0:00:06 > 0:00:11The Indus River gave its name to India and along its banks
0:00:11 > 0:00:15are the sites of some of the earliest urban settlements on earth.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18Though the sub-continent was the birthplace of many
0:00:18 > 0:00:22of the world's great religions, excavations of these cities
0:00:22 > 0:00:26have uncovered no evidence of any organised religious practices.
0:00:29 > 0:00:32But in the last 2,000 years a culture of religious
0:00:32 > 0:00:35tolerance developed amongst the many faiths of these lands.
0:00:37 > 0:00:41Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism all originated here, and the Mughal
0:00:41 > 0:00:45conquerors built their Islamic mosques alongside Hindu temples.
0:00:47 > 0:00:50In 1582, when Europe was in the grip of almost continuous
0:00:50 > 0:00:55religious conflict between Christian sects, the Mughal Emperor
0:00:55 > 0:00:58Akbar the Great exhorted his philosophers to seek a way for all
0:00:58 > 0:01:00religions in his empire to co-exist.
0:01:02 > 0:01:05To some extent this is still a society that is
0:01:05 > 0:01:08tolerant of religious difference, but the balance has shifted
0:01:08 > 0:01:12and today Hinduism is the majority faith in India
0:01:12 > 0:01:16and consequently the third most popular religion in the world.
0:01:18 > 0:01:22Hinduism has been evolving for thousands of years and its current
0:01:22 > 0:01:26dominant status has been achieved by its willingness to change, its
0:01:26 > 0:01:30genius for adapting to the changing circumstances of its followers,
0:01:30 > 0:01:33absorbing the customs and beliefs of different faiths as it grew.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38The temples constructed to nurture this faith are some of the
0:01:38 > 0:01:42greatest architectural treasures in India and in this last programme
0:01:42 > 0:01:47of the series we are in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50This is where Hindu temple culture reached its zenith and there is
0:01:50 > 0:01:55no better place to understand the story of these remarkable buildings.
0:02:03 > 0:02:07MAN SINGS
0:02:15 > 0:02:17India is a country of over a billion people
0:02:17 > 0:02:21and the Hindu majority understand and interpret their existence
0:02:21 > 0:02:24in terms of their relationship with the divine.
0:02:26 > 0:02:30Their faith, a complex synthesis of many ancient beliefs,
0:02:30 > 0:02:32is inseparable from their everyday lives.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37The sacred and the profane are inextricably entwined.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43Even some of its most ardent followers will tell you that
0:02:43 > 0:02:47Hinduism is not a religion but a cultural phenomenon.
0:02:52 > 0:02:56The word Hindu is also derived from the mighty Indus river.
0:02:58 > 0:03:01And for those who have not grown up in its homeland this most
0:03:01 > 0:03:04Indian of faiths can be difficult to understand.
0:03:06 > 0:03:09The myriad Hindu deities inhabit another dimension
0:03:09 > 0:03:13but its followers believe that the world in which we live is
0:03:13 > 0:03:17illusory and the goal is to break through this illusion
0:03:17 > 0:03:19and discover the reality beyond.
0:03:23 > 0:03:26The locus for this quest is the temple.
0:03:29 > 0:03:33The Hindu temple is where the divide between illusion
0:03:33 > 0:03:37and reality is at its most porous, where the opportunity to
0:03:37 > 0:03:40achieve darshan, a vision of the divine, is most possible.
0:03:42 > 0:03:46Every community in India, great or small, will have its own temple.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50The centre of its social and spiritual life. And these places
0:03:50 > 0:03:54have fostered the greatest flowering of Hindu artistic expression.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59I've been studying these buildings for over 20 years.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02They are remarkable works of art in their own right, but they are
0:04:02 > 0:04:07also the cradle of creativity for sculpture, poetry, music and dance.
0:04:07 > 0:04:11The very heart of a vibrant culture that is beating as strongly as ever.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14My fascination began as a student,
0:04:14 > 0:04:17when I set out across this landscape on a scooter
0:04:17 > 0:04:21and discovered a way of life that stretches back over millennia.
0:04:35 > 0:04:39Descending from the arid Deccan plateau the flat and forested
0:04:39 > 0:04:43landscape of southern India is very different to the north.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47This is a land apart - ethnically and culturally distinct,
0:04:47 > 0:04:50and with a separate history.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53Even the Mughal conquest did not reach this far south.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57In the 6th century a dynasty known as the Pallavas came to
0:04:57 > 0:05:00power in southern India.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03Their empire thrived on trade, and the town of Mahabalipuram,
0:05:03 > 0:05:07on the Coromandel Coast, was their principal port.
0:05:17 > 0:05:21Fishing is now the mainstay of this coast, part of the modern state of
0:05:21 > 0:05:25Tamil Nadu, but in a golden age in the 7th and 8th centuries the
0:05:25 > 0:05:29Pallava kings turned Mahabalipuram into an artisan laboratory
0:05:29 > 0:05:35for the craft of stone carving and it now has World Heritage status.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42Beached like a petrified ship to the south of the town is one
0:05:42 > 0:05:47of the earliest free-standing stone temples in India, the Shore Temple.
0:05:50 > 0:05:54When this temple was built many of the elements of temple design
0:05:54 > 0:05:58had already become standardised but the origins of this
0:05:58 > 0:06:01architectural form are not buildings at all.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07A few hundred yards inland from the Shore Temple is
0:06:07 > 0:06:10a shrine from the start of the Pallava period that helps us
0:06:10 > 0:06:15appreciate why these buildings evolved in the way they did.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18Like many caves and natural rock formations in India,
0:06:18 > 0:06:22an opening in this granite overhang has been enlarged and shaped
0:06:22 > 0:06:26over many generations to provide a site to worship local gods.
0:06:28 > 0:06:31The earliest temples were built at potent natural sites where it
0:06:31 > 0:06:35was believed that these unfathomable beings were most likely to
0:06:35 > 0:06:36reveal themselves.
0:06:38 > 0:06:41These shrines could have been as simple as a clearing
0:06:41 > 0:06:45in the forest, a source of spring water or, as in this case, a cave.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50What they all shared was a setting where the natural
0:06:50 > 0:06:52energy of the earth seemed to manifest itself.
0:06:54 > 0:06:58This remarkable rock architecture is 1,400 years old,
0:06:58 > 0:07:01and the men who carved it were trying to harness
0:07:01 > 0:07:03the spirit of the stone from which it is formed.
0:07:05 > 0:07:07These beams mimic timber cross-members
0:07:07 > 0:07:12and the whole structure was formed in imitation of wooden temples.
0:07:12 > 0:07:14The columns appear to be holding the roof up
0:07:14 > 0:07:17but it is all made from the living rock.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21Inside is a small,
0:07:21 > 0:07:26dark womb-like chamber where very little natural light penetrates and
0:07:26 > 0:07:31this is regarded as the most sacred part of the temple, the sanctum.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34On the back wall is a carved panel which tells us that this
0:07:34 > 0:07:39temple is dedicated to Shiva, shown here with his consort, Parvati.
0:07:41 > 0:07:43On the side-wall is a panel showing Vishnu,
0:07:43 > 0:07:46reclining on the primordial waters.
0:07:46 > 0:07:51Shiva and Vishnu are two of the principle gods of Hinduism.
0:07:51 > 0:07:56Here in this early temple we see both Vishnu and Shiva co-exist,
0:07:56 > 0:07:57but that won't last.
0:07:59 > 0:08:01As Hinduism evolved,
0:08:01 > 0:08:05here in southern India Shiva became the more popular deity,
0:08:05 > 0:08:07while in the north Vishnu is more common
0:08:07 > 0:08:10but both are aspects of the divine.
