The Temple Of The Sun: The Sun Temple of Konark stands on a deserted stretch of coast in Orissa, overlooking the Bay of Bengal. For centuries this once lofty building was used by sailors navigating the shore. They called it the "Black Pagoda," to distinguish it from the "White Pagoda"- the famous Jagannatha temple twenty miles (32-km) up the coast in Puri .

Battered by storms and sea winds, nibbled by salt and sand, the temple seems to be gradually returning to its source, like some majestic galleon that is slowly but surely slipping under the waves. Now the Sun Temple stands nearly two miles (3-km) from the sea, but originally the Bay of Bengal came to within a few yards of the walled enclosure. In times of storm during the monsoons, flood tides still advance menacingly toward it.

The Legends: No one really knows why a temple was erected here, but there are many legends to account for its appearance. The most popular concerns &39Samba&39, the son of Lord Krishna. Samba was inordinately proud of his beauty. So proud that he once made the mistake of ridiculing a celebrated sage, &39Narada&39, who was not renowned for his looks. Narada was not amused.

Always mischievous, he decided to have his revenge on the arrogant boy. He managed to lure the unsuspecting Samba to the pool where his stepmothers, the luscious consorts of Krishna, were bathin? in joyful abandon. When Krishna heard that his son had become a peeping tom, he was furious and cursed him with leprosy. Realizing later that the innocent boy had been tricked by Narada&39s cunning, Krishna was mortified.

But he could not revoke his course; all he could do was advise his son to worship the sun god &39Surya&39, healer of all diseases, and hope for a cure. After twelve years of penance and worship, Samba was at last instructed by Surya to go and bathe in the sea at Konark. He did so and was cured of his awful affliction. Samba was so delighted that he decided there and then to erect a Surya temple on these spot. It was called "Konark", "Place of the Sun," from which the modern name comes.

Historical Facts Vs Myths: The temple was actually built by a king of the medieval &39Ganga&39 dynasty, "Narasingha Deva". The king was popularly known as "Langulia", "the one with a tail." It is possible that he built the temple as a supplication to Surya to remove a spinal swelling of some sort.

In the eyes of his subjects, such an act would imply that &39Narasingha&39 was a descendant of, or even a reincarnation of, Krishna&39s very own son. It was not unheard of for kings to align themselves in this way with the great heroes of antiquity or even with gods. To discover the roots of one&39s family tree securely planted in heaven could be a distinct advantage.

A less romantic explanation is that Narasingha built the temple to commemorate his victories over the Muslims, who were pushing into Orissa from the west. During his reign he won at least three resounding victories over the invaders.

Even the Muslims grudgingly admitted that a Ganga king could, at a moment&39s notice, take the field with eighteen thousand men. And it was in Orissa that the first armed rebellions against the British took place in the early 19th century. This concern with martial arts invaded even the religious sphere. The priests at the Jagannatha temple in Puri were renowned for their physical prowess and exercised daily in the famous religious gymnasia. The &39Pandits&39 were accomplished and respected wrestlers.

Many of the common Orissan surnames, such as &39Dalai&39 and &39Senapati&39, originated in Ganga times. Interestingly, the higher posts in the army were held by the priestly Brahmin caste; thus &39Bahinapati&39 is a common Brahmin name.

Narasingha himself was more renowned for his valor than his piety. This, combined with Orissa&39s impressive military history, supports the theory that Konark was a colossal tower of victory, erected to the sun god in thanks for his earthly representative&39s victory over the dreaded Muslim. The profusion of carvings, on and around the temple, depicting military subjects, seems to confirm it.

At the end of the 16th century, Konark was famous far beyond the borders of Orissa. By then, it had become a great center of pilgrimage and attracted the praise of even such a discriminating critic as Abul Fazl, the court biographer of Emperor Akbar the Great.

All that now remains from those glory days is the ruined half of the main temple. Nevertheless, this mere fragment of Konark&39s former glory constitutes what is often considered to be the most impressive temple in northern India.

History Of The Temple: The Entr?nce to the temple is done from the Vantage Point, which is situated on the south wall of the complex, behind the two rearing figures of the Royal Horses. From here one can get the best view of the site as a whole. The temple originally consisted of three parts: sanctuary surmounted by a colossal spire tower, porch and the detached Hall of Dance. A wall surrounded the whole complex.

An Abode of Sun God: The temple was conceived as a massive chariot lying on an east-west axis, in which the Sun god, Surya, was pulled across the sky. Each day his journey brought life and light back to earth and his procession was a continual rejoicing. The chariot had twenty-four wheels, and was pulled by seven horses, representing the seven days of the week and the seven sages who govern the constellations.

Sun worship is central to India. The standard daily prayer of the Brahmins is the &39Gayatri&39, addressed to the sun, and on an esoteric level, the sun symbolizes the divine Self within. The idea of procession is also an integral part of temple worship. Deities are shown to the public on feast days and festivals and are pulled around the town in brightly decorated chariots. The most famous of these processions takes place every July, in nearby Puri. This is the festival of the Jagannatha Temple. A form of Vishnu, Shri Jagannatha, is paraded in an enormous chariot.

To the west of the Sun temple stand the remains of two earlier structures: the "Vaishnava temple" and the "Mayadev temple". Thus looking from left to right across the site, one can trace a progression beginning with the earliest structure, the Vaishnava temple, and ending with the latest, the Hall of Dance.