Search:
Bhakti List Archives

Re: painted gopurams

From the Bhakti List Archives

vasan • August 9, 1999 


Dear Mani and Members,
     Actually i am surprised that this question did not surface earlier.
Its difficult to comprehend on how one can come up with colors such as these.
The only reasoning behind this may be as follows.

White/Beige etc., are difficult to be perceived from a distance, especially with
the sun shining and the blinding effect thereof. However, colors such as blue,
red, green have wavelengths that are more easily seen from a distance, and its a
way of indicating the presence of the temple (like our traffic lights).

Maybe people prefer dark or loud colors, and the presence of these colors is
considered aesthetic. If i am not mistaken , Kapaleeshwarar koil in Mylapore was
one of the first big temples to adopt this concept ( i will refrain from saying
who the chief minister was at that time).  Irrespective of which temple adorns
these colors, they make the temple look too materialistic.
 Isn't the Rajagopuram also colored in a similar way? I am sure Thirumalai is
not.

So, Mani, i guess all of us have to accept the Temple Colors, unless one wants
to undertake the mammoth task of re-painting the temples. As long as they leave
the idols intact, i can live with any unsightly color.

adiyen, ramanuja dasan
(srinivasan)