0:08:11 > 0:08:15At the time these cave temples were made by far the most popular
0:08:15 > 0:08:19faith in India was Buddhism and the people who worshipped here
0:08:19 > 0:08:22would have been most surprised to discover they would one day
0:08:22 > 0:08:26be regarded as part of an organised religion called Hinduism.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36The earliest animist practices saw the spirit of the earth
0:08:36 > 0:08:39and its power manifest in all natural things.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44Despite its selection of recognisable Hindu deities,
0:08:44 > 0:08:48this isolated rural shrine in a forest clearing has
0:08:48 > 0:08:50a powerful sense of mystery.
0:08:50 > 0:08:54When it was first venerated by the local villagers it would have
0:08:54 > 0:08:55had little to do with Shiva.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59The many hundreds of clay horses gently
0:08:59 > 0:09:02decaying in the undergrowth tell us that this
0:09:02 > 0:09:06shrine is dedicated to Ayyanar, a deity who protects rural
0:09:06 > 0:09:10villages and is almost exclusively found in Tamil Nadu.
0:09:11 > 0:09:15He rides around on horseback fighting the demons of the forest.
0:09:17 > 0:09:21The inspiration for this holy place was spiritual rather than
0:09:21 > 0:09:25religious - a potent nexus for the essence of the forest.
0:09:31 > 0:09:35A similar sense of the power of natural forces is
0:09:35 > 0:09:37evident by the shore at Mahabalipuram.
0:09:38 > 0:09:40Set back from the sea we find the next
0:09:40 > 0:09:43phase in the development of the Pallava stone carvers.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49A row of rocky outcrops and boulders allowed them to work on a relatively
0:09:49 > 0:09:53modest scale to try out some of their ideas for rock-cut temples.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00These are the rathas, a word that means chariot,
0:10:00 > 0:10:03and they are the first free-standing rock-cut temples in Indian
0:10:03 > 0:10:07architecture and they are completely without precedent.
0:10:09 > 0:10:13The rathas are not strictly temples because they were never finished
0:10:13 > 0:10:17but they functioned as an aesthetic playground for the Pallava kings.
0:10:19 > 0:10:24They are extremely architecturally diverse for the 7th century,
0:10:24 > 0:10:26each one trying out different shapes and layouts
0:10:26 > 0:10:29and with a rich variety of ornamentation.
0:10:29 > 0:10:32The smaller outcrops were used to create animals
0:10:32 > 0:10:34and other mythical figures.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37However there were occasionally botched jobs.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40Imagine the sorry group of stone cutters who stood around this
0:10:40 > 0:10:45magnificent carving of Shiva's bull, Nandi and watched as a natural
0:10:45 > 0:10:48fault in the granite caused his rear end to fall off.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58But this challenge seemed to be one the Pallava craftsmen relished
0:10:58 > 0:11:02and it was in stone that Hindu architecture came to life.
0:11:03 > 0:11:07At the four corners of this last ratha are figures of Shiva and
0:11:07 > 0:11:12other gods, with scripts in ancient Tamil carved in the masonry above.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15One is thought to be the king, Narasimhavarman I,
0:11:15 > 0:11:19with an inscription that proclaims his patronage of the site.
0:11:19 > 0:11:22"Look on my works ye mighty and despair".
0:11:30 > 0:11:34The skills developed in the Pallava times have not been lost.
0:11:34 > 0:11:37In the back alleys of the town today there are hundreds of stone
0:11:37 > 0:11:40artisans chiselling away in ramshackle street studios
0:11:40 > 0:11:44meticulously turning stone into devotional art.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52The granite that these stonemasons are carving is not found
0:11:52 > 0:11:56locally and has to be transported from a quarry 50km away.
0:11:58 > 0:12:02But what Mahabalipuram does have, which makes it the undisputed
0:12:02 > 0:12:05centre of stone carving along this coast, are the craftsmen.
0:12:07 > 0:12:09Right, so the skill is here?
0:12:09 > 0:12:12- Yes, that's right.- Do you take the craftsmen
0:12:12 > 0:12:13to see the ancient temples?
0:12:22 > 0:12:25The apprenticeship to become a master mason here takes a minimum of
0:12:25 > 0:12:30seven years and in that time every aspect of the process is covered.
0:12:31 > 0:12:35The workshop even manufacture their own chisels.
0:12:35 > 0:12:39Do you see the production of sculpture as an act of devotion?
0:12:48 > 0:12:51There is no doubt that the modern carvers have developed their
0:12:51 > 0:12:55own style. Though they are depicting the same deities, these figures
0:12:55 > 0:12:59are subtly different from those we see from 1,000 years ago.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05There is some mechanisation to relieve the more laborious work, and
0:13:05 > 0:13:09there are other welcome innovations, like hot chai at 3:00.
0:13:09 > 0:13:17MUSIC: (Played on traditional Indian Instruments) Everything Stops For Tea
0:13:24 > 0:13:27As well as doing a brisk business with passing tourists
0:13:27 > 0:13:31the masons working in these yards are kept busy supplying
0:13:31 > 0:13:35sculptures to temples all over the world, from Neasden to Nairobi.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40These stone images would be used in temple shrines,
0:13:40 > 0:13:42like this small rock cut building nearby,
0:13:42 > 0:13:46which takes its inspiration straight from the rathas on the beach.
0:13:48 > 0:13:51It consists of nothing more than the shrine-chamber itself
0:13:51 > 0:13:53and a narrow veranda for worshippers.
0:13:54 > 0:13:58So this temple has actually been consecrated with an image
0:13:58 > 0:14:03of Ganesh and people are clearly leaving prayers and lighting lamps.
0:14:06 > 0:14:08Ganesh is Shiva's oldest son
0:14:08 > 0:14:11and as ever there are many versions of his story.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15The most common tells how Parvati gave birth to a boy
0:14:15 > 0:14:18while Shiva was on his travels.
0:14:18 > 0:14:19She went to wash herself
0:14:19 > 0:14:23and told her son not to admit any man to the house while she did so.
0:14:23 > 0:14:27Shiva returned and found his way barred by the youth and,
0:14:27 > 0:14:29in a rage, beheaded him.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32Parvati emerged and revealed the identity of the boy
0:14:32 > 0:14:36and a remorseful Shiva brought him back to life,
0:14:36 > 0:14:39replacing his head with one from a passing elephant.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43Family fidelity was restored.
0:14:44 > 0:14:50As any Bollywood filmgoer will tell you, the Indians love a good yarn.
0:14:50 > 0:14:52This passion for storytelling is extravagantly
0:14:52 > 0:14:55indulged at Mahabalipuram's greatest treasure,
0:14:55 > 0:14:59the low relief carving known as The Descent of the Ganges.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04Carved in the early 7th century at the same time as the rathas,
0:15:04 > 0:15:08this exuberant panorama is packed with life, spilling
0:15:08 > 0:15:12down the faces of two monolithic boulders, some 43 feet high.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17As far as story-telling in stone goes this is pretty hard to beat,
0:15:17 > 0:15:21but it's also an example of inspired planning.
0:15:21 > 0:15:25The sculptors have adapted a natural cleft in the rock to represent
0:15:25 > 0:15:28the story of the Ganges whose life-giving waters are
0:15:28 > 0:15:32so central to the Hindu world view.
0:15:32 > 0:15:34So what are we being shown?
0:15:34 > 0:15:38Well, the simple version is that the mythical sage, Bhagiratha is
0:15:38 > 0:15:42entreating Shiva to bring the celestial river Ganga to earth.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45The gods are rushing to the banks to see this miracle
0:15:45 > 0:15:48and all the creatures of creation are watching in admiration,
0:15:48 > 0:15:51including a family of life-sized elephants.
0:15:52 > 0:15:56It's full of beautifully observed details and comic allusion.
0:15:56 > 0:16:01Bhagiratha is shown as a sadhu, a holy man, balanced on one leg
0:16:01 > 0:16:03but his holiness is somewhat undermined
0:16:03 > 0:16:06when we see his pose imitated lower down by a cat.
