Konark

Konark କୋଣାର୍କ Konārka, Konârak
Town
Sun temple, Konark
Konark Location in Odisha, India
Coordinates:
Country	India
State	Odisha
District	Puri
Elevation	2 m (7 ft)
Population (2001)
• Total	15,015
Languages
• Official	Odia
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Website	http://konark.nic.in

Konark (Odia: କୋଣାର୍କ) is a medium town in the Puri district in the state of Odisha, India. It lies on the coast by the Bay of Bengal, 65 kilometers from the capital of the state, Bhubaneswar. It is the site of the 13th-century Sun Temple, also known as the Black Pagoda, built in black granite during the reign of Narasimhadeva-I. The temple is a World Heritage Site. The temple is now mostly in ruins, and a collection of its sculptures is housed in the Sun Temple Museum, which is run by the Archaeological Survey of India.

Konark is also home to an annual dance festival called Konark Dance Festival, held every December, devoted to classical Indian dance forms, including the traditional classical dance of Odisha, Odissi.

On 16 February 1980, Konark lay directly on the path of a total solar eclipse.

Etymology

The name Konârka is derived from the Sanskrit word Kona (meaning angle) and word Arka (meaning sun) in reference to the temple which was dedicated to the Sun god Surya.

The Sun Temple

Main article: Konark Sun Temple

Konark Sun Temple

The Sun Temple was built in the 13th century and designed as a gigantic chariot of the Sun God, Surya, with twelve pairs of ornamented wheels pulled by seven horses. Some of the wheels are 3 meters wide. Only six of the seven horse still stand today. The temple fell into disuse after an envoy of Jahangir desecrated the temple in the early 17th century.

The Sun temple belongs to the Kalingan school of Indian temple architecture. The alignment of the Sun Temple is along the East-West direction. The inner sanctum or vimana used to be surmounted by a tower or shikara but it was razed in the 19th century. The audience hall or jagamohana still stands and comprises majority of the ruins. The roof of the dance hall or natmandir has fallen off. It stands at the eastern end of the ruins on a raised platform.

History

In 1559, Mukunda Gajapati came to throne in Cuttack. He aligned himself as an ally of Akbar and an enemy of the Sultan of Bengal, Sulaiman Khan Karrani. After a few battles, Odisha finally fell. The fall was also aided by the internal turmoil of the state. In 1568, the Konark temple was said damaged by the army of Kalapahad, a general of the Sultan. Kalapahad is also said to be responsible for damages to several other temples during the conquest.

Demographics

As of 2011 India census, Konark had a population of 16,779. Males constitute 8,654 (52%) of the population and females 8,125 (48%).As of 2001 Census Konark has an average literacy rate of 57%, lower than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 64%, and female literacy is 49%. In Konark, 14% of the population is under 6 years of age.

See also

Biranchinarayan Temple, Buguda, a similar sun temple in Odisha.

Further reading

• G.C. Chauley, Sun Temple of Konark: History and Preservation ISBN 978-81-86867-73-0
• Ranjan Kumar Singh, Surya: The God and His Abode ISBN 81-903561-7-8

External links

• Konark, World Heritage Site, UNESCO
• Konark (Official Site), Tourism Department, Government of Odisha
• Konark travel guide from Wikivoyage