After staying at Orchha, we went on a day-trip to Khajuraho to see the famous hindu temples of the city, UNESCO Heritages Site. The temples of Khajuraho were erected in a period which spanned from 900 to 1150, the golden age of Chandela dynasty, one of the late Rajput dynasties to resist to the muslim invasions of the time. The complex is divided into three groups of temples, the most famous of which is the western group, comprehending the astonishing shaiva (=hindu tradition regarding lord Shiva) temples of Kandariya Mahadeva and Lakshmana.
This amazing complex is know in the west only for its erotic sculptures, whose meaning has been abuntantly discussed in the academic field, but surely misunderstood by the general audience and by the tourists, who tend to see these sculptures with oddity and maybe maliciousness, as the erotic poses are carved outside temples, which, by contrast (for the dichotomy sacred/secular), are supposed to be sacred. This demonstrate the misconception of ancient hinduism - surely less sexophobic than Christianity (no offence, is a fact!) - and the lack of information about the importance of tantrism in the religious understanding and conception of the time. But this is a very complex subject, so I will fly over it...
Anyway, apart from erotic statues (which by the way are not present throughout the complex), there are scultures of everyday life's scenes, nymphs - known as apsaras - and animals, as well as several gorgeous statues of hindu deities, like Ganesh, Lakshmi, Shiva and Vishnu. To clarify one of the western misunderstanding about the sculptures, it has to be pointed out very clearly that not only in the erotic scenes only the common men and women - not the deites! - are involved, but also that the mundane and the divine iconographies are well-distincted, as all the mundane scenes are depicted only on the outward parts of every temple, whereas the divine scuptures are carved in the internal ones.
Besides the temples, the city of Khajuraho itself is a pleasant place to relax and enjoy the beautiful natural surroundings and the lovely and friendly people (aside from the harassing touts!).
We also dined at a alleged italian restaurant - damned food homesickness! - , in which we deceived ourselves on the possibility of eating any actual italian food!
...Hope you enjoy the pictures...
This amazing complex is know in the west only for its erotic sculptures, whose meaning has been abuntantly discussed in the academic field, but surely misunderstood by the general audience and by the tourists, who tend to see these sculptures with oddity and maybe maliciousness, as the erotic poses are carved outside temples, which, by contrast (for the dichotomy sacred/secular), are supposed to be sacred. This demonstrate the misconception of ancient hinduism - surely less sexophobic than Christianity (no offence, is a fact!) - and the lack of information about the importance of tantrism in the religious understanding and conception of the time. But this is a very complex subject, so I will fly over it...
Anyway, apart from erotic statues (which by the way are not present throughout the complex), there are scultures of everyday life's scenes, nymphs - known as apsaras - and animals, as well as several gorgeous statues of hindu deities, like Ganesh, Lakshmi, Shiva and Vishnu. To clarify one of the western misunderstanding about the sculptures, it has to be pointed out very clearly that not only in the erotic scenes only the common men and women - not the deites! - are involved, but also that the mundane and the divine iconographies are well-distincted, as all the mundane scenes are depicted only on the outward parts of every temple, whereas the divine scuptures are carved in the internal ones.
Besides the temples, the city of Khajuraho itself is a pleasant place to relax and enjoy the beautiful natural surroundings and the lovely and friendly people (aside from the harassing touts!).
We also dined at a alleged italian restaurant - damned food homesickness! - , in which we deceived ourselves on the possibility of eating any actual italian food!
...Hope you enjoy the pictures...
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