0:16:07 > 0:16:12For Hindus, Ganga is personified as a goddess flowing down from a
0:16:12 > 0:16:17faraway source high in the Himalayas to water the plains of India.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20So powerful was her force that Shiva had to break her
0:16:20 > 0:16:25descent by extending his matted locks, lest she flood the earth
0:16:25 > 0:16:29and thus you see the union of male and female forces.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32A more complex alternative is that this is
0:16:32 > 0:16:36an episode from the early Hindu epic tale, The Mahabharata.
0:16:36 > 0:16:40The holy man is in fact a character called Arjuna standing on one
0:16:40 > 0:16:43leg as a penance in the hope that Shiva will grant him
0:16:43 > 0:16:46an invincible weapon to destroy his enemies.
0:16:47 > 0:16:51We don't know which of these two narratives the original artists had
0:16:51 > 0:16:56in mind, but both resist complete explanation with equal stubbornness.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59What we are seeing here is an early example of the taste
0:16:59 > 0:17:02for complex ornament and this seething mass of deities will
0:17:02 > 0:17:06eventually become a staple of temple decoration.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10Lots of people find Hinduism confusing
0:17:10 > 0:17:13because of the multiplicity of gods and goddesses
0:17:13 > 0:17:17but amid this profusion of deities lies a very simple idea.
0:17:17 > 0:17:21These characters are all different aspects of one ultimate
0:17:21 > 0:17:25energy which is beyond name and form.
0:17:25 > 0:17:29So at its core, Hinduism is actually a monotheistic religion.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35For the Pallavas their greatest moment was the construction
0:17:35 > 0:17:39of the Shore Temple, a landmark not just for their own progress
0:17:39 > 0:17:42as masons but for the development of the nascent Hindu faith.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46The Shore Temple marked a significant move towards
0:17:46 > 0:17:49building on a monumental scale.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52But whether it was an architectural masterpiece or a simple
0:17:52 > 0:17:57carving on the back wall of a cave, at the heart of any Hindu
0:17:57 > 0:18:01devotional building is the shrine, the small sacred space where the
0:18:01 > 0:18:05devotee experiences darshan, the presence of the divine.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11As these buildings grew in size it became common to mark
0:18:11 > 0:18:14the presence of the central shrine with an elaborately carved
0:18:14 > 0:18:17tower, known as the vimana which stands as a marker,
0:18:17 > 0:18:21very visibly proclaiming the temple's location to the faithful.
0:18:25 > 0:18:27Though this building is a freestanding structure
0:18:27 > 0:18:30the way the rock is carved harks back to the rathas.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34It is not made of regular stone blocks and mortar
0:18:34 > 0:18:37but huge sections of precisely shaped granite.
0:18:38 > 0:18:42This temple, which has stood here for 12 centuries,
0:18:42 > 0:18:46is only held together by the weight of its component parts
0:18:46 > 0:18:48and a complex system of load distribution.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53Time has proved this to be perfectly sufficient to withstand
0:18:53 > 0:18:55the elements.
0:18:55 > 0:18:59The 2004 tsunami hit this coast with considerable force
0:18:59 > 0:19:00but the building survived.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05The Shore Temple shows just how far early Hinduism had
0:19:05 > 0:19:09come by the 8th century, but there was plenty of opposition
0:19:09 > 0:19:11for the hearts and minds of the people.
0:19:15 > 0:19:19What was needed was a big marketing push to advertise its advantages
0:19:19 > 0:19:22and that is exactly what it got.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27It's too simplistic to suggest that Hinduism was just a more
0:19:27 > 0:19:31attractive religious experience than the Buddhist or Jain alternatives,
0:19:31 > 0:19:35but both these faiths demanded rather a lot from their adherents.
0:19:36 > 0:19:39This is a sculpture of the Buddha during the six years
0:19:39 > 0:19:40he spent fasting.
0:19:41 > 0:19:45After this extensive road test even he acknowledged that this was
0:19:45 > 0:19:47not the way to attain enlightenment.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52But here in Tamil Nadu there was a group of characters who found
0:19:52 > 0:19:54just the right sales pitch for Hinduism,
0:19:54 > 0:19:59a set of holy men called the Nayanmars, or the Hounds of Shiva.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03Between the 7th and the 9th centuries this
0:20:03 > 0:20:06pantheon of 63 mystics and philosophers, also
0:20:06 > 0:20:11known as the Tamil Saints, promoted a new kind of devotional Hinduism.
0:20:13 > 0:20:14They're renowned
0:20:14 > 0:20:18because they travelled through the Tamil country singing
0:20:18 > 0:20:23the praises of the god Shiva in the most extravagant and wonderful way.
0:20:23 > 0:20:28Their poetry today is still even in translation, is intoxicating.
0:20:28 > 0:20:30Yes, it is quite wonderful.
0:20:30 > 0:20:32And why are they so keen on Shiva?
0:20:34 > 0:20:38Well, it's obvious, isn't it? I mean, he's about power.
0:20:38 > 0:20:43He's both creator of life and of the cosmos and he's also the destroyer.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48He's totally different in that respect from Vishnu who
0:20:48 > 0:20:54sits in the middle who's the ideal husband, the ideal king,
0:20:54 > 0:20:57the lord of settled society.
0:20:57 > 0:21:03- Shiva is...- Dynamic.- Very often dynamic and at the extremes.
0:21:03 > 0:21:05So he was very seductive.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08Yes, if you're interested in an exciting life.
0:21:08 > 0:21:09Yes.
0:21:10 > 0:21:13Life was getting exciting for these Hindu revolutionaries,
0:21:13 > 0:21:18their teaching was beginning to win a sizable following.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21While Europe was groping through the Dark Ages,
0:21:21 > 0:21:24in India Hinduism was moving slowly towards the light.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27HE SINGS
0:21:31 > 0:21:35The hymns written by the saints were central to their success.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38The Nayanmars are said to have sung the Buddhists out of India,
0:21:38 > 0:21:42and their songs are still sung in the temples today.
0:21:49 > 0:21:53The Nayanmars offered a path to salvation that was open to all.
0:21:53 > 0:21:56Their great attraction, that they shared with Islamic Sufism which was
0:21:56 > 0:22:00developing around the same time in Northern India, was that a personal
0:22:00 > 0:22:05expression of devotion was the way to become one with the divine.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11Many of the rituals associated with Hinduism today,
0:22:11 > 0:22:13such as the chanting of the names of the deities
0:22:13 > 0:22:18and pilgrimages to holy sites, were established by the Nayanmars.
0:22:19 > 0:22:22But in a practical sense the goal was also to give Hinduism
0:22:22 > 0:22:24a popular face.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27The fantastic array of gods meant that everyone could find their
0:22:27 > 0:22:32own personal deity and set them to work on behalf of their soul.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38But what they were striving for was a structure for Hinduism.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41A way to formalise and codify its disparate rituals,
0:22:41 > 0:22:44to give it order and therefore authority
0:22:44 > 0:22:46and to do that they needed to write it all down.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52Hinduism is not a "religion of the book."
0:22:52 > 0:22:56There is no central source of authority like the Bible or
0:22:56 > 0:23:01the Koran to refer to, to promulgate the absolute word of god
0:23:01 > 0:23:04but that doesn't mean there is any shortage of scripture.
0:23:04 > 0:23:08The whole cannon of Hindu philosophy thrives on debate
0:23:08 > 0:23:11and spiritual enquiry, much of it delightfully contradictory.
0:23:13 > 0:23:15If you tried to collect it all together it would fill
0:23:15 > 0:23:16a myriad libraries.
0:23:19 > 0:23:20What was added to
0:23:20 > 0:23:23this at the time of the Tamil Saints was a far more rigorous
0:23:23 > 0:23:27set of instructions for the devotee, the Agamas.
0:23:34 > 0:23:38The Agamas are a set of rules to guide the Hindu devotee.
