rain water to the storage are also visible.
The design of the temple has
withstood earthquake shocks, without any damage to its circular structural
features, in the past several centuries. The temple is in the Seismic Zone III.
This fact was cited when the issue of safety from earthquake effect of the
Parliament House which is also a circular structure, similar to the Chausath
Yogini Temple, was debated in the Indian Parliament. The temple needs
conservation measures to preserve the ancient monument in good shape.
This circular temple is one
among the very few such temples in India. This is a yogini temple dedicated to
sixty-four yoginis. Other prominent yogini temples in India are located at
Bhedaghat near Jabalpur and Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh, Hirapur and Jharial in
Odisha. The yogini cult was a secretive practice confined to few groups and
individuals. Its secrets are very securely guarded by its proponents and
practitioners that if you are an outsider then it is very hard to know its
rituals and practices. One can know and understand this cult only after
becoming one and joining their community. But the trick is that when one
becomes a part of that community, one also takes an oath to guard its secrets
as others.
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