Sirpur Group of Monuments – History

Sirpur Group of Monuments – History

Sirpur was known as Shripur and Sripura (city of Lakshmi, goddess of wealth, prosperity and auspiciousness) in ancient Indian texts and inscriptions. It was an important Hindu, Buddhist and Jain settlement of the South Kosala kingdom between the 5^th and the 12^th century CE. Sirpur was the capital city with major commercial and religious significance for the Dakshina Kosala kingdom in the second half of the 1^st millennium CE. The earliest documented evidence states that it was first a capital of Sharabhapuriya dynasty, followed by Panduvamshi dynasty. 

The Sharabhapuriya dynasty itself is dated to the late 5^th century CE, but inscriptions mention its first capital to be Sharabhapura, as yet an unknown site. The abundant inscriptions of the mid-6^th Century CE in the region mention the Hindu Shaiva king Teevardeva and 8^th Century King Shivagupta Balarjuna establishing temples and monasteries for Hindus, Buddhists and Jains in his kingdom. The Chinese pilgrim and traveler Huan T'sang mentions visiting Sirpur in 639 CE in his memoirs. He wrote that the king was a Kshatriya and benevolent to the Buddhists, the region was prosperous.

According to his memoir, some 10,000 Mahayana Buddhist bhikshus (monks) lived here in some 100 monasteries, and there were over 100 temples. The earliest dated Sirpur monument is the Lakshmana Temple, dated to 595 – 605 Century CE. Along with it, numerous other temples along the Mahanadi River stretching over 150 kilometres (93 mi) from Rajim to Kharod have been located and dated to between 600 and 710 Century CE. The South Kosala kingdom, along with the capital Sirpur, was taken over by the Kalachuri dynasty in the 11^th century, with eastern parts of the South Kosala taken over by the Somavamshi kingdom to their east.

The 12^th century and 13^th century history of the region is unclear.  Excavations in the region have yielded layers of deposits, traceable from the mid-1^st millennium BCE, the Gupta Empire period, through the late medieval period with the youngest layer of deposits being ruins mixed with chillum (smoke pipe) and Sultanate era coins suggesting that Sirpur was an active human settlement at least through the early Delhi Sultanate.

Archaeological Excavations:

The architecture value of Sirpur was noticed by Dr Beglar when he visited this town in 1872. Lakshmana Temple and Surang Tila were excavated during his time. Sirpur became a major archaeological site after it was visited in 1882 by Alexander Cunningham, a colonial British India official. His report on a Lakshmana temple at Sirpur brought it to international attention. The site remained neglected in early 20^th Century during the decades of the World Wars, and excavations resumed in 1953. Dr M G Dixit further carried our excavation on behalf of the University of Sagar during 1953 to 1955. Ananda Prabhu Buddha Vihara and Swastika Vihara among other small temples were found during his excavations.

There were further excavations in 1990s and then particularly after 2003 when 184 mounds were identified and some selectively excavated. Those excavations have so far yielded 12 Buddhist Viharas, 1 Jain Vihara, monolithic idols of Buddha and Mahavira, 22 Shiva temples and 5 Vishnu Temples, Shakti and Tantric Temples, 6^th / 7^th Century underground granary market and Snana Kund (bath house). The site shows extensive syncretism, where Buddhist and Jain statues or motifs intermingle with Shiva, Vishnu and Devi Temples. Mr. A K Sharma and his assistant Mr Prabhat are doing excavations at present on behalf of Chattisgarh Government.

Decline of Sirpur:

There are two theories on the decline of popularity of Sirpur City. The first theory is an earthquake leveled the entire region and people abandoned the capital and the kingdom. Another theory is a catastrophic destruction after invasion and plunder. Coins of Sultan Alauddin Khilji of the Delhi Sultanate have been found among the ruins which supports the invasion. The discovery of Khilji era coins mixed with the ruins during the excavation can be attributed to other reasons such as trade between Delhi Sultanate and Dakshina Kosala kingdom.

Bronze Sculptures:

Sirpur is also a major archaeological site for bronze sculptures from the early medieval period. Sirpur was a significant bronze workshop of ancient India and the Buddhist bronze artwork excavated from Sirpur are among the finest bronze sculptures of that era. There are striking similarities between the artwork in Sirpur and the Ellora Caves as well as Ratnagiri and this may suggest a flow of ideas and artists between the two regions.

In Media:

In Ancient Aliens series of the History TV, Surang Tila has been mentioned to be made by extraterrestrial knowledge.