0:23:38 > 0:23:40They are incredibly wide ranging,
0:23:40 > 0:23:44offering advice on temple construction, on the intricacies
0:23:44 > 0:23:47of the guru-disciple relationship, on meditations on the nature
0:23:47 > 0:23:53of Lord Shiva, covering every moment of life from waking to sleeping.
0:24:08 > 0:24:11This is the library of the French Institute in Puducherry
0:24:11 > 0:24:14where 8,000 bundles of palm leaves have been
0:24:14 > 0:24:17collected on which the Agamas are inscribed.
0:24:19 > 0:24:20And how did they do the writing?
0:24:33 > 0:24:35The palm leaf is scratched by the stylus
0:24:35 > 0:24:39and then soot is rubbed onto the surface where it bonds with
0:24:39 > 0:24:42the sap to leave the finely intricate script.
0:24:43 > 0:24:47Once state-of-the-art technology, the palm leaf manuscripts
0:24:47 > 0:24:50were painstakingly recopied every 100 years or so to
0:24:50 > 0:24:55preserve them, but these copies lead a pampered life, stored in an
0:24:55 > 0:24:58air conditioned library and are regularly
0:24:58 > 0:25:00painted with lemongrass oil
0:25:00 > 0:25:05to maintain their subtleness and prevent them being eaten by insects.
0:25:05 > 0:25:07HE RECITES FROM PALM LEAF
0:25:12 > 0:25:14The Agamas originated in Tamil Nadu
0:25:14 > 0:25:17and are written in the ancient Tamil language.
0:25:23 > 0:25:27All 8,000 bundles are now being translated before being
0:25:27 > 0:25:31photographed and digitised allowing them to be accessed online.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46The Agamas now gave Hinduism a formal structure that is
0:25:46 > 0:25:48still a keystone of its practice today.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53In the wake of this change, we begin to see a significant
0:25:53 > 0:25:56decline in the Buddhist presence in India.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03Buddhism, a faith that had once counted itself as the main
0:26:03 > 0:26:06religion of India and had been successfully exported to China
0:26:06 > 0:26:09and across Asia, was now destined to disappear
0:26:09 > 0:26:11from the land where the Buddha
0:26:11 > 0:26:14had sat under a tree and attained enlightenment.
0:26:15 > 0:26:19Why this happened is still a matter of fierce debate.
0:26:19 > 0:26:21The two religions share many central beliefs
0:26:21 > 0:26:24and there is some evidence to suggest that Hinduism simply
0:26:24 > 0:26:29absorbed many adherents of Buddhism by borrowing their ideas.
0:26:29 > 0:26:31There may have been some persecution
0:26:31 > 0:26:35but there was no major conflict, just an increasingly rapid
0:26:35 > 0:26:38acceptance of the newly invigorated Hindu teaching.
0:26:46 > 0:26:50Towards the end of the 9th Century a new dynasty established
0:26:50 > 0:26:51itself in Tamil Nadu.
0:26:53 > 0:26:57From their origins on the banks of the Kaveri River the Cholas
0:26:57 > 0:27:00quickly gained control of peninsula India
0:27:00 > 0:27:04and spread their influence into Sri Lanka, ultimately becoming
0:27:04 > 0:27:08the principal military, economic and cultural force in southern Asia.
0:27:12 > 0:27:13Once established,
0:27:13 > 0:27:16they turned their attention to the glorification of their new
0:27:16 > 0:27:22capital, here at Thanjavur, and they certainly left an incredible legacy.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27The Chola dynasty produced many notable kings but perhaps
0:27:27 > 0:27:31the greatest came to the throne at the end of the 11th Century.
0:27:31 > 0:27:35Raja Raja Chola was a rare combination of both
0:27:35 > 0:27:37empire builder and patron of the arts,
0:27:37 > 0:27:38but perhaps his greatest legacy
0:27:38 > 0:27:43is as a builder, and this is his greatest triumph.
0:27:49 > 0:27:52This building was completed in 1010 so has not long
0:27:52 > 0:27:56since celebrated its 1,000th birthday.
0:27:56 > 0:27:58It was started and completed in one continuous
0:27:58 > 0:28:00push during the lifetime of
0:28:00 > 0:28:03Raja Raja Chola, and in the immediate
0:28:03 > 0:28:07aftermath of the Hindu revolution sparked by the Tamil Saints.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10Its 300 years since the Shore Temple at Mahabalipuram
0:28:10 > 0:28:15was built but we can clearly that a great leap forward has occurred.
0:28:15 > 0:28:18It sheer size speaks of a building created for a dominant faith.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23Inscriptions in ancient Tamil tell us
0:28:23 > 0:28:26that Raja Raja Chola was instructed to build the temple in a dream,
0:28:26 > 0:28:31but the real inspiration was surely the architecture of power.
0:28:33 > 0:28:37It is, of course, dedicated to Shiva and the message is clear,
0:28:37 > 0:28:41Raja Raja and Lord Shiva were two sides of the same coin.
0:28:43 > 0:28:47As a work of art it established a distinctive Chola style, both in
0:28:47 > 0:28:51design and ornamentation, which was to last for the next few centuries.
0:28:53 > 0:28:55The multi-faceted columns
0:28:55 > 0:28:59and their projecting square capitals were widely copied, but it
0:28:59 > 0:29:04was the height of the central tower over the shrine, the vimana and its
0:29:04 > 0:29:08monumental gateways, the gopurams that were its greatest innovations.
0:29:12 > 0:29:14The temple gopurams that Raja Raja
0:29:14 > 0:29:16built were more opulently embellished
0:29:16 > 0:29:19and on a far grander scale than had been attempted before.
0:29:19 > 0:29:23In the flat Tamil landscape these mighty stone doorways came to
0:29:23 > 0:29:27dominate the view, announcing the presence of this colossal building.
0:29:29 > 0:29:34So we're entering through the great stone gopuram of Raja Raja...
0:29:34 > 0:29:36Dr Nagaswamy was formerly
0:29:36 > 0:29:38the Director of the Archaeological Survey of India
0:29:38 > 0:29:41and took a particular interest in this building.
0:29:41 > 0:29:44He probably knows more about its construction than
0:29:44 > 0:29:46Raja Raja Chola ever did,
0:29:46 > 0:29:50starting with the very first marker peg the builders set in the earth.
0:29:51 > 0:29:54When the sun rises the shadow will be
0:29:54 > 0:29:59thrown on the western side that will be marked, and then on the same
0:29:59 > 0:30:06day when the sun sets they draw the central line, exact central line.
0:30:06 > 0:30:11The central axis is the basis of the sacred geometry of the temple.
0:30:11 > 0:30:15Along this line the location of the main shrine is determined
0:30:15 > 0:30:19and this point directly below the finial on the central tower,
0:30:19 > 0:30:24the vimana, becomes the focus from which the entire complex is plotted.
0:30:28 > 0:30:30Now in this plan,
0:30:30 > 0:30:35you see the central vimana of the main tower...
0:30:35 > 0:30:37And the inner sanctum.
0:30:37 > 0:30:42Now this is exactly in the centre of this outer square.
0:30:42 > 0:30:48This outer square which you call the back square is the original
0:30:48 > 0:30:56cosmic diagram on which it is laid out and then that is doubled.
0:30:57 > 0:31:00In many ways Raja Raja Chola was only doing what had been
0:31:00 > 0:31:03done before on a monumental scale.
0:31:03 > 0:31:08The vimana is only a few feet shorter than Westminster Abbey.
0:31:08 > 0:31:10But Raja Raja couldn't just do as he pleased here,
0:31:10 > 0:31:13he was bound by the rules laid down in the Agamas.
0:31:15 > 0:31:20They prescribe that you must prepare the measuring scale.
0:31:20 > 0:31:23So what are the measurements of this based on?
