Sun Temple Konark
The Konark temple also known as the Black Pagoda is the crowning glory of Oriya temple architecture. It is steeped in the history of centuries and lots of old myths and legends surround this temple.The magnificent Sun Temple at Konark is the culmination of Orissan temple.
Built by the King Narasimhadeva in the thirteenth century, the entire temple was designed in the shape of a colossal chariot with seven horses and twentyfour wheels , carrying the sun god, Surya, across the heavens. Surya has been a popular deity in India since the Vedic period. Konarka' , the place bears a name composed of two World elements : Kona meaning corner and ARKA meaning the Sun. The Sun god worshipped in Ark Kshetra is also called Konark.
In 'Brahma Purana' the Sun God in Ark-kshetra has been described as Konaditya. So it is evident that the place where the Kona aditya (or Kona-arka, the Sun god) was worshipped was also popularly called Konark It is described in Purusottam Mahatmya that Lord Vishnu after killing the demon Gayasur, to commemorate the glory of his victory, placed his Sankha (cronch) in Puri, Chakra (disc) in Bhubaneswar, Gada (mace) in Jajapur and Padma (lotus) in Konark and they were later known as Sankha Kshetra, Chakra Kshetra, Gada Kshetra and Padma Kshetra respectively. This corner on the east sea coast houses the ruins of a temple, exquisitely built to resemble a gigantic chariot with impeccably carved wheels , columns and panels. It stands as a mute reminder of the times when Orissan architecture has reached its pinnacle
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