part of the bodigai or bodhika
lotus-wax mode of casting metal image i.e. (fr.) cire-perdue
interspace between walls
Madhyamā (मध्यम), middle
First string sarini producing a middle note on the vina instrument.
main temple-gateway/gopuram with 7 to 16 storeys (cf. maha-maryada)
large assembly hall; Pillared hall immediately in front of the ardha-mandapa, or antarala, or the proximal half of a mandapa with two seriate pillars, closed or open, in cave temples.
main temple-gateway/gopuram with 7 to 16 storeys (cf. maha-gopura)
great soul
Mahāḷuṅga (महाळुंग) is a fruit held by Devi.
Projected nose-like part from the side of the griva and sikhara showing the frontal aspects of apsidal vimana’s and having pillars with surmounting arched torana’s.
a royal pose of sitting at ease; seated pose of ease like a king, with the right hand resting on the knee of the bent right leg; sitting at ease (cf. ardhaparyanka, ardhaparyankasana and rajalilasana)
Mahārājalīlāsana (महाराजलीलासन) or Rājalīlāsana is a sitting posture with one leg folded at the hip, touching the thigh of the other, which hangs with the heels slightly raised above the pedestal which is touched only by the toe or a… Continue Reading →
the future Buddha
an ornamental motif developed from an alligator or a crocodile head with a floriated tail; mythical sea creature combining elements of fish, crocodile, lion and elephant, symbolising life giving power of the water
a clasp with the motif of a makara
a golden ornament worn in the centre of the head dress with the makara motif below
a stiff necklace with a makara motif
(also makara-kuntala); ear ornament with a makara motif
makara decoration on a crown
Entrance decoration with a festoon – straight or arched, spanning the tops of two columns, the festoon or torana being a decorative garland or scroll issuing from mouth of makara’s (crocodiles), placed over the capitals of the supporting stambha’s. Such… Continue Reading →
Makarāsana (Sanskrit: मकरासन), Standing posture on a pedestal, contrived in form of a Makara, a seamonster.
Makuṭa (मकुट) means a crown (cf. mukuta)
looped garland
Apex of pillars or pilaster shaft below capital with looped garland (mala) hanging from the padma-bandha.
Mānāṅgula (मानाङ्गुल), digit (finger-breadth); basic measuring unit for idols; unit of measurement (cf. Angula); 12 Aṅgulas = 1 Vitasti 6 Yavas = 1 Adhama-mānāṅgula (inferior inch measure), 7 Yavas = 1 Madhyama-mānāṅgula (middling inch measure), 8 Yavas = 1 Uttama-mānāṅgula… Continue Reading →
halo (cf. bha-mandala); Maṇḍala (मण्डल), in it the feet are four Tala’s apart and they are obliquely placed and turned sideways, the waist and the knee are in the natural position. Relates to Indra.
territorial division within a kingdom
(also mandapam, Tamil: மண்டபம்) open or closed pillared or astylar hall; place of assembly
auspicious string on neck (of females)
a necklace with a motif of mangoes
influential guild of medieval merchants in South India
ninth-century Shaivite poet-saint who lived after the sixty-three nayanmar; one of the nalvar (‘Revered Four’)
string of beads
Tamil classification of women: a nubile girl twelve to thirteen years old
chant
Tamil classification of women: an ingénue fourteen to nineteen years of age
pearl-festoons
Sanskrit name for the headgear
silence
Mayūrapiccha (मयूरपिच्छ) are feathers of peacock.
broad girdle
Meṣa (मेष), ram; Carried by Śiva in earlier images. Later images show a buck (Mṛiga).
goddess enshrined at Madurai; literally ‘fish-eyed one’
human figures
liberation
Mṛga (मृग) is a deer or buck and symbolizes gentleness as well as attentiveness.
gesture of the hand; hand poses (cf. hasta)
the frontal motif of any ornament
First or frontal mandapa of a series at the entrance of a temple, often synonymous with maha-mandapa in earlier temples.
facade
Mukuṭa (मुकुट) means a crown (cf. makuta)
deity enshrined in the temple sanctum
inner or most sacred chamber of the temple, the sanctum sanctorum (cf. garbhagriha)
the central deity is located near the centre of temple; the mulavar is usually made of stone images in most South Indian temples
the petals of a lotus flower: part of the capital of a pillar (cf. stambham), (munai, Modern Tamil: முனை)
Muraḷī (मुरली) is a flute or pipe made from a thin and hollow bamboo (cf. Venu).
manifestation of divinity; Is a devotional image, such as a statue or icon, of a deity or saint used during puja and/or in other customary forms of actively expressing devotion or reverence.
Musala (मुसल) refers to the Indian wooden pestle.
dwarf-like figure signifying ignorance and darkness, upon whom Shiva as Nataraja dances in conquest; Tamil version of Sanskrit term ‘Apasmara’
chieftains and landowners in pre-Chola Tamil Nadu who became Chola feudatories
‘Revered Three’ Shaivite poet-saints – child saint Sambandar, Appar and Sundarar (cf. nalvar)
the demon under the foot of Nataraja, see also apasmara
A fruit, refers to the ‘Emblic myrobalan’ and represents a type of fruit-bearing plant (cf. amalaka).
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