0:31:23 > 0:31:27The central finger of the builder Raja Raja Chola.
0:31:28 > 0:31:31I imagine it would take quite a few multiples of Raja Raja's
0:31:31 > 0:31:37middle finger to reach 216 feet to the top of the vimana here,
0:31:37 > 0:31:41but he seemed to have his finger in every aspect of the temple.
0:31:41 > 0:31:45This inscription which says the King Raja Raja
0:31:45 > 0:31:51covered the entire tall vimana at the back with gold.
0:31:51 > 0:31:56Tower is called Maha Meru. Maha Meru means the golden mountain
0:31:56 > 0:32:00beyond the Himalayas which is a mythical mountain
0:32:00 > 0:32:05but that was the place where Shiva is said to reside.
0:32:05 > 0:32:07Yup. Shiva's mountain abode.
0:32:09 > 0:32:12The inscriptions are extraordinarily comprehensive.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15Just like the Tamil Saints who preceded him Raja Raja was
0:32:15 > 0:32:21codifying Hinduism, recording the operational practices of his temple.
0:32:21 > 0:32:25Every detail fully transparent, how much money
0:32:25 > 0:32:30he was given, for what purpose and then he says at the end
0:32:30 > 0:32:36so long as the sun and the moon lasts this gift must be protected.
0:32:38 > 0:32:41The rules of temple architecture which are laid down in the Agamas
0:32:41 > 0:32:45were followed by Raja Raja Chola when he came to build this temple.
0:32:45 > 0:32:48But though he was a man of refined aesthetic taste
0:32:48 > 0:32:50he was also an able administrator.
0:32:54 > 0:32:57Raja Raja created a multi-layered system of government
0:32:57 > 0:33:00in which the temple was the central authority,
0:33:00 > 0:33:04and the largest employer, with a vast permanent workforce that
0:33:04 > 0:33:08included priests and ceremonial officers, financiers,
0:33:08 > 0:33:12maintenance teams, cooks and kitchen staff, but also the most
0:33:12 > 0:33:16talented youngsters in the arts of poetry, singing and dance.
0:33:24 > 0:33:27The Temple dancers were apprenticed at an early age,
0:33:27 > 0:33:29and usually for life.
0:33:29 > 0:33:33The disciplines of classical Hindu dance come from a 2,000 year
0:33:33 > 0:33:37old work called the Natya Shastra, and remarkably, it is
0:33:37 > 0:33:39still being taught today.
0:33:41 > 0:33:43Classical dance is a comprehensive study.
0:33:43 > 0:33:49It is not only the movement of your body, it is a total
0:33:49 > 0:33:52union of all your senses.
0:33:52 > 0:33:53Your body, mind and soul.
0:33:53 > 0:33:57SHE SINGS
0:34:01 > 0:34:03One obvious way in which these skills are still
0:34:03 > 0:34:06evident in modern Indian culture is in the dance
0:34:06 > 0:34:11routines of Bollywood films, but the complex vocabulary of gestures
0:34:11 > 0:34:15that these students are learning has been refined over centuries.
0:34:15 > 0:34:19It's kind of hard because of subtle emotions.
0:34:19 > 0:34:23In today's other art forms which are more popular
0:34:23 > 0:34:26like commercial art forms there is no
0:34:26 > 0:34:32place for subtle emotions. It's all very blatant and very strong.
0:34:32 > 0:34:35But here you can see how subtle can be strong.
0:34:35 > 0:34:37SHE SINGS
0:34:45 > 0:34:47We also need to have that divine connection,
0:34:47 > 0:34:52for people who really believe in it. There are dancers who really
0:34:52 > 0:34:56believe in, you know, connecting with the temple.
0:34:56 > 0:34:59It is very important that it goes beyond cast, creed,
0:34:59 > 0:35:03nationality because ultimately it's a language.
0:35:03 > 0:35:06Yes, it has come out of the temples but now it's a totally
0:35:06 > 0:35:11different scenario. We have festivals organised by the temple authorities
0:35:11 > 0:35:14where dancers are invited to dance in the temple precincts.
0:35:15 > 0:35:18Classical dance is one aspect of temple culture that has
0:35:18 > 0:35:21found its way into mainstream Indian life
0:35:21 > 0:35:24and is now invited back inside the temples to participate
0:35:24 > 0:35:28again in the sacred rituals that originally inspired it.
0:35:30 > 0:35:33Beyond its function as a community centre, workplace
0:35:33 > 0:35:37and school, the primary purpose of a temple was spiritual
0:35:37 > 0:35:40and right at its centre is the shrine of the main
0:35:40 > 0:35:43deity where the devotees come to receive darshan.
0:35:47 > 0:35:50This is the route of circumambulation,
0:35:50 > 0:35:53and it leads us to a powerful image at the heart of Hinduism.
0:35:56 > 0:36:00We move from profane to sacred space as we approach the central shrine.
0:36:02 > 0:36:06In this most potent place is kept a phallic symbol, the lingam.
0:36:08 > 0:36:11The lingam is a smooth column of stone rising out of a circular
0:36:11 > 0:36:14base that represents the female.
0:36:14 > 0:36:16Here we have one in one of the side shrines,
0:36:16 > 0:36:19which shows the yoni, the female yoni,
0:36:19 > 0:36:24with Shiva rising as progenitor of the universe, from the centre of it.
0:36:24 > 0:36:27The lingam represents the presence of Shiva,
0:36:27 > 0:36:29and to gaze on it is to receive darshan.
0:36:31 > 0:36:33The room where it is kept is the direct descendant of the
0:36:33 > 0:36:38recess in the back of the cave that we saw back in Mahabalipuram.
0:36:39 > 0:36:43The surprise is that inside there is no embellishment,
0:36:43 > 0:36:47no grand design, no incredible ornamentation that you
0:36:47 > 0:36:48see on the exterior of the temple -
0:36:48 > 0:36:53just a simple potent space where the devotee can be one with the divine.
0:36:55 > 0:36:59Unlike a church there is no congregation, no liturgy.
0:36:59 > 0:37:01Every temple has its own tradition
0:37:01 > 0:37:04and everyone is on their own journey.
0:37:07 > 0:37:10The Nayanmars concept of supreme personal devotion to
0:37:10 > 0:37:12a god like Shiva, meant that you travelled
0:37:12 > 0:37:16together on your journey through life, but even with Shiva's
0:37:16 > 0:37:21guidance where your journey led you was largely up to you.
0:37:21 > 0:37:24Reincarnation is a central tenet of all the religions that
0:37:24 > 0:37:28originate in India and your behaviour during this life
0:37:28 > 0:37:31will determine how you return in the next.
0:37:34 > 0:37:37The intensely personal nature of Hinduism made it very
0:37:37 > 0:37:40attractive to people of different needs and aspirations.
0:37:40 > 0:37:43Each chose their own journey and selected the gods from whom
0:37:43 > 0:37:46they would seek guidance.
0:37:46 > 0:37:49The object of the journey was to accrue good karma,
0:37:49 > 0:37:53behavioural brownie points, and to ultimately obtain
0:37:53 > 0:37:56release from the endless cycle of birth and rebirth.
0:37:59 > 0:38:02In pursuit of that supreme challenge we can see how the
0:38:02 > 0:38:06form of this remarkable building evolved, channelling worshippers
0:38:06 > 0:38:10towards the central shrine and the presence of the divine.
0:38:10 > 0:38:13It's a long way from a forest clearing.
0:38:13 > 0:38:17By the time it was finished the basic precepts of Hindu worship
0:38:17 > 0:38:22were set in stone, but though this building was the peak of Chola
0:38:22 > 0:38:26artistic achievement their lasting legacy was not in granite at all.
