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Location: 200 KM
from Hyderabad, 90 KM from Mahabubnagar and 27-km From
Kurnool
Previously Known As: Halampuram, Hamalapuram And Alampuram.
Architecture: Chalukyan sculpture
Also Known As: Navabrahmeshwara Theertha
Alampur is located in Mahabubnagar District
and it is home to the very ancient Navabhramma temples
dating back to the 7th century CE. Alampur is located at a
distance of 200 km from Hyderabad. Alampur is considered to
be the western gateway of Sree Sailam, the revered
Jyotirlinga Shivastalam in Andhra Pradesh. The southern,
eastern, and northern gateways are Siddhavattam,
Tripurantakam and Umamaheswaram respectively.
The
Tungabhadra and Krishna are in confluence near Alampur,
which is also known as Dakshina Kailasam (as is Sree
Kalahasti in Southern Andhra Pradesh). Nine temples here
referred to as the Nava Bhramma temples are dedicated to
Shiva.
The Nava Bhramma temples were built by the Badami Chalukyas,
who ruled for about 200 years from the middle of the sixth
century onwards. The Badami Chalukyas built several temples
in Karnataka, and the Alampur temples in Andhra Pradesh.The
Alampur site preserves archeological remains in the form of
temples exhibiting a hybrid style of architecture - dating
back to the 6th-7th centuries CE. Some of the images from
this site are also housed in a museum nearby.
The Nava Bhramma
temples are Taraka Bhramma, Swarga Bhramma, Padma Bhramma,
Bala Bhramma, Garuda Bhramma, Kumara Bhramma, Arka Bhramma,
Vira Bhramma and the Vishwa Bhramma. These temples are all
enclosed in a courtyard on the left bank of the river
Tungabhadra.
The Bala Bhramma
temple is the principal shrine of worship. It dates back to
the year 702 CE - per the inscriptions seen here. Shivaratri
is celebrated in great splendor here.
The Taraka
Bhramma temple is partly in ruins, and it has no image in
the sanctum. It bears telugu inscriptions from the 6th-7th
century CE. The Swarga Bhramma temple with an imposing tower
is considered to be among the finest in Alampur, and is an
excellent specimen of Chalukyan architecture and sculpture.
It contains several sculptures in bas relief, and it dates
back to the end of the 8th century.
The Padma
Bhramma temple partly in ruins, contains a Shivalingam of
clear stone with mirror like finish. The Viswa Bhramma
temple is among the most artistic of the Nava Bhramma
temples. The sculptural work here depicts scenes from the
epics.
Also in the enclosed courtyard is located the Suryanarayana
temple, dating back to the 9th century. This temple has bas
reliefs representing the incarnations of Vishnu. There is
also a Narasimha temple with inscriptions from the period of
Krishna Deva Raya of the Vijayanagar Empire.
Near Alampur, is Papanasam with a cluster of over 20 temples
of varying sizes and styles. The most important of these is
the Papanaseswara temple.
The following are the main temples to see in Alampur:
• Swarga Brahma temple Padma Brahma temple
• Garuda Brahma temple Bala Brahma temple Arka
• Brahma temple Kumara Brahma temple Vira
• Brahma temple Vishva Brahma temple Taraka
• Brahma temple
• 7th Century Chalukyan Sculptures of Alampur
In the cultural history of South India, the emergence of the
Chalukyas of Badami is an important event, particularly in
the field of art and architecture. They caused the
excavations of rock cut temples and construction of
structural temples. Having made use of the locally available
red sand stone, they experimented to blend the
characteristic features of the contemporary Indian
architectural styles--Rekhanaga and Dravida.
This dynasty
controlled the whole of northern Deccan. The Chalukyas were
supporters of Brahmanical Hinduism with its life and
exuberant vitality. This resulted in their prolific building
activities which evolved their special style of
architecture.
Chalukyas architecture reflects from the following images,
which still can be seen at Alampur. |
