Underground Shrine Queens Stepwell Patan

Author(s): Jaikishandas Sadani
Publisher: B J Institute of Learning & Research

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9. TEMPLE OF IMMORTAL BLISS
Temple of Immortal Bliss is what the Queen's step-well is. It is the most outstanding creation built by the great masters of Indian Sculpture. We have several temples of great artistic representations throughout the country which hand down to us "our cultural heritage” most benevolently. But there is no underground shrine in the form of a step-well which can match the matchless beauty of this great water reservoir built by the dedicated Queen Udayamati.
Queen's step-well is not a dream like memorial of beauty, but it is a concrete depiction of the salient features of Indian Culture in a pictorial manner which is most lively. Great Bharata of Natyaśāstra had conceived that all the currents of arts had their confluence in the drama and gave us his monumental treatise the Natya Šāstra. He gives detailed suggestions as to how these arts are integrated in literature, music, dance, histrionics, sculptures etc. into aesthetic organism. The artists of the step-well were fully aware of this. The images in the step-well touch almost all important facets of life and give significant meaning to the artistic expression handed down to us in literature, purāņa. kathās, folk lores, dance, music etc. They only enhance spiritual understanding. The soul of these masterly creations is the aesthetically experienced emotion or Rasa. They are visual creations of physiological and psychological expressions of human emotions. The artists of the Vāpi crystalise the multifarious ideas by combining all the human emotions into an aesthetic activity: culminating in an experience of joy or Rasa. Through the medium of these fascinating sculptures the artists arouse these emotions through various sentiments and the Bhāvas. Bharat has categorised eight Rasas to which were added sānta and Vätsalya. They give transcendental experience of Rasa. 1. Śrngāra : Love - (a) Samyoga (meeting) : All Gods and Goddesses with their
consorts.
(b) Viprayoga (Seperation) : Nāyikā writing a letter. 2. Hāsya : Laughter : Nāyikā and the bearded man. 3. Karuņa : Sorrow, compassion sympathy. 4. Raudra : Anger : Śiva Bhairava and Narasimha Avatāra 5. Vira : Bravery : Rāma, Hanumāna
Lo.