0:38:36 > 0:38:39More than 1,000 years ago it was discovered that the
0:38:39 > 0:38:44sand at this particular bend in the Kaveri river had a purity
0:38:44 > 0:38:46that was supremely good for bronze casting.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51It was in bronze that the Chola craftsmen
0:38:51 > 0:38:54established their artistic heritage, creating beautiful
0:38:54 > 0:38:57works of sculpture that are still being replicated today.
0:38:59 > 0:39:03Just like the stone masons in Mahabalipuram the main subjects
0:39:03 > 0:39:07for the bronze sculptures made here are likenesses of the Hindu deities.
0:39:10 > 0:39:14Today the furnace is powered by this venerable old motor which
0:39:14 > 0:39:18began its working life under the bonnet of an Ambassador taxi,
0:39:18 > 0:39:22but in most other respects nothing has changed here for 1,000 years.
0:39:23 > 0:39:26The figures are made using an ingenious process called
0:39:26 > 0:39:29lost wax casting and the first step
0:39:29 > 0:39:32is to make a wax version of the sculpture.
0:39:32 > 0:39:36The material in this heated basin is actually a mixture of beeswax
0:39:36 > 0:39:40and resin and part of the skill is the constant warming of the wax
0:39:40 > 0:39:42while it is being worked.
0:39:43 > 0:39:45The team all have their own specialities
0:39:45 > 0:39:49and they develop extraordinary speed and dexterity.
0:39:49 > 0:39:53In fact, they make it look so simple I thought I'd have a go.
0:39:53 > 0:39:54OK? Let's go.
0:40:05 > 0:40:07Mine doesn't look like yours
0:40:13 > 0:40:14Ah.
0:40:14 > 0:40:16Then you get the thumb.
0:40:17 > 0:40:19I have to admit, I had a little bit of help.
0:40:22 > 0:40:25Now this is where the all-important mud comes in.
0:40:26 > 0:40:30The wax sculpture is encased in a mould made from Kaveri river
0:40:30 > 0:40:33sand, making sure all the details are retained.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36This is then allowed to dry out.
0:40:37 > 0:40:41For every mould we make two holes and then I put it in a potion
0:40:41 > 0:40:46- and we cover it with iron strings to become more strong.- Sure.
0:40:46 > 0:40:49Then after we heat the mould the wax will be lost here
0:40:49 > 0:40:52so we get a negative hollow inside the mould.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56In the furnace area the moulds are gently
0:40:56 > 0:40:59cooking on a fire on one side of the room to drain away the wax,
0:40:59 > 0:41:04while the bronze is being brought up to temperature in the fire pit.
0:41:04 > 0:41:08Trusting only in the protection of their cotton lunghis the team
0:41:08 > 0:41:09begin to pour the metal.
0:41:11 > 0:41:14There's something incredibly captivating and primordial
0:41:14 > 0:41:19about this fire and also the way all these men work together.
0:41:24 > 0:41:26Even after the moulds have cooled
0:41:26 > 0:41:29and are broken open there's still plenty to do cleaning up
0:41:29 > 0:41:33the figures rough edges, but the end result makes it all worthwhile.
0:41:36 > 0:41:38This is magnificent, look at this.
0:41:39 > 0:41:41This was also made out of one mould.
0:41:41 > 0:41:43Yeah, this is about 800kg.
0:41:44 > 0:41:47Like the stone Shiva lingam in the temple shrine,
0:41:47 > 0:41:49this is another manifestation of Shiva.
0:41:51 > 0:41:55Known as the Nataraja this is an avatar, originally a Hindu
0:41:55 > 0:41:59word for an incarnation of the deity when they descend to the earth.
0:42:00 > 0:42:04In this form Shiva is the cosmic dancer, creating the universe
0:42:04 > 0:42:08while stamping down the dwarf of ignorance.
0:42:08 > 0:42:11- This is the cycle of time? - Exactly.
0:42:11 > 0:42:13The universe and this is the fire circle also
0:42:13 > 0:42:16and it is dancing in the fire circle.
0:42:16 > 0:42:19So how do you achieve this kind of balance?
0:42:19 > 0:42:21In the wax we make the measurement, even though
0:42:21 > 0:42:24the circle is also coming in to everything is a single mould.
0:42:24 > 0:42:26So you create the whole figure in wax?
0:42:26 > 0:42:27In wax. Exactly.
0:42:27 > 0:42:30So part of preserving the tradition is not just
0:42:30 > 0:42:33preserving the product but also the process.
0:42:33 > 0:42:34Exactly.
0:42:36 > 0:42:40These bronze deities are made in every size, from the largest
0:42:40 > 0:42:44temple figures to the smallest domestic gods for a bedroom shrine.
0:42:45 > 0:42:50The material allows for a fluidity of movement, softer expressions
0:42:50 > 0:42:54and gestures, communicating messages of benevolence and forgiveness,
0:42:54 > 0:42:58and the more beautiful and refined the bronze god is the more
0:42:58 > 0:43:02likely the spirit of the real deity is to inhabit the sculpture.
0:43:05 > 0:43:07The other great advantage to a sculpture
0:43:07 > 0:43:10cast in bronze as opposed to stone was that it was portable.
0:43:14 > 0:43:19For centuries the stone gods in the temple shrines were a fixed
0:43:19 > 0:43:22and immoveable presence, drawing the faithful to darshan,
0:43:22 > 0:43:25but the advent of portable bronze figures meant that the
0:43:25 > 0:43:28deities could leave their shrines.
0:43:31 > 0:43:35This is Madurai, one of the great temple cities of South India.
0:43:35 > 0:43:38The figure on the palanquin is, once again, Shiva.
0:43:38 > 0:43:41He is being taken on a nightly excursion around the temple
0:43:41 > 0:43:43and this ceremony shows how devotional practices
0:43:43 > 0:43:46changed in the period after the Tamil Saints.
0:43:54 > 0:43:58The bronze statue of Shiva is hidden from our view behind the curtains
0:43:58 > 0:44:01but for the priests carrying him he is very real.
0:44:03 > 0:44:06He is being taken to spend the night with his consort, Parvati,
0:44:06 > 0:44:10known here by the name of one of her avatars, Meenakshi,
0:44:10 > 0:44:14and the tryst will take place in her shrine.
0:44:14 > 0:44:16These golden footprints represent Shiva
0:44:16 > 0:44:20descending from his palanquin to enter Meenakshi's shrine.
0:44:22 > 0:44:23The local legend tells us that Shiva
0:44:23 > 0:44:26and Meenakshi were married in Madurai in a ceremony performed
0:44:26 > 0:44:31by Vishnu and after a long and happy life together as rulers of the
0:44:31 > 0:44:35town they assumed divine form and she became the deity of this temple.
0:44:38 > 0:44:41There may seem to be an element of mystical pantomime here,
0:44:41 > 0:44:44an elaborate masque in which the divine couple make
0:44:44 > 0:44:48out behind closed doors, but their mortal followers are being
0:44:48 > 0:44:52shown an activity that they can relate to their own lives.
0:44:52 > 0:44:54The veil of illusion becomes translucent.
0:44:56 > 0:44:59The marriage of Shiva and Meenakshi is consummated anew
0:44:59 > 0:45:03every night, and at dawn Shiva slips away, back to his own shrine.
0:45:07 > 0:45:10Madurai is in the deep south of Tamil Nadu.
0:45:11 > 0:45:15It's over 2,500 years old and was mentioned by Greek travellers
0:45:15 > 0:45:19when the paint was still wet on the Parthenon.
0:45:19 > 0:45:21The sprawling complex of halls
0:45:21 > 0:45:24and courtyards that make up its labyrinthine temple cover an
0:45:24 > 0:45:30area the size of 25 football pitches and it has no less than 14 gopurams.
0:45:35 > 0:45:38The gopura came into its own at the great temple of Madurai
0:45:38 > 0:45:41and it was here that it became a defining feature of temple
0:45:41 > 0:45:44architecture of the south.
