Meguti

Author:Laxman Burdak, IFS (R)

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Meguti (मेगुटी) is a hill in Bijapur district of Karnataka state in India. It is site of a Jaina Temple constructed in 634 CE in Chalukya style.

Origin

The word "Meguti" is a corruption of the word "Megudi" and means "upper temple".

Variants

• Meguti मेगुटी, जिला बीजापुर, मैसूर (p.757)
• Megudi

History

There is one Buddhist monument in Aihole, on the Meguti hill. It is a partly rock-cut two-storeyed temple, a few steps below the crest of the hill and the Jain Meguti hill temple. In front of the temple is a damaged Buddha statue, one without a head, probably taken out from inside the temple. The two levels of the temple are open and feature four full carved square pillars and two partial pillars on two side walls. Each pair of pillar goes into the hill to form a small monastery like chamber. The doorway to the lower level chamber is intricately carved, while the central bay on the upper level has a Buddha relief showing him seated under a parasol. The temple is dated to late 6th-century.

The Meguti Jain temple is on the level-topped Meguti hill, above the two-storeyed Buddhist temple, surrounded by the Aihole fort. The north-facing temple is dedicated to a Jain Tirthankara.

The temple has an open portico, leading the devotee into a mandapa and the sanctum. The entire temple sits on a raised platform like many of the Hindu temples in the village. However, the layout inside is distinct. It has a pillared square mukhya-mandapa (main hall), which enters into a narrower square antarala divided into two compartments at different levels. A stair connects the slightly higher level, which leads to the larger square-shaped chamber and sanctum. This section consists of two concentric squares, the inner square being the sanctum, and the space between the outer square and inner square being the pradakshina patha (circumambulation path). However, in the back of this path, a later construction sealed the circumambulation passage, making it more suitable for storage. Inside the inner square is a relatively crude carving of a Tirthankara. In contrast to the crudeness of this carving is the intricate carving of Ambika with attendant female Jaina deities and her lion mount below of the temple, now preserved in the ASI museum in Aihole. A similar carving is found attending the Mahavira in Jain Ellora Caves, and it is therefore likely that this temple was a dedication to the Mahavira. The temple includes a stone stair connecting the lower level to its upper. Though badly damaged, the upper level has a Jain image. It is also a viewpoint to look over the fort as well to watch the Aihole village below.

Meguti Aihole inscription

The Meguti temple is historically important for its Aihole Prashasti inscription. A slab on the outer side wall of the temple is in Sanskrit language and Old Kannada script. It is dated to Saka 556 (634 CE), and is a poem in a variety of Sanskrit metre by Ravikirti about the Hindu king Pulakeshin II. The inscription mentions the Hindu poets Kalidasa and Bharavi, whose Mahabharata-related compositions are subject of friezes in Badami-Aihole-Pattadakal region. The inscription records the Chalukya family and his royal patron's support in the construction of the Meguti Jain temple.

मेगुती कर्नाटक

विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर ने लेख किया है .... मेगुटी (AS, p.757): कर्नाटक राज्य के बीजापुर ज़िले में स्थित है। इस स्थान पर 634 ई. में, चालुक्य वास्तुशैली में निर्मित यह एक महत्त्वपूर्ण जैन मंदिर है. इसमें गर्भगृह के चतुर्दिक पटा हुआ प्रदक्षिणापथ है. इसका शिखर विकास की प्रारंभिक अवस्था का द्योतक है. (कजिंस: आर्कियोलोजिकल सर्वे रिपोर्ट 1907-1908).

पुरातत्त्वज्ञों का मत है कि मेगुती का मंदिर तथा बीजापुर ज़िले के अन्य चालुक्य कालीन मंदिर मुख्यतः उत्तर तथा मध्य भारत के पूर्व-गुप्तकालीन मंदिरों की परम्परा में है। अंतर केवल शिखर की उपस्थिति के कारण है, जो प्राचीन परम्परा के विकसित रूप का परिचायक है. (दे. कजिंस-चालुक्यन आर्किटेक्चर ऑफ द किनारा डिस्ट्रिक्ट)