0:45:44 > 0:45:47The vimana underwent a corresponding shrinking process
0:45:47 > 0:45:50and was now barely visible from the ground level.
0:45:50 > 0:45:53The other very visible feature is the colourful
0:45:53 > 0:45:55riot of sculpture on the towers.
0:45:55 > 0:45:57These plaster figures proclaim to the faithful just what
0:45:57 > 0:46:01an army of deities are working away on behalf of their soul,
0:46:01 > 0:46:05but the lurid choice of colours is a fairly recent addition.
0:46:07 > 0:46:09The custodians of the temple,
0:46:09 > 0:46:12the priestly class who manage the building and its day-to-day
0:46:12 > 0:46:17affairs, are Brahmins - the top rung of the Indian caste system.
0:46:17 > 0:46:20At the opposite end of the spectrum, are "untouchables",
0:46:20 > 0:46:24not considered worthy to enter the temple shrine, but they too need the
0:46:24 > 0:46:27opportunity to experience darshan.
0:46:28 > 0:46:30The city of Madurai developed
0:46:30 > 0:46:35according to a division of labour and the model on which it is based
0:46:35 > 0:46:39is said to be like the unfurling petals of a lotus flower.
0:46:39 > 0:46:43At its centre is the temple where the Brahmins officiate.
0:46:43 > 0:46:45In the surrounding streets the warrior caste,
0:46:45 > 0:46:47the Kshatriyas are found.
0:46:47 > 0:46:51The next layer is for merchants and landowners, the Vaishya.
0:46:52 > 0:46:56And in the outlying districts live the Sudra, commoners or peasants.
0:46:56 > 0:47:00On the fringes of the city are those without a caste.
0:47:00 > 0:47:03There are 160 Brahmin priests working at this temple
0:47:03 > 0:47:06and it is through their good offices that access to the main
0:47:06 > 0:47:09shrine is regulated.
0:47:09 > 0:47:13In theory they minister to all without fear or favour.
0:47:13 > 0:47:17Rich, poor, able, disabled, there is
0:47:17 > 0:47:25no discrimination among the people to worship
0:47:26 > 0:47:28those who are coming.
0:47:28 > 0:47:30'Things get slightly uncomfortable
0:47:30 > 0:47:33'when it comes to equal access to all areas.'
0:47:33 > 0:47:37How about people who want to go to the inner sanctum?
0:47:37 > 0:47:38Can anybody go?
0:47:38 > 0:47:42Not anybody, because we are the medium for them you know.
0:47:42 > 0:47:43So you're saying there's a system.
0:47:43 > 0:47:47There is a system, a principle, all cannot easily go in.
0:47:49 > 0:47:52For the untouchables who are not permitted to enter the shrine,
0:47:52 > 0:47:55and for those who simply feel they can navigate life without
0:47:55 > 0:48:00the guiding hand of a Brahmin priest, there are alternatives.
0:48:00 > 0:48:03In a corner of the main temple courtyard,
0:48:03 > 0:48:07genuinely accessible to all, there is a small shrine to Ganesh,
0:48:07 > 0:48:10the remover of obstacles, which is extremely busy.
0:48:12 > 0:48:14These worshippers are allowed to touch the deity,
0:48:14 > 0:48:18to make their own offerings and to conduct their own personal
0:48:18 > 0:48:23rituals but by doing so they remain very much part of Hindu practices.
0:48:29 > 0:48:33Familiar religious images are now emerging from the temples
0:48:33 > 0:48:38and becoming part of mainstream Indian life, a process that began
0:48:38 > 0:48:42with the advent of cheap colour printing in the late 19th century.
0:48:42 > 0:48:46The painter Raja Ravi Varma became hugely popular by portraying
0:48:46 > 0:48:50the deities in a contemporary western style using oil paint.
0:48:53 > 0:48:56The performance artist Pushpamala has recreated his familiar
0:48:56 > 0:49:00image of the goddess Lakshmi, casting herself as the deity.
0:49:02 > 0:49:05Lakshmi is of course the goddess of wealth
0:49:05 > 0:49:08but Ravi Varma also created this kind of fair-skinned
0:49:08 > 0:49:11aristocratic ideal Indian woman.
0:49:13 > 0:49:16Pushpamala has also made work based on a series of photographs
0:49:16 > 0:49:20taken by British ethnographers in the 19th century that sought
0:49:20 > 0:49:22to categorise the races of India.
0:49:23 > 0:49:26These images, being regarded as scientific,
0:49:26 > 0:49:30are not concerned to disguise the darker skin of their subjects.
0:49:30 > 0:49:32In fact the Andamanese Islander picture comes
0:49:32 > 0:49:36from a very famous study and they were doing it in all the colonies
0:49:36 > 0:49:40and that was in the sense to control and understand, so that was to kind
0:49:40 > 0:49:43of really, you know, get a grasp on the world
0:49:43 > 0:49:45which was rapidly expanding.
0:49:47 > 0:49:51In fact, the term Hindu only came into widespread
0:49:51 > 0:49:55use during the British Raj and these religious and ethnic classifications
0:49:55 > 0:50:00certainly contributed to the rigidity of the Indian caste system.
0:50:00 > 0:50:03But once these religious stratifications had been
0:50:03 > 0:50:06formulated they became a welcome badge for those they labelled.
0:50:08 > 0:50:10The temple is still the focus for the religious
0:50:10 > 0:50:14life of Hindu communities, but the younger generation are
0:50:14 > 0:50:17growing up in a country where their government now wears this religious
0:50:17 > 0:50:22badge and religion is more present in everyday culture than ever.
0:50:22 > 0:50:25The intensely expressive sculptures that adorn
0:50:25 > 0:50:29the temple gopurams now appear in a new guise.
0:50:29 > 0:50:32The Hindu legends are retold in comic book form
0:50:32 > 0:50:35and these graphic novels have become immensely popular.
0:50:37 > 0:50:39But for a group of young comic book enthusiasts,
0:50:39 > 0:50:43working in a small apartment, these home-grown efforts retelling
0:50:43 > 0:50:46the familiar stories of Shiva need a bit of updating.
0:50:48 > 0:50:50Here's their take on the marriage of Shiva
0:50:50 > 0:50:54and Meenakshi that inspired the night ceremony in Madurai,
0:50:54 > 0:51:00but the scene has now become a mash up of Gotham City and Middle Earth.
0:51:00 > 0:51:03I used to read comics, you know, Superman, Batman.
0:51:03 > 0:51:06I love the graphics in those comics.
0:51:06 > 0:51:10Then I read a few comics from Indian publishing houses, the stories
0:51:10 > 0:51:14were good, but the graphics were a little bit obsolete basically.
0:51:14 > 0:51:16I just see Marvel and
0:51:16 > 0:51:20I see the difference, so I said why not bring these three
0:51:20 > 0:51:26together where I have graphics which are universal and bring in stories
0:51:26 > 0:51:31which touch our Hindu legends and bring in the art of narration
0:51:31 > 0:51:35from Tolkien and make graphic novels with these three elements.
0:51:36 > 0:51:39Although the style of the graphics and the narration are new,
0:51:39 > 0:51:43for a true Hindu there is very little room for innovation
0:51:43 > 0:51:44when it comes to the stories.
0:51:44 > 0:51:46It doesn't make any sense to deviate
0:51:46 > 0:51:50because if the story is there, existed, a lot of people,
0:51:50 > 0:51:53especially the young ones or the youth of today or the
0:51:53 > 0:51:57Y-generation, whatever you may call it, in our country and abroad,
0:51:57 > 0:52:02don't know much about the story and the story itself is so interesting.
0:52:02 > 0:52:04Why do you want to deviate and rock the boat?
0:52:04 > 0:52:07As keen as these guys are on sticking to the authentic
0:52:07 > 0:52:11stories, they have some interesting ideas about Hinduism.
0:52:12 > 0:52:14Hindu was never a religion, I believe.
0:52:14 > 0:52:17My personal view, it is a culture.
0:52:17 > 0:52:19It was a way of living.
0:52:19 > 0:52:22All of the answers are there in the past.
0:52:22 > 0:52:25You know children from all ages look at the graphic novel
0:52:25 > 0:52:29and get attracted. "This is such appealing art. I love it.
0:52:29 > 0:52:32"It's so awesome. It's so cool." OK and then he starts to read
0:52:32 > 0:52:35and that whole process he understands the story.
0:52:35 > 0:52:37That's where we come in.
0:52:42 > 0:52:45However adroit Hinduism is at adapting
0:52:45 > 0:52:49itself to the modern world Hindu philosophy is still difficult
0:52:49 > 0:52:53to reconcile with western notions of religious experience.
0:52:53 > 0:52:56One of the most fundamental disconnects between eastern
0:52:56 > 0:53:00and western thought is represented by Shiva Nataraja,
0:53:00 > 0:53:02and his ring of fire.
0:53:02 > 0:53:06Time is cyclical and all opposites are reconciled in Shiva.
0:53:07 > 0:53:10Today, in many fields India is leading
0:53:10 > 0:53:12global technological progress.
0:53:12 > 0:53:16So how does it reconcile scientific advances with
0:53:16 > 0:53:18ancient myths and legends?
0:53:19 > 0:53:22Victorian Christianity was severely tested by the theories
0:53:22 > 0:53:26of scientists like Charles Darwin and many evangelical
0:53:26 > 0:53:30Christians still cannot accept the scientific truth of evolution.
0:53:30 > 0:53:33Hinduism, it seems, has no such issues.
0:53:34 > 0:53:37Outside the CERN Particle Research Centre in Geneva
0:53:37 > 0:53:42a Shiva Nataraja, donated by the Indian Government, celebrates
0:53:42 > 0:53:45the involvement of many Indian tech companies in the project.
0:53:45 > 0:53:47Whether you call it the
0:53:47 > 0:53:50Large Hadron Collider or Shiva Nataraja,
0:53:50 > 0:53:53the fact that the origins of the universe lie in a ring of
0:53:53 > 0:53:58cosmic energy is just confirmation of something Hindus already knew.
0:53:59 > 0:54:02What took science so long to catch up?
0:54:03 > 0:54:05Does being a Hindu allows you a certain
0:54:05 > 0:54:07freedom of enquiry?
0:54:07 > 0:54:08It does
0:54:08 > 0:54:14because I can be a Hindu without having to subscribe to a particular
0:54:14 > 0:54:20god, to a particular book or to a particular religious practice.
0:54:20 > 0:54:24Which means that I can be completely independent,
0:54:24 > 0:54:28I can have my own view of the world, I can have my own
0:54:28 > 0:54:32view of the universe and I can accommodate different
0:54:32 > 0:54:36views from different systems and synthesise them in my mind.
0:54:40 > 0:54:43For a Hindu the black water, the Indus river or
0:54:43 > 0:54:46the Indian Ocean mark the boundaries of their homeland.
0:54:48 > 0:54:51In the days before mass travel to cross the black water
0:54:51 > 0:54:54and leave India was to cease to be a Hindu
0:54:54 > 0:54:58and the rise of Hindu nationalism has reinforced the idea that
0:54:58 > 0:55:02to be Indian is to be Hindu, and vice versa.
0:55:02 > 0:55:06But Hindu nationalism is directly at odds with its inclusive
0:55:06 > 0:55:10tradition and as India emerges as a major economic force
0:55:10 > 0:55:14at the forefront of globalisation the role of Hinduism in its
0:55:14 > 0:55:17society is becoming incendiary.
0:55:21 > 0:55:23It's total chaos here.
0:55:23 > 0:55:25This is the festival of Karthikai Deepam,
0:55:25 > 0:55:28and since we're in the Tamil heartlands of southern India
0:55:28 > 0:55:33we have yet another festival which celebrates the multi-faceted Shiva.
0:55:33 > 0:55:37The central story tells how, in a moment of celestial
0:55:37 > 0:55:42competitiveness, Shiva appeared to Vishnu and Brahma as an endless
0:55:42 > 0:55:47flame of light and challenged them to find his head and his feet.
0:55:47 > 0:55:50To cut a long story short, and it is a long story, they fail
0:55:50 > 0:55:53and Shiva remains supreme.
0:55:53 > 0:55:56Like so many other elements of Hinduism,
0:55:56 > 0:56:00this festival offers the devotee a bewildering array of choices.
0:56:00 > 0:56:03The basic tale has become freighted with other cargo, competing
0:56:03 > 0:56:07traditions that obscure the central meaning with excess baggage.
0:56:08 > 0:56:12In one tradition the oil lamps ward off evil forces
0:56:12 > 0:56:16and bring prosperity and joy. In another the relationship of
0:56:16 > 0:56:19brothers and sisters is remembered and siblings exchange gifts.
0:56:21 > 0:56:24Yet another tale is the alignment of six stars at this
0:56:24 > 0:56:28point in the year, said to represent the six faces of Murugan,
0:56:28 > 0:56:29the Hindu god of war.
0:56:31 > 0:56:34The complexity that results from this
0:56:34 > 0:56:38amalgamation of myth and celebration makes it impossible to give
0:56:38 > 0:56:42a simple answer to the question, "What is this festival for?"
0:56:44 > 0:56:45Perhaps there is no answer,
0:56:45 > 0:56:48and perhaps there doesn't need to be one.
0:56:48 > 0:56:50It means something different to each person,
0:56:50 > 0:56:52but everyone can enjoy it together.
0:56:52 > 0:56:56And in this simple fact lies the secret to Hinduism's success.
0:57:01 > 0:57:04The temples are as busy as they have ever been and as their
0:57:04 > 0:57:08traditions spill out into mainstream Indian life once more,
0:57:08 > 0:57:11their devotees are still seeking answers to questions
0:57:11 > 0:57:12that are eternal.
0:57:16 > 0:57:19The many different religions that have vied for the souls of
0:57:19 > 0:57:23the faithful over the centuries have left a rich legacy in these lands.
0:57:24 > 0:57:28The haunting relics of the Buddhist culture are now just ruins
0:57:28 > 0:57:31but their beautiful devotional art reminds us
0:57:31 > 0:57:33of their remarkable achievements.
0:57:35 > 0:57:37The great mosques and mausoleums of the Mughal
0:57:37 > 0:57:40conquest are architectural masterpieces,
0:57:40 > 0:57:44venerated around the world and the skill of their painters and their
0:57:44 > 0:57:49musical heritage are as cherished today as they have always been.
0:57:49 > 0:57:515,000 years ago,
0:57:51 > 0:57:54when the first great urban settlements grew up on the banks
0:57:54 > 0:57:59of the Indus River, the citizens had to devise ways of living together
0:57:59 > 0:58:04in some of the world's first cities and they face similar problems now.
0:58:04 > 0:58:08But as we know, in the Hindu world-view time is cyclical,
0:58:08 > 0:58:10not linear.
0:58:10 > 0:58:13The cities of these lands today have to find new
0:58:13 > 0:58:17strategies to support vast populations but they have a genius
0:58:17 > 0:58:22for coping with immense challenges, and as they strive towards solutions
0:58:22 > 0:58:26it is perhaps some comfort to know that they have been here before.
0:58:26 > 0:58:31In the West, time marches on, but here, what goes around comes around.
0:58:33 > 0:58:36MUSIC: I'm Free by The Soup Dragons
0:58:38 > 0:58:41# I'm free to do what I want
0:58:41 > 0:58:44# Any old time
0:58:47 > 0:58:48# I said I'm free
0:58:48 > 0:58:51# To do what I want
0:58:51 > 0:58:52# Any old time
0:58:54 > 0:58:58# Don't be afraid of